From: Official Peace Corps website
Peace Corps Volunteers in Guinea Are Safe
WASHINGTON, D.C., January 28, 2007 – Peace Corps Director Ron Tschetter announced that all volunteers serving in Guinea are safe and are consolidated in Mali. Volunteers were moved to Mali as a precautionary measure due to the on-going strikes and demonstrations in Guinea. The duration of the Guinea Volunteers’ stay in Mali will be contingent upon the situation/events in Guinea.
The Peace Corps office in Conakry remains open. The U.S. Embassy is operating under voluntary, authorized departure. No Americans have been targeted in the demonstrations. The Peace Corps staff in Guinea remains in constant communication with Peace Corps headquarters in Washington, D.C. Each Peace Corps program has an Emergency Action Plan specific to that country and developed in cooperation with Peace Corps Washington and the local U.S. Embassy. The plans are evaluated and tested frequently and information is updated constantly. Volunteers are thoroughly trained in their roles and responsibilities, and posts are prepared for all emergencies.
Since the initial opening of the program in 1962, more than 1,200 Volunteers have served in Guinea. After a hiatus, Peace Corps returned to Guinea in 1985, and today there are 111 Volunteers serving in the areas of business development, education, environment, health and HIV/AIDS projects.
Families may contact the Peace Corps' Office of Special Services with any questions or concerns they may have. Special Services maintains a 24-hour a day, 7 days a week duty system. The telephone number during standard office hours is 1-800-424-8580, Extension 1470; the after hours number is 202-638-2574. The Office of Special Services can also be contacted via e-mail at ossdutyofficer@peacecorps.gov.
The Peace Corps is celebrating a 45-year legacy of service at home and abroad. Since 1961, more than 187,000 Volunteers have helped promote a better understanding between Americans and the people of the 139 countries where Volunteers have served. Peace Corps Volunteers must be U.S. citizens and at least 18 years of age. Peace Corps service is a 27-month commitment.
Monday, January 29, 2007
Sunday, January 28, 2007
[Guinean news] General strike over
The BBC reports that unions in Guinea have ended the 17 day old general strike that paralyzed the nation and during which nearly 60 people have died. The head of state Gen. Lansana Conté agreed to name a prime minister who would be head of the government.
A three-way communiqué agreed to by the government, unions and state institutions was read over state radio by a union leader, according to Guinéenews.
According to the communiqué, the strike is suspended as of tonight (20 Jan.) because the principal demands, notably the naming of a consensus prime minister/head of government, the improvement of the living conditions of workers and many others, were satisfied.
The union leader emphasized that the new prime minister, who has not yet been named, is supposed to have the power to propose to the president both members of the government and high-ranking state officials. He also added that the central bank would become an institution entirely independent from the executive.
A three-way communiqué agreed to by the government, unions and state institutions was read over state radio by a union leader, according to Guinéenews.
According to the communiqué, the strike is suspended as of tonight (20 Jan.) because the principal demands, notably the naming of a consensus prime minister/head of government, the improvement of the living conditions of workers and many others, were satisfied.
The union leader emphasized that the new prime minister, who has not yet been named, is supposed to have the power to propose to the president both members of the government and high-ranking state officials. He also added that the central bank would become an institution entirely independent from the executive.
Friday, January 26, 2007
[Guinean news] Conté reportedly to cede some powers
The Guinean leader, Gen. Lansana Conté, has agreed to cede some powers to "a prime minister who is head of government," according to a union leader.
Following his sacking of reformist prime minister Cellou Dallien Diallo last April, Gen. Conté has served as both head of state and head of government.
Though a prime minister with real powers was a key demand of unions, it is unclear if this will put an end to the general strike that has led to almost 60 deaths in two weeks.
Following his sacking of reformist prime minister Cellou Dallien Diallo last April, Gen. Conté has served as both head of state and head of government.
Though a prime minister with real powers was a key demand of unions, it is unclear if this will put an end to the general strike that has led to almost 60 deaths in two weeks.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
[PC Guinea news] Peace Corps evacuates Guinea volunteers
The Associated Press is reporting that the Peace Corps started evacuating about 100 volunteers from Guinea to nearby Mali on Wednesday, said Michael Simsik, the program's assistant country director in Mali. He said the organization was concerned that the strike could limit access to food or fuel supplies in the countryside.
