Union for Rebirth / Sankarist Party

The Union for Rebirth / Sankarist Party (Union pour la Renaissance / Parti Sankariste, UNIR / PS) was a political party in Burkina Faso.

History


The party was founded on November 1, 2000. Its president is lawyer Bénéwendé Stanislas Sankara, who bears no family relationship to Thomas Sankara.

The name "Sankarist" party appears to be a reference to both the late President Thomas Sankara and the party's current leader. The party subscribes to Sankarism.

At the legislative elections on 5 May 2002, the party won 2.4% of the popular vote and three out of 111 seats. In the presidential election of 13 November 2005, its candidate Bénéwendé Stanislas Sankara took second place with 4.88% of the popular vote. At the 2007 parliamentary elections, the party won four seats.

Political scientist states that the UNIR/PS was among the opposition parties that participated in the 2014 uprising that ousted Blaise Compaoré, but that it "did not play a major role". The UNIR/PS went on to support the government of Roch Marc Christian Kaboré.

On November 1st, 2021, it was announced that the party merged with the Mouvement Patriotique pour le Salut and other small Sankarist parties and organisations into a new party, the Union pour la Renaissance/ Mouvement patriotique sankariste (Union for Rebirth / Patriotic Sankarist Movement) or UNIR/MPS. Bénéwendé Sankara continued to lead this party until he was succeeded by interim president Augustin Loada in January 2023.