[Guinean news] Legislative elections postponed indefinitely

Guinean legislative elections scheduled for December 29 were postponed indefinitely, by the country's Independent National Electoral Comission. The postponement came in response to opposition demands for a delay to prevent fraud.

[Guinean news] President survives assassination attempts; coup attempt?

Guinean president Alpha Conde survived a middle of the night assassination attempt in which his residence in Conakry was assaulted with bullets and rockets. Three people were killed, including one bodyguard, according to the presidency.

The Canadian Press reported that: Conde was saved because he was sleeping in a different room when the shooting erupted outside his residence at around 3 a.m. Rocket-propelled grenades landed inside the compound and one of his bodyguards was killed, said Francois Louceny Fall, Conde's chief of staff. The bedroom was ripped apart, Conde told French radio RFI.

A second attack on his residence was launched hours later while Conde was meeting with the French ambassador.

Soldiers were quickly deployed throughout the capital.

The CP added: Country watchers had long predicted that holding a democratic vote would be only a first step in ending the army's stranglehold on Guinea. The bigger question is how the new leader relates to the military, whose members had total control of state affairs and who saw their privileges diminished by the election of a civilian president.

Amazingly, the size of the Guinean military quadrupled in the final years of the military junta.

Gen. Nouhou Thiam was one of those arrested, according to police. Thiam was army chief under the previous military regime and one of Conde's first acts was to replace him.

Guinea expert Mike McGovern at Yale University said, "It sounds like a coup attempt from within the army."

Reports indicate that activity in Conakry largely ground to a halt on Tuesday.

[Guinean news] No delay on legislative elections, says AG

The advocacy group Alliance Guinea has called on President Alpha Conde to hold free and fair legislative elections before the end of 2011. The organization has urged the president to abandon the idea of having another national census before legislative elections, to ensure the neutrality of government officials and to encourage an open dialogue on the electoral process.

Their full press release can be read here.

{Guinean news] Conde names new PM

Guinea's newly-installed president Alpha Conde has named Mohamed Said Fofana as his government's new prime minister. Fofana was formerly director of economic research in the country's commerce ministry.

On a related note, a couple of good articles on Guinea's democratic transition include Guinea: Tyranny to Democracy (Liberia's The Analyst) and Guinea's Election An Example to All (VOA).

[Guinean news] Alpha Conde inauguration (video)

The Guinean state television broadcaster RTG's news program offered coverage of Alpha Conde's swearing in as Guinea's first democratically elected president (courtesy of Guineenews).

[Guinean news] Alpha Conde inaugurated while Ivorian refugees flee into Guinea

Former political prisoner Alpha Conde was sworn in today as Guinea's first democratically elected president. He took the oath of office at Conakry's Palais du peuple in front of numerous heads of state, including the presidents of South Africa and Liberia.

The country's outgoing military leader Gen. Sekouba Konate described the inauguration as an 'act of rebirth' for the country.

Agence France Presse noted that the ceremony included a minute's silence in memory of the 157 opposition supporters massacred by forces loyal to former junta leader Captain Moussa Dadis Camara at a stadium in the capital in September 2009, a tragedy widely seen as the real beginning of Guinea's democratization process.

Guinea's election was accepted peacefully, if grudgingly, by the losing candidates. However, the same can not be said of neighboring Cote d'Ivoire, where an election controversy has provoked fears of another civil war in the country. Such tension has provoked over 200 Ivorian refugees so far to flee to Guinea, according to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees.

[Guinean news] Dadis to attend Conde investiture?

The Guineenews weekly press review discusses media speculation that deposed junta leader Moussa Dadis Camara may attend the swearing in of the new president Prof. Alpha Conde. Dadis has not been seen in public since being wounded in an assassination attempt in Dec. 2009.

Also, the Guinean government has lifted the state of emergency and re-opened the country's borders; both measures had been imposed to ease post-electoral violence.

[Guinean news] Condé declared winner by court; Diallo accepts defeat

RPG leader Alpha Condé has been officially declared winner of the Guinean presidential election by the country's Supreme Court.

Crucially, UFGD leader Cellou Dalein Diallo accepted the Court's decision, although he did contend that they didn't take his complaints into account.

[Guinean news] State of emergency declared

Both Guinéenews and Radio France Internationale are reporting that Gen. Sékouba Konaté has declared a state of emergency in Guinea following post-electoral violence which has claimed several lives. Gen. Konaté declared that the state of emergency would last until definitive election results were announced by the Supreme Court.

[Guinean news] Conde declared winner by Electoral Commission

Long-time opposition leader Alpha Conde has been declared the winner of the presidential runoff election by Guinea's Independent National Electoral Commission. The body credited the RPG leader with 52.5 percent of the vote compared to 47.5 percent for UFDG leader and former prime minister Cellou Dalein Diallo.

However, it remains to be seen whether Diallo's supporters will accept the result, after the party withdrew from the vote counting procedure.

Following the announcement of Conde's victory, gunshots were reportedly heard in several parts of Conakry. However, Diallo made a public appeal, urging Guineans to 'avoid violence' while the Supreme Court investigated allegations of electoral irregularities.

[Guinean news] Clashes sparked as both candidates declare victory

Both candidates in Guinea’s presidential runoff have declared victory, sparking clashes between supporters and police.

RPG candidate Alpha Condé claimed a poll win during a press conference. The long-time opposition leader asked, "How is it that I can win 4 of the 5 communes in Conakry, all of the prefectures in Lower Guinea except for Boke, all the prefectures of the Forest and all the prefectures in Upper Guinea and not win the election?"

UFDG candidate Cellou Dalein Diallo went one step further: proclaiming himself president of the Republic.

