Captain Thomas Isidore Noël Sankara (December 21, 1949 – October 15, 1987) was the leader of Burkina Faso (formerly known as Upper Volta) from 1983 to 1987. With a potent combination of personal charisma and a social organization with some participatory democracy, his government undertook major initiatives to fight corruption and improve education, agriculture, and the status of women. His revolutionary program provoked strong opposition from traditional leaders, Western governments, and the country's numerically small but powerful middle class. Added to friction between radical and more conservative members of the ruling junta, these factors led to his downfall and assassination in a bloody coup d'état on October 15, 1987, often believed to have been at the instruction of France.[3] http://www. ... List of Heads of State of Burkina Faso (Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office) Affiliations:- See Also:- Burkina Faso Heads of Government of Burkina Faso Colonial Heads of Burkina Faso (Upper Volta) Lists of Incumbents Categories: Burkina Faso | Lists of office-holders ... is the 216th day of the year (217th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ... Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo - President of Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) from 8 November 1982 to 4 August 1983. ... Geographical renaming is the act of changing the name of a geographical feature or area. ... List of Heads of State of Burkina Faso (Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office) Affiliations:- See Also:- Burkina Faso Heads of Government of Burkina Faso Colonial Heads of Burkina Faso (Upper Volta) Lists of Incumbents Categories: Burkina Faso | Lists of office-holders ... is the 216th day of the year (217th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ... Blaise Compaoré (born February 3, 1951) has been the president of Burkina Faso since 1987. ... is the 355th day of the year (356th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1949 (MCMXLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Yako is a town in northern Burkina Faso, once capital of a small state. ... Map showing the Volta river in Upper Volta Upper Volta (French: ) was the name of the African country now called Burkina Faso. ... Location of French West Africa French West Africa (French: ) was a federation of eight French territories in Africa: Mauritania, Senegal, French Sudan (now Mali), French Guinea (now Guinea), Côte dIvoire, Niger, Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) and Dahomey (now Benin). ... is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ... Goblins rule Ouagadougou is run by goblins who come out at night and the people you see walking around in the town are actually goblins in robotic suits that make them look like people. ... Catholic Church redirects here. ... A Captain in armies, air forces and marine forces, is a rank an army or air force rank with a NATO rank code of OF-2. ... is the 355th day of the year (356th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1949 (MCMXLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ... Participatory democracy is a broadly inclusive term for many kinds of consultative decision making which require consultation on important decisions by those who will carry out the decision. ... Coup redirects here. ... is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ...

Early life

Thomas Sankara was the son of Marguerite Sankara (died March 6, 2000) and Sambo Joseph Sankara (1919 – August 4, 2006), a gendarme.^[2] Born into a Roman Catholic family, "Thom'Sank" was a Silmi-Mossi, an ethnic group that originated with marriage between Mossi men and women of the pastoralist Fulani people, the Silmi-Mossi are among the least advantaged in the Mossi caste system. He attended primary school in Gaoua and high school in Bobo-Dioulasso, the country's second city. is the 65th day of the year (66th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full 2000 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar). ... is the 216th day of the year (217th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A gendarmerie or gendarmery (pronounced ) is a military body charged with police duties among civilian populations. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... Mossi is the name of a people living in central Burkina Faso. ... The Fulbhe (singular Pullo) or Fulani is an ethnic group of people spread over many countries in West Africa,Central Africa and as far as East Africa. ... Gaoua is a market town in southern Burkina Faso. ... Bobo-Dioulasso is a city of about 400,000, mainly Dioula, after Ouagadougou the second biggest in Burkina Faso. ... For the North American comedy troupe, see The Second City. ...

His father fought in the French army during World War II and was detained by the Nazis. Sankara's family wanted him to become a Catholic priest. According to some sources,^[3] he never lost his Catholic faith despite his Marxist tendencies. Fittingly for a country with a large Muslim population, he was also familiar with the Qur'an. Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... There is also a collection of Hadith called Sahih Muslim A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم, Persian: Mosalman or Mosalmon Urdu: مسلمان, Turkish: Müslüman, Albanian: Mysliman, Bosnian: Musliman) is an adherent of the religion of Islam. ... The Qur’ān [1] (Arabic: , literally the recitation; also sometimes transliterated as Quran, Koran, or Al-Quran) is the central religious text of Islam. ...

