Death of Activist and Cybercrime Trials Highlight Shrinking Civic Space in Sahel
Alain Christophe Traoré, known popularly as Alino Faso © Facebook Alino Faso
Mapping shrinking civic space in West Africa’s military-led States - Part 4
By Media Foundation for West Africa, published on 7th August 2025
In the Sahel countries and Guinea, a climate of fear is taking root. Transitional military authorities are weaponising anti-cybercrime legislation to suppress dissent and consolidate power with the help of subservient judicial systems.
Anti-cybercrime laws are increasingly eclipsing media laws as the principal legal tool for media regulation and prosecution. Some of the vaguely worded provisions of these laws are now routinely invoked to target journalists, activists, and opposition voices, particularly on social media.
Moussa Mara © MFWA
In Mali, the arrest of former prime minister and political figure Moussa Mara marks another escalation in state efforts to control public discourse. After being barred from leaving the country on July 21, Mara was summoned repeatedly by the Specialised Judicial Unit for Combating Cybercrime and ultimately remanded into police custody on August 1. While authorities have not issued formal charges, media reports suggest his social media criticisms of the transitional government played a central role in his detention.
Mali’s Specialised Judicial Unit for Combating Cybercrime has now become the main method for prosecuting members of the Malian press. On Monday, four journalists and an activist were tried for defamation in two separate cases. Three were convicted and handed suspended prison sentences; two were acquitted.
Alfousseini Togo © WADR
Alfousseini Togo, editor-in-chief of Le Canard de la Venise, received an eight-month suspended sentence and a 500,000 CFA franc (approx. USD 825) fine for “undermining the credibility of the justice system.”
In a civil defamation suit brought by Magistrate Aïssata Diakité, Mamadou Sidibé, alias Gandhi Malien (a pro-junta activist), and Kassim Traoré of Diany Web TV, were given six-month suspended sentences with a fine, while Issiaka Tamboura (Le Soft) and Youssou Traoré, known as Cravate (Renouveau TV), were found not guilty.
Alain Christophe Traoré, known popularly as Alino Faso © Facebook Alino Faso
In Burkina Faso, the death of activist Alain Christophe Traoré, known popularly as Alino Faso, has sent shockwaves through the country. A prominent supporter of the military regime in Ouagadougou, Traoré was arrested in Abidjan on January 10, 2025, accused of “collaborating with agents of a foreign state”. On July 24, 2025, he was found hanged in his prison cell, according to an official statement by the Ivorian authorities. Ivorian authorities have opened an investigation and suggested suicide as the probable cause. However, Burkina Faso’s government suspects foul play and is demanding the return of the activist’s body.
The MFWA reiterates earlier calls to regional and international partners fighting for freedom of expression and democracy in West Africa to take steps to counter the growing assault on free expression and civic space in the Sahel.