The declaration came a day after the UFDG withdrew from the vote counting process. Diallo declared he would not accept the outcome of the vote because the election commission has refused to throw out ballots from two contested provinces [Siguiri and Kouroussa] which were swept by anti-Peul riots in the days before the poll. Diallo said his supporters were too intimidated to show up to vote and his party could not even find representatives to oversee the counting of ballots, reported the Canadian Press.

The International Criminal Court urged Guineans to avoid the same post-electoral bloodshed that tore apart Kenya a few years ago.


According to the most recent figures available from Guinea’s Independent Electoral Commission, Diallo had a narrow 50.62%-49.38% but with just under half the votes counted. However, Voice of America’s Conakry correspondent opined that Condé is likely to win, suggesting that this is what sparked the UFDG boycott.

[Guinean news] Election day resources

Today, Guineans are voting in the long-delayed presidential run off election between former prime minister Cellou Dallein Diallo and long-time opposition leader Alpha Conde.

Here are a some Twitter feeds that are covering the election to vary degrees. (Click on the links to go to the pages)

-Alliance Guinea

-Guineenews (in French)

-African Elections Project - Guinea

-Radio France Internationale - Afrique (in French)

[Guinean news] Nov. 7th new date for presidential run-off

Guinea's long delayed presidential run-off election has a new scheduled date: November 7.

Note: Make sure to follow FOG's Twitter feed for regular updates.

[Guinean news] Families of massacre victims banned from gathering

Today, the families of the 157 people killed in Conakry’s 28 September Stadium were banned from gathering or approaching the venue to mark the first anniversary of the massacre.

In a statement read Tuesday on state TV, the Minister of Religious Affairs Mustapha Koutoubou Sanoh asked the families of the victims to mark the date by praying for their loved one at the nearest mosque or church. Implicit in his instructions was the fact that families would not be allowed to march to the stadium, or enter it to place flowers as they had planned, reports the Associated Press.

Military trucks blocked entrances to the stadium and were also stationed at key intersections, the wire service added.

Voice of America noted that a foundation has been set up to keep alive the memory of the victims and to push for accountability for the peretrators.

For its part, Human Rights Watch called for the implementation of long-delayed justice for the stadium massacre.

Additionally, NGOs called for sweeping reforms of the Guinean military.

Meanwhile, there may be another delay in the presidential runoff, now proposed for October 10.

[Guinean news] Oct. 10 proposed as new poll date

Guinea's Independent National Electoral Commission has proposed October 10 as the date for the long delayed presidential election runoff.

[Guinean news] Suspicious fire at elections HQ

The website Portail des élections d'Afrique reports that there was a fire at the Almamy Samory Touré military camp in Conakry, which is the central location for housing ballot papers and other electoral materials. The website reports that the fire happened in 'mysterious circumstances' but noted that further information has been hard to come by.

[Guinean news] Guinea runoff postponed indefinitely following violence

The Guinean state broadcaster RTG has announced that the second round of the presidential election has been postponed. Junta leader Gen. Sékouba Konaté has pushed back the Sept. 19 runoff ‘indefinitely,’ according to Guinéenews. The BBC World Service radio speculated that the delay might be for two weeks.

The postponement followed weekend clashes between supporters of former prime minister Cellou Dalein Diallo and Prof. Alpha Condé, which left one dead and 50 injured. In a speech to the nation, Gen. Konaté also urged the rival candidates to keep their partisans under control.

The World Service also reported on logistical problems. The Independent National Electoral Commission noted that it was missing some 460,000 voting cards due to arrive from South Africa on Sunday night, the evening of the originally scheduled runoff.

[Guinean news] Second round set for September 19

The ruling military junta has confirmed that the second round of Guinea's presidential election is scheduled for September 19. It will involve former prime minister Cellou Dalein Diallo and longtime opposition leader Alpha Condé, who received 43.7% and 18.3% of the vote respectively in the first round.

[Guinean news] Poll date still unconfirmed

It is still unclear when the second round of Guinea's presidential election will take place. The runoff was supposed to be held on July 18 however it was delayed while the Supreme Court ruled on claims of voting irregularities. Prime Minister Jean-Marie Dore proposed August 22 for the runoff, which was seconded by Cellou Dalein Diallo, the leading vote getter in the first round. However, it is not certain when the poll will be scheduled. Diallo will face off against long time opposition leader Alpha Conde.

[Guinean news] Losing candidates cry foul; Konaté threatens to resign

Conduct of the first round of presidential elections were generally praised by the international community, including ECOWAS and the United States.

However, the Carter Center did cite concerns, including: Confusion about several important aspects of voting and counting procedures, delay in allocation of polling stations, and late delivery of essential voting materials negatively affected the quality of polling.

The top two finishers will contest a run off: former prime minister Cellou Dalein Diallo and longtime opposition leader Alpha Condé. The second round was originally scheduled for July 18 but reports have suggested that it will not take place on that date, since the Constitutional Court will not rule on the validity of the first round results until July 13.

The interim government banned public demonstrations following the first round and broke up with tear gas a march held in defiance of the ban.

Several opposition candidates complained about electoral irregularities, most vehemently the UFR's candidate Sidya Touré. Touré, another former prime minister, finished third in the first round, about 5 percentage points behind Condé.

Touré attacked the president of the transition Gen. Sékouba Konaté as well as the French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner.

The acting head of state Gen. Konaté responded angrily to the 'offensive' questioning of his neutrality and set off a mini-crisis when he threatened to resign. However, he appears to have been dissuaded from this course of action by Senegal's leader Abdoulaye Wade and African Union chief Jean Ping.