Military career

After basic military training in secondary school in 1966, Sankara began his military career at the age of 19, and a year later he was sent to Madagascar for officer training at Antsirabe where he witnessed popular uprisings in 1971 and 1972. Returning to Upper Volta in 1972, in 1974 he fought in a border war between Upper Volta and Mali. Antsirabé is the third largest city in Madagascar and has a population of approximately 183,000. ...

He became a popular figure in the capital of Ouagadougou. The fact that he was a decent guitarist (he played in a band named “Tout-à-Coup Jazz”) and liked motorbikes may have contributed to his charisma.

In 1976 he became commander of the Commando Training Centre in Pô. In the same year he met Blaise Compaoré in Morocco. During the presidency of Colonel Saye Zerbo a group of young officers formed a secret organisation "Communist Officers' Group" (Regroupement des officiers communistes, or ROC) the best-known members being Henri Zongo, Jean-Baptiste Boukary Lingani, Compaoré and Sankara. Pô is a city in southern Burkina Faso. ... Blaise Compaoré (born February 3, 1951) has been the president of Burkina Faso since 1987. ... Saye Zerbo (born 1932) was a President of Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) from November 25, 1980 to November 7, 1982. ... Henri Zongo was a military officer in the army of Burkina Faso and a key figure in the countrys history after decolonisation. ...

Government posts

Sankara was appointed Secretary of State for Information in the military government in September 1981, journeying to his first cabinet meeting on a bicycle, but he resigned on April 21, 1982 in opposition to what he saw as the regime's anti-labour drift, declaring "Misfortune to those who gag the people!" ("Malheur à ceux qui baillonnent le peuple!") Year 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 111th day of the year (112th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ...

After another coup (November 7, 1982) brought to power Major-Doctor Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo, Sankara became prime minister in January 1983, but he was dismissed (May 17) and placed under house arrest after a visit by the French president's son and African affairs adviser Jean-Christophe Mitterrand. Henri Zongo and Jean-Baptiste Boukary Lingani were also placed under arrest; this caused a popular uprising. is the 311th day of the year (312th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo - President of Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) from 8 November 1982 to 4 August 1983. ... Year 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 137th day of the year (138th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Jean-Christophe Mitterrand is the son of François Mitterrand, a former French president. ...

President

A coup d'état organised by Blaise Compaoré made Sankara President on August 4⁽¹⁾, 1983, at the age of 33. The coup d'état was supported by Libya which was, at the time, on the verge of war with France in Chad⁽²⁾ (see History of Chad). Coup redirects here. ... Blaise Compaoré (born February 3, 1951) has been the president of Burkina Faso since 1987. ... is the 216th day of the year (217th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar). ... // The territory now known as Chad possesses some of the richest archaeological sites in Africa. ...

Sankara saw himself as a revolutionary and was inspired by the examples of Cuba and Ghana's military leader, Flight Lt. Jerry Rawlings. As President, he promoted the "Democratic and Popular Revolution" (Révolution démocratique et populaire, or RDP). This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

The ideology of the Revolution was defined by Sankara as anti-imperialist in a speech of October 2, 1983, the Discours d'orientation politique (DOP), written by his close associate Valère Somé. His policy was oriented toward fighting corruption, promoting reforestation, averting famine, and making education and health real priorities.

Abolition of chiefs' privileges

The government suppressed many of the powers held by tribal chiefs such as their right to receive tribute payment and obligatory labour. The CDRs (Comités de Défense de la Révolution), were formed as popular mass organizations and armed. In some areas they deteriorated into gangs of armed thugs. Sankara's government also initiated a form of military conscription with the SERNAPO (Service National et Populaire). Both were a counterweight to the power of the army.