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
[PC Guinea news] Peace Corps headquarters' statement on the safety of Guinea volunteers
Rumors have circulated in the last day or so which I will not repeat, as I am unable to confirm them. But on behalf of those who inquired, I pursued the matter with the Peace Corps. I received the following response today from Amanda Host, the Peace Corps (DC) press director:
As you are aware, due to the General Strike in Guinea that began on January 10th, all Peace Corps Volunteers in Guinea are currently on standfast. Under a standfast order Volunteers are to remain at their sites and maintain frequent communication with the Peace Corps office. No Americans have been targeted during the strike. In Guinea’s active history of labor strikes, there has not been an incident involving harm to a Volunteer nor have Americans been targeted.
Peace Corps Guinea is in regular contact with the 105 Volunteers, and all Volunteers are safe and accounted for. The Peace Corps office in Conakry remains open, as does the U.S. Embassy and the situation is being monitored carefully. Peace Corps Guinea has an Emergency Action Plan designed for situations such as this strike, and all Volunteers have been trained on what to do during these events. Peace Corps staff in Washington, D.C., is in constant communication with the staff in Guinea.
Please ask the families to contact the Peace Corps’ office of special services with any questions or concerns they may have. Special Services maintains a 24-hour a day, 7 days a week duty system. The telephone number during standard office hours is 1-800-424-8580, Extension 1470; the after hours number is 202-638-2574. The Office of Special Services can also be contacted via e-mail at ossdutyofficer@peacecorps.gov
I realize this is not the specifics that many of you would have liked but I suspect there are privacy and safety issues that prevent them from releasing more details to me. Feel free to contact the OSS (see above) if you want more information.
-Brian Farenell, FOG Communications Director
As you are aware, due to the General Strike in Guinea that began on January 10th, all Peace Corps Volunteers in Guinea are currently on standfast. Under a standfast order Volunteers are to remain at their sites and maintain frequent communication with the Peace Corps office. No Americans have been targeted during the strike. In Guinea’s active history of labor strikes, there has not been an incident involving harm to a Volunteer nor have Americans been targeted.
Peace Corps Guinea is in regular contact with the 105 Volunteers, and all Volunteers are safe and accounted for. The Peace Corps office in Conakry remains open, as does the U.S. Embassy and the situation is being monitored carefully. Peace Corps Guinea has an Emergency Action Plan designed for situations such as this strike, and all Volunteers have been trained on what to do during these events. Peace Corps staff in Washington, D.C., is in constant communication with the staff in Guinea.
Please ask the families to contact the Peace Corps’ office of special services with any questions or concerns they may have. Special Services maintains a 24-hour a day, 7 days a week duty system. The telephone number during standard office hours is 1-800-424-8580, Extension 1470; the after hours number is 202-638-2574. The Office of Special Services can also be contacted via e-mail at ossdutyofficer@peacecorps.gov
I realize this is not the specifics that many of you would have liked but I suspect there are privacy and safety issues that prevent them from releasing more details to me. Feel free to contact the OSS (see above) if you want more information.
-Brian Farenell, FOG Communications Director
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
[Guinean news] Bissao-Guinean troops cross border into Guinea
On Monday, Guinean union leaders were arrested and later released. Following their release, they were taken to meet with the head of state Gen. Lansana Conté who, a union leader said, registered his displeasure about their arrest, according to the BBC.
On Monday evening, the government announced that they would hold an inquiry into the violence when demonstrators heading for parliament got into running battles with the police in Conakry.
Some 23 people were reportedly killed in Conakry and other towns on Monday alone.
The UN's IRIN news service reports that special forces from neighboring Guinea-Bissau had crossed the border and were "at the [Guinean] town of Buruntuma to support the army," according to a senior Bissao-Guinean officer.
There is a military cooperation agreement between the two countries and longstanding close personal relations between Conté and Guinea-Bissau's president "Nino" Vieira. Conté sent troops to support Vieira's regime during uprisings in that country in 1996 and 1998. Some analysts see this as a sign of increasing desperation on the part of the regime in Conakry.
On Monday evening, the government announced that they would hold an inquiry into the violence when demonstrators heading for parliament got into running battles with the police in Conakry.
Some 23 people were reportedly killed in Conakry and other towns on Monday alone.
The UN's IRIN news service reports that special forces from neighboring Guinea-Bissau had crossed the border and were "at the [Guinean] town of Buruntuma to support the army," according to a senior Bissao-Guinean officer.
