Why Does the ABC Ignore Burkina Faso’s Revolution?
If you searched for 'Ibrahim Traoré' on ABC’s website today, you’d find almost nothing - a few articles years old, disconnected from the seismic shifts now reshaping this West African nation.
The ABC seems content to ignore one of the most important anti-colonial revolutions of our era. Instead of reporting on how a young revolutionary has expelled French military forces, suspended foreign mining licenses (including Russian ones), forged a new regional alliance, and asserted his country’s economic sovereignty, the ABC offers... silence.
Burkina Faso Is Invisible to the ABC
Africa, it seems, is either invisible or unimportant to ABC editorial priorities. Yet what is happening in Burkina Faso today should be headline news for any media organization with a genuine global outlook:
The Expulsion of French Troops: Ibrahim Traoré has ended French military presence, ejecting a former colonial master whose troops operated with impunity for years under the guise of "counterterrorism."
Pan-Africanist and Anti-Colonial Rhetoric: Traoré speaks plainly about neocolonial structures still strangling West Africa, and backs rhetoric with bold, concrete action.
Economic Sovereignty: He has suspended all foreign mining licenses — yes, all of them — determined to reclaim his country's vast gold wealth for Burkinabé development. Is there any other country in the world where a leader has dared to take such a step?
Refusal of IMF Debt Traps: While the IMF offered loans dressed up as “assistance,” Traoré rejected them outright, recognising their strings and how they perpetuate cycles of dependency and policy capture.
Alliance of Sahel States (AES): Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger have forged a new regional military and political alliance, rejecting the ECOWAS bloc’s sanctions and signalling a dramatic shift in West African geopolitics.
Symbolic Reclamation: From replacing colonial-era judicial robes with traditional attire to promoting domestic textile industries, Traoré is restoring cultural dignity alongside economic sovereignty.
Burkina Faso under Traoré isn’t simply tinkering at the edges. It’s attempting nothing less than a revolutionary restructuring of its relationship with former colonial powers, international financial institutions, and exploitative multinationals.
Why the Silence?
Why is ABC News ignoring this?
Is it because Burkina Faso isn’t deemed relevant to Australian audiences? Does the ABC believe that stories from the Global South only matter when they fit a narrative of humanitarian tragedy or Western intervention?
Or is there something more insidious at work — an editorial stance that renders African self-determination invisible because it challenges Australia’s own strategic narratives? When Western interests are displaced in West Africa, perhaps it’s simply more convenient for the ABC to turn away, rather than critically report on why Burkinabé resistance matters.
In failing to cover these developments, the ABC promotes a parochial, insular worldview that positions the Global South as marginal and irrelevant unless its story intersects with Australian or Western interests.
A Demand for Better
Burkina Faso is not invisible. Traoré’s government is engaged in a remarkable experiment: reclaiming resources for the people, breaking free of neocolonial financial domination, prioritizing food sovereignty and agricultural self-reliance (including a new $8 million tomato processing plant), and forging African-led security structures.
In a world grappling with postcolonial justice, debt traps, and resource plunder, Australia’s national broadcaster ought to be reporting these developments — not burying them.
We deserve an answer from the ABC:
* Why has there been no serious, recent coverage of Burkina Faso’s revolution?
* Does the ABC consider anti-colonialism irrelevant to Australia’s understanding of the world?
* When will the ABC recognize that what happens in Ouagadougou matters as much as what happens in Washington or London?
It is time for the ABC to break its silence. The future is being fought for in places like Burkina Faso, and Australian audiences deserve to know about it.
Burkina Faso Is Invisible to the ABC
The ABC’s failure to report on Burkina Faso’s revolution exposes a troubling disregard for African anti-colonial struggles and reinforces an insular, parochial worldview.
Burkina Faso under Ibrahim Traoré is rejecting neocolonial domination, expelling French forces, reclaiming gold resources, and refusing IMF debt traps — but the ABC barely notices. Why does Australia’s national broadcaster ignore one of the world’s most important anti-colonial revolutions?