In 1984, on the first anniversary of his accession, he renamed the country Burkina Faso, meaning "the land of upright people" in Mossi and Djula, the two major languages of the country. He also gave it a new flag and wrote a new national anthem (Une Seule Nuit). This article is about the year. ... Mossi is the name of a people living in central Burkina Faso. ... Bambara, also known as Bamanankan in the language itself, is a language spoken in Mali by as many as six million people (including second language users). ... Le Dytanie (The Dytanie) is the national anthem of Burkina Faso. ...

Women's rights

Sankara's government included a large number of women. Improving women's status was one of Sankara's explicit goals, an unprecedented policy priority in West Africa. His government banned female circumcision, condemned polygamy, and promoted contraception. The Burkinabé government was also the first African government to publicly recognize that AIDS is a major threat to Africa. Female genital cutting (FGC) refers to a number of procedures performed for cultural, rather than medical, reasons on the female genitalia. ... Polygamy has been a feature of human culture since earliest history. ... For other uses, see AIDS (disambiguation). ...

Sankara had a high sense of advertising; he had some spectacular initiatives that contributed to his popularity and brought some attention from the international press on the Burkinabé revolution:

• He sold most of the government fleet of Mercedes cars and made the Renault 5 (the cheapest car sold in Burkina Faso at that time) the official service car of the ministers;
• He formed an all-women motorcycle personal guard.
• In Ouagadougou Sankara converted the army's provisioning store into a state-owned supermarket open to everyone (the first supermarket in the country).

This page is about the Mercedes-Benz brand of automobiles and trucks from the DaimlerChrysler automobile manufacturer. ... The Renault 5 (also called the R5) is a supermini produced by the French automaker Renault in two generations between 1972 and 1996. ...

Second Agacher strip war

In 1985 Burkina Faso organised a general population census. During the census some Fula camps in Mali were visited by mistake by Burkinabé census agents. The Malian government claimed that it was an act of sovereignty on the Agacher strip and on Christmas Day 1985, tensions with Mali erupted in a war that lasted five days and killed about 100 people (most victims were civilians killed by a bomb dropped on the marketplace in Ouahigouya by a Malian MIG-21 plane). The conflict is known as the "Christmas war" in Burkina Faso. This article is about the year. ... “Sovereign” redirects here. ... The Agacher Strip is a 100-mile long strip of land located in northeastern Burkina Faso. ... Ouahigouya is the most important town in northern Burkina Faso. ...

Assassination

On October 15, 1987 Sankara was killed with twelve other officials in a coup d'état organised by his former colleague Blaise Compaoré. Deterioration in relations with neighbouring countries was one of the reasons given by Compaoré for his action. After the coup and although Sankara was known to be dead, some CDRs mounted an armed resistance to the army for several days. Blaise Compaoré (born February 3, 1951) has been the president of Burkina Faso since 1987. ...

Sankara was quickly buried in an unmarked grave. A week prior to his death Sankara addressed people and said that "while revolutionaries as individuals can be murdered, you cannot kill ideas."

Notes :

1. The date may have been chosen for a symbolic purpose as the 194th anniversary of the Abolition of Feudal Privileges in France, but there is no evidence.
2. Chad was at war with Libya. France was providing air support to Chad. According to some witnesses some French troops were involved in ground operations.

Writings by Thomas Sankara

• L'émancipation des femmes et la lutte de libération de l'Afrique (Women's Liberation and the African Freedom Struggle), available in English, French, Spanish, and Persian, Pathfinder Press.
• We Are Heirs of the World's Revolutions, a 76-page pamphlet of Sankara's speeches, Pathfinder Press.
• Thomas Sankara Speaks, the Burkina Faso Revolution, 1983-87, a 338-page collection of Sankara's speeches, Pathfinder Press (www.pathfinderpress.com).

Quotes

"We hope and believe that the best way of limiting the usurpation of power by individuals, military or otherwise, is to put the people in charge. Between fractions, between clans, plots and coups d'etats can be perpetrated. Against the people, a durable coup d'etat cannot be perpetrated. Therefore, the best way of preventing the army from confiscating power for itself and for itself alone is to make this power shared by the voltaic people from the outset. That's what we are aiming for.."

