The long-awaited trial on the killing of Thomas Sankara, Burkina Faso’s influential leader killed more than three decades ago, has been suspended as a result of the West African country’s recent coup.
The trial has been paused until the constitution is reestablished, a lawyer for the prosecution said Monday.
The suspension comes one week after a military junta overthrew President Roch Marc Christian Kabore, suspended the constitution and dissolved the national assembly.
Prosper Farama, one of the lawyers for the Sankara family called the suspension a good thing that would respect everyone’s rights. “We have to be patient until the constitution is reestablished for things to be legal,” he said.
The president of the military tribunal said the trial would resume 24 hours after the constitution was established.
On Monday, the junta released a seven-page document declaring junta leader, Lt. Col. Paul Henri Sandaogo Damiba, as president and detailing laws for the country. The trial might resume within a few days, according to Farama, the Sankara family lawyer.
Follow our socials Whatsapp, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Google News.