There is a military cooperation agreement between the two countries and longstanding close personal relations between Conté and Guinea-Bissau's president "Nino" Vieira. Conté sent troops to support Vieira's regime during uprisings in that country in 1996 and 1998. Some analysts see this as a sign of increasing desperation on the part of the regime in Conakry.
Monday, January 22, 2007
[PC Guinea news] Peace Corps Guinea statement on the safety of PCVs during the general strike
Peace Corps Guinea Country Director Steve Petersen has issued the following statement regarding the safety of volunteers during the general strike:
Due to the general strike that began on January 10th, all Peace Corps Volunteers are on Stand Fast. Under a Stand Fast order, Volunteers are asked to remain at their sites and maintain frequent communication with our in country Peace Corps offices. We currently have 105 Volunteers in Guinea, and we are in regular contact with all of them; at this time, they are all safe and accounted for.
As you've likely read or heard about already, there have been some incidences of violence in Conakry as a result of confrontations between the police and other peacekeeping forces and demonstrators, and there have been demonstrations in locations up country as well. No Americans have been targeted during the strike, nor do we see any sign they will be. In Guinea's active history of labor strikes, there has never been an incident involving harm to a Volunteer.
The Peace Corps office in Conakry remains open, as does the U.S. Embassy, and we continue to monitor the situation closely. We have an Emergency Action Plan designed for situations such as this, and all Volunteers have been trained on what to do during these events. We have also placed additional resources (fuel, vehicles, increased staffing, etc.) in our regional capitals to support Volunteers in the interior of the country
We are in constant communication with the Peace Corps staff in Washington, D.C. Please contact Peace Corps' Office of Special Services with any questions or concerns you may have. Special Services maintains a 24-hour a day, 7 days a week duty system and they are frequently updated on the situation in country. The telephone number during standard office hours is 1-800-424-8580, Extension 1470; the after hours number is 202-638-2574. The Office of Special Services can also be contacted via e-mail at ossdutyofficer@peacecorps.gov.
Due to the general strike that began on January 10th, all Peace Corps Volunteers are on Stand Fast. Under a Stand Fast order, Volunteers are asked to remain at their sites and maintain frequent communication with our in country Peace Corps offices. We currently have 105 Volunteers in Guinea, and we are in regular contact with all of them; at this time, they are all safe and accounted for.
As you've likely read or heard about already, there have been some incidences of violence in Conakry as a result of confrontations between the police and other peacekeeping forces and demonstrators, and there have been demonstrations in locations up country as well. No Americans have been targeted during the strike, nor do we see any sign they will be. In Guinea's active history of labor strikes, there has never been an incident involving harm to a Volunteer.
The Peace Corps office in Conakry remains open, as does the U.S. Embassy, and we continue to monitor the situation closely. We have an Emergency Action Plan designed for situations such as this, and all Volunteers have been trained on what to do during these events. We have also placed additional resources (fuel, vehicles, increased staffing, etc.) in our regional capitals to support Volunteers in the interior of the country
We are in constant communication with the Peace Corps staff in Washington, D.C. Please contact Peace Corps' Office of Special Services with any questions or concerns you may have. Special Services maintains a 24-hour a day, 7 days a week duty system and they are frequently updated on the situation in country. The telephone number during standard office hours is 1-800-424-8580, Extension 1470; the after hours number is 202-638-2574. The Office of Special Services can also be contacted via e-mail at ossdutyofficer@peacecorps.gov.
[Guinean news] 11 more killed during general strike; Conté appeals for unity
On the 13th day of the nationwide general strike, at least 11 people were killed in Conakry's suburbs and over 100 injured during running battles with the poilce, reports the BBC.
The largest protests of the strike occurred the day after head of state General Lansana Conté made an appeal on state radio for both the people and the military to back him.
"Those who want power must wait their turn. It is God who gives power and when he gives it to someone, everyone must stand behind him," Conté warned.
Reuters reports that protesters in Labé slit the throat of an effigy symbolising Conte before marching it in a coffin through the streets at the weekend.
"These are not union demands but political demands. It is an attempted civilian coup d'etat," said Sékou Konaté, secretary-general of the ruling Party of Unity and Progress.
Opposition UPG party leader Jean-Marie Doré warned that planned African Union mediation was too little, too late. "The Guinean people have already taken their destiny in hand. Now is not the moment to stop the process of change," he said.
After nearly two weeks, food is running scarce in the capital.
The largest protests of the strike occurred the day after head of state General Lansana Conté made an appeal on state radio for both the people and the military to back him.
"Those who want power must wait their turn. It is God who gives power and when he gives it to someone, everyone must stand behind him," Conté warned.
Reuters reports that protesters in Labé slit the throat of an effigy symbolising Conte before marching it in a coffin through the streets at the weekend.
"These are not union demands but political demands. It is an attempted civilian coup d'etat," said Sékou Konaté, secretary-general of the ruling Party of Unity and Progress.
Opposition UPG party leader Jean-Marie Doré warned that planned African Union mediation was too little, too late. "The Guinean people have already taken their destiny in hand. Now is not the moment to stop the process of change," he said.
After nearly two weeks, food is running scarce in the capital.
Sunday, January 21, 2007
[PC Guinea news] Peace Corps Washington statement on safety of Guinea PCVs during the general strike
Newsletter editor Woody Collahan passed along the following statement from Nicole Lewis, of the Guinea desk at Peace Corps headquarters in Washington, DC.
All Volunteers are safe and accounted for. Peace Corps is in daily contact with the Volunteers. Peace Corps is monitoring the situation very closely. There have been no threats towards Americans, in this strike or others in the past. The Peace Corps office in Conakry is open, as is the US Embassy.
Peace Corps Guinea has an Emergency Action Plan that the Volunteers have been trained in and they were prepared
for the strike. Additional resources were stockpiled up country in regional capitals as well. The Volunteers remain on standfast – staying at their sites with the support of host families, friends and their communities.
We can appreciate the concern. All Volunteers are safe and we continue to monitor the situation very closely.
All Volunteers are safe and accounted for. Peace Corps is in daily contact with the Volunteers. Peace Corps is monitoring the situation very closely. There have been no threats towards Americans, in this strike or others in the past. The Peace Corps office in Conakry is open, as is the US Embassy.
Peace Corps Guinea has an Emergency Action Plan that the Volunteers have been trained in and they were prepared
for the strike. Additional resources were stockpiled up country in regional capitals as well. The Volunteers remain on standfast – staying at their sites with the support of host families, friends and their communities.
We can appreciate the concern. All Volunteers are safe and we continue to monitor the situation very closely.
Saturday, January 20, 2007
[Guinean news] Four more killed in general strike; top presidential adviser sacked
The tenth day of the Guinean nationwide general strike saw four people killed in the southeastern city of N'Zérékoré, all by bullets. 16 were injured, according to Guinéenews.
The West African regional grouping ECOWAS has sent two neighboring leaders to try to mediate the Guinean crisis: Abdoulaye Wade and Olesegun Obasanjo, presidents of Senegal and Nigeria respectively.
The Guinean head of state Gen. Lansana Conté dismissed his top advisor, presidential affairs minister Fodé Bangoura. With the prime ministerial post vacant and the Conté ailing, Bangoura had been seen by many as the de facto leader of the government.
AngolaPress reports that some close associates of General Conte recently accused Bangoura of being behind the strikers who have condemned the head of state for interfering with the judicial process, which might explain why the strike was launched after Conté had personally freed two of his close allies jailed on corruption charges after a public feud with Bangoura.
In the last few years, Bangoura is the third head of government (if de facto) to be sacked after trying to take strong action against corruption, after the former prime ministers Cellou Dalien Diallo and François Loucény Fall.
Transparency International recently named Guinea as the most corrupt country in Africa.
The West African regional grouping ECOWAS has sent two neighboring leaders to try to mediate the Guinean crisis: Abdoulaye Wade and Olesegun Obasanjo, presidents of Senegal and Nigeria respectively.
The Guinean head of state Gen. Lansana Conté dismissed his top advisor, presidential affairs minister Fodé Bangoura. With the prime ministerial post vacant and the Conté ailing, Bangoura had been seen by many as the de facto leader of the government.
AngolaPress reports that some close associates of General Conte recently accused Bangoura of being behind the strikers who have condemned the head of state for interfering with the judicial process, which might explain why the strike was launched after Conté had personally freed two of his close allies jailed on corruption charges after a public feud with Bangoura.
In the last few years, Bangoura is the third head of government (if de facto) to be sacked after trying to take strong action against corruption, after the former prime ministers Cellou Dalien Diallo and François Loucény Fall.
Transparency International recently named Guinea as the most corrupt country in Africa.
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