2008 Guinean military unrest
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Military unrest occurred in
Guinea Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the we ...
in late May 2008 as soldiers of the
Military of Guinea The Guinean Armed Forces (french: Forces armées guinéennes) are the armed forces of Guinea. They are responsible for the territorial security of Guinea's border and the defence of the country against external attack and aggression. Guinea's ar ...
demanded wage arrears. In the capital,
Conakry Conakry (; ; sus, Kɔnakiri; N’ko: ߞߐߣߊߞߙߌ߫, Fula: ''Konaakiri'' 𞤑𞤮𞤲𞤢𞥄𞤳𞤭𞤪𞤭) is the capital and largest city of Guinea