REPORT ON HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES IN GUINEA
2022 COUNTRY REPORT ON HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES IN GUINEA
The United States released the 2022 COUNTRY REPORT ON HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES IN GUINEA on March 20, 2023. The executive summary from the report can be found below.
Promoting respect for human rights and defending fundamental freedoms is central to who we are as a country. The United States will always support those around the world struggling for human dignity and liberty. The 2022 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – required by U.S. law to be submitted to Congress — documents the status of respect for human rights and worker rights in 198 countries and territories. To listen to Secretary Blinken’s remarks on the release of the 2022 reports click here: Secretary Blinken delivers remarks on the release of the 2022 Country Reports
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Guinea was a constitutional democratic republic until a September 2021 military coup d’état led by army special forces commander Colonel Mamadi Doumbouya. The country last held presidential elections in October 2020, electing President Alpha Conde to a controversial third term. Following the takeover, the military government established the National Council for Reunification and Development as the ruling body. In the same month, the National Council for Reunification and Development released the Transition Charter to steer the country back to civilian rule and in October 2021, Colonel Doumbouya was sworn in as interim president. The military government dissolved the parliament in September 2021 and on January 22 replaced it with an unelected 81-member National Transition Council. On October 21, the government and the regional organization for West Africa, the Economic Community of West African States, agreed to a 24-month transition timeline to include local, legislative, and presidential elections, following stakeholder consultations. On December 7, leaders from the Economic Community of West African States announced an agreement with the government that the 24-month period began as of December 4.
The Ministry of Defense oversees the gendarmerie, and the Ministry of Security oversees the National Police. The National Council for Reunification and Development oversees the entire government, and civilian appointees lead most government ministries. Retired military generals lead the ministries of defense and security. The gendarmerie and National Police share responsibility for internal security. The army also has some domestic security responsibilities when formally activated. Authorities generally did not maintain effective control over the security forces, leading up to the coup d’état. There were reports that members of the security forces committed some abuses.
Significant human rights issues included credible reports of: unlawful or arbitrary killings; torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment by the government; harsh and life-threatening prison conditions; arbitrary arrest or detention; political prisoners or detainees; serious problems with the independence of the judiciary; arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy; punishment of family members for alleged offenses by a relative; serious restrictions on free expression and media, including violence or threats of violence against journalists, censorship, and threats to enforce criminal libel laws; substantial interference with the freedom of peaceful assembly; restrictions on freedom of movement and residence within the territory of a state and on the right to leave the country; inability of citizens to change their government peacefully through free and fair elections; serious and unreasonable restrictions on political participation; serious government corruption; lack of investigation of and accountability for gender-based violence including female genital mutilation/cutting; trafficking in persons; crimes involving violence or threats of violence targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or intersex persons; laws criminalizing consensual same-sex sexual conduct between adults that were not enforced during the year; and the existence of the worst forms of child labor.
Impunity for government officials remained a problem. With occasional exceptions, the government did not sufficiently investigate, prosecute, or punish government officials who committed abuses, either in the security forces or in other parts of government. The government started the trial for the alleged perpetrators of the 2009 stadium massacre on September 28, the 13th anniversary of the massacre. The National Council for Reunification and Development removed one of the alleged perpetrators from his senior government position in March and banned him from foreign travel in September.
Read the full report on the U.S. State Department website: https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/guinea/