Burkina Faso’s prominent private radio station, Radio Oméga, has been silenced for three months following a decision by the Higher Council for Communication (CSC) to suspend its broadcasting license as of August 2, 2025.
This ban also extends to the station’s online platforms and social media channels.
The suspension stems from a Facebook post in which Radio Oméga referred to the current authorities as the “Burkinabè junta,” a term the media regulator condemned as pejorative, insulting, and inconsistent with journalistic ethics.
The contentious post was linked to coverage of a popular march in Ouagadougou demanding justice for Alino Faso, a Burkinabè influencer who died in detention in Ivory coast.
The station had cited accusations by Burkinabè officials accusing Côte d’Ivoire of harboring opponents, contextualizing this with the controversial “junta” label.
Though Radio Oméga quickly deleted the post and issued an apology admitting “inappropriate language” and lapses in editorial validation, the CSC rejected this as insufficient. The regulator pointed to repeated failures to comply with ethical standards and demanded a more explicit public apology to authorities, the audience, and institutional partners.
This latest sanction marks a significant precedent. In August 2023, Radio Oméga faced a one-month suspension for broadcasting an interview critical of Niger’s new authorities following the coup that ousted Mohamed Bazoum.
The current suspension comes amid a fraught media environment in Burkina Faso, where several foreign outlets have been banned, local journalists exiled, or co-opted into military efforts against jihadist insurgents.
Freedom of expression advocates argue that this case exemplifies the transitional government’s tightening grip on the media landscape. As military authorities consolidate power, the distinction between upholding editorial standards and outright censorship grows increasingly unclear.
Despite the ban, Radio Oméga retains strong popular support. Burkinabè citizens have voiced solidarity with the station’s journalists on social media, decrying the decision as arbitrary and emblematic of an escalating clampdown on free information.
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