August 21, 1983 press conference.
Source: [4]

"It's really a pity that there are observers who view political events like comic strips. There has to be a Zorro, there has to be a star. No, the problem of Upper Volta is more serious than that. It was a grave mistake to have looked for a man, a star, at all costs, to the point of creating one, that is, to the point of attributing the ownership of the event to captain Sankara, who must have been the brains, etc."

August 21, 1983 press conference.
Source: [5]

"That is the hidden side of November 7 revealed. Mysteries still remain under the cover. History will perhaps be able to speak about it at greater length and to assign responsibilities more clearly."

August 21, 1983 press conference.
Source: [6]

"As for our relationship with the political class, what relations would you have liked us to weave? We explained face to face, directly with the leaders, the former leaders of the former political parties because, for us, these parties do not exist any more, they have been dissolved. And that is very clear. The relationship that we have with them is simply the relationship we have with voltaic citizens, or, if they so wish, the relationship between revolutionaries, if they wish to become revolutionaries. Beyond that, nothing remains but the relationship between revolutionaries and counter-revolutionaries."

August 21, 1983 press conference.
Source: [7]

"I would like to leave behind me the conviction that if we maintain a certain amount of caution and organization we deserve victory[....] You cannot carry out fundamental change without a certain amount of madness. In this case, it comes from nonconformity, the courage to turn your back on the old formulas, the courage to invent the future. It took the madmen of yesterday for us to be able to act with extreme clarity today. I want to be one of those madmen. [...] We must dare to invent the future."

1985

Source: (Excerpt from interviews with Swiss Journalist Jean-Philippe Rapp, translated from Sankara: Un nouveau pouvoir africain by Jean Ziegler. Lausanne, Switzerland: Editions Pierre-Marcel Favre, 1986. Used by permission in following source:) Sankara, Thomas. Thomas Sankara Speaks: The Burkina Faso Revolution 1983-87. trans. Samantha Anderson. New York: Pathfinder, 1988. pp. 141-144.

Writings about Thomas Sankara

• (French) Biographie de Thomas Sankara : La Patrie ou la Mort..., de Bruno Jaffré ISBN : 2-7384-5836-X • 1997 268 pages
• (French) Les années Sankara de la révolution à la Rectification, de Bruno Jaffré ISBN : 2-7384-5967-6 • 1989 new edition in 1997 336 pages
• Le président Thomas SANKARA, Chef de la Révolution Burkinabe: 1983-1987 Portrait de Alfred Yambanga SAWADOGO,Ed. L'Harmattan, Mars 2001. ISBN 2-7475-0588-X
• Thomas SANKARA,"OSER INVENTER L'AVENIR" La parole de Sankara de DAVID GAKUNZI. Ed. PATHFINDER et HARMATTAN, Janvier 2005. ISBN 2-7384-0761-7
• THOMAS SANKARA, L'ESPOIR ASSASSINE de Valere SOME. Ed. L'Harmattan , Janvier 2005. ISBN 2-7384-0568-1

See also

History of Burkina Faso Children of the 1983-1987 revolution Until the end of the 19th century, the history of Burkina Faso was dominated by the empire-building Mossi, who are believed to have come up to their present location from Northern Ghana, (where there exists the ethnically related Dagomba group). ...

External links

• A Grisly Assassination That Will Not Stay Buried (New York Times, 1997 March 10 - 10 years after death)
• Burkina Faso salutes "Africa's Che" Thomas Sankara (Reuters UK, 2007 October 17 - 20th anniversary of death)
• Interview With Aziz Fall On the Assassination of Thomas Sankara (2007 October 17, on efforts to uncover the people behind the assassination)
• Mathaba.net article
• (Spanish) http://www.thomassankara.org/
• (French) Thomas Sankara WebSite
• (French) http://www.afrik.com/article6258.html
• (French) http://fr.allafrica.com/stories/200308041051.html
• (French) http://www.togoforum.com/Ap/ap1015022.htm

For the band, see 1997 (band). ... March 10 is the 69th day of the year (70th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 290th day of the year (291st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 290th day of the year (291st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Notes

v • d • e Heads of state of Burkina Faso
Republic of Upper Volta: Maurice Yaméogo | Sangoulé Lamizana† | Saye Zerbo† | Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo† | Thomas Sankara† Burkina Faso: Thomas Sankara† | Blaise Compaoré † military

v • d • e Prime Ministers of Burkina Faso

Upper Volta (colony; to 1960): Daniel Ouezzin Coulibaly | Maurice Yaméogo | post vacant, 1959-1971 Republic of Upper Volta (1960-1984): Gérard Kango Ouedraogo | Sangoulé Lamizana | Joseph Conombo | Saye Zerbo† | post vacant, 1982-1983 | Thomas Sankara† | post vacant, 1983-1992 Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo - President of Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) from 8 November 1982 to 4 August 1983. ... List of Heads of State of Burkina Faso (Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office) Affiliations:- See Also:- Burkina Faso Heads of Government of Burkina Faso Colonial Heads of Burkina Faso (Upper Volta) Lists of Incumbents Categories: Burkina Faso | Lists of office-holders ... Year 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar). ... This article is about the year. ... List of Heads of State of Burkina Faso (Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office) Affiliations:- See Also:- Burkina Faso Heads of Government of Burkina Faso Colonial Heads of Burkina Faso (Upper Volta) Lists of Incumbents Categories: Burkina Faso | Lists of office-holders ... This article is about the year. ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ... Blaise Compaoré (born February 3, 1951) has been the president of Burkina Faso since 1987. ... List of Heads of State of Burkina Faso (Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office) Affiliations:- See Also:- Burkina Faso Heads of Government of Burkina Faso Colonial Heads of Burkina Faso (Upper Volta) Lists of Incumbents Categories: Burkina Faso | Lists of office-holders ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Map showing the Volta river in Upper Volta Upper Volta (French: ) was the name of the African country now called Burkina Faso. ... Maurice Yaméogo (December 31, 1921-September 9, 1993) was the first President of the Republic of Upper Volta, now called Burkina Faso. ... Lieutenant-Colonel Aboubakar Sangoulé Lamizana (January 31, 1916 – 26 May 2005) was the second president of Upper Volta (since 1984 renamed Burkina Faso), in power from January 3, 1966 to November 25, 1980. ... Saye Zerbo (born 1932) was a President of Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) from November 25, 1980 to November 7, 1982. ... Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo - President of Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) from 8 November 1982 to 4 August 1983. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Burkina_Faso. ... Blaise Compaoré (born February 3, 1951) has been the president of Burkina Faso since 1987. ... List of Heads of Government of Burkina Faso (Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office) Affiliations:- See Also:- Burkina Faso Heads of State of Burkina Faso Colonial Heads of Burkina Faso (Upper Volta) Lists of Incumbents Categories: Burkina Faso ... Map showing the Volta river in Upper Volta Upper Volta (French: ) was the name of the African country now called Burkina Faso. ... Daniel Ouezzin Coulibaly (1909 - December 7, 1958) was president of the governing council of the French colony of Upper Volta, todays Burkina Faso, from May 17, 1957 until his death on September 7, 1958 in Paris. ... Maurice Yaméogo (December 31, 1921-September 9, 1993) was the first President of the Republic of Upper Volta, now called Burkina Faso. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Map showing the Volta river in Upper Volta Upper Volta (French: ) was the name of the African country now called Burkina Faso. ... Gérard Kango Ouedraogo (born 1925) served as Prime Minister of Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) from 13 February 1971 to 8 February 1974. ... Lieutenant-Colonel Aboubakar Sangoulé Lamizana (January 31, 1916 – 26 May 2005) was the second president of Upper Volta (since 1984 renamed Burkina Faso), in power from January 3, 1966 to November 25, 1980. ... Joseph Issoufou Conombo (born February 17, 1917) served as Prime Minister of Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) from 7 July 1978 to 25 November 1980. ... Saye Zerbo (born 1932) was a President of Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) from November 25, 1980 to November 7, 1982. ... Burkina Faso (since 1984): Youssouf Ouédraogo | Roch Marc Christian Kaboré | Kadré Désiré Ouedraogo | Paramanga Ernest Yonli | Tertius Zongo † military