The crackdown on demonstrations in Guinea has left at least 47 people dead, most of them young people, since the military seized power in September 2021, Amnesty International said in a report published Wednesday.
The West African nation’s ruling junta banned all demonstrations in 2022 and has arrested a number of opposition leaders, civil society members and the press.
“At least 47 people have been killed and many more seriously injured” by individuals identified as members of the security forces during demonstrations, the rights organisation said.
More than 75 percent of those killed were under the age of 25, and 40 percent were minors under the age of 18, the report added.
At least 66 people had already been killed between 2019 and 2021, mainly during rallies opposing then-president Alpha Conde’s planned constitutional reform to run for a third term, Amnesty said.
The rights organisation said that repression continued under the National Committee for Reconciliation and Development (CNRD), led by Colonel Mamady Doumbouya, who overthrew Conde in a September 2021 coup.
“Despite the CNRD’s promises to tackle the issue of excessive use of force under Alpha Conde, including in cases of unlawful killings, this extremely serious situation persists, in a general context of repression of dissenting voices,” said Samira Daoud, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for West and Central Africa.
As well as banning demonstrations, the junta also restricted internet access for three months, removed television channels from main distribution packages and jammed radio frequencies.
“Since 2019, there have been few convictions of members of the defence and security forces for unlawful use of force,” Amnesty said.
Public and private health centres have also refused to treat victims for fear of reprisals, the organisation added.
Guinean Prime Minister Amadou Oury Bah said in March that the military would not honour their commitment to hand power back to civilians by the end of 2024, remaining in power until at least 2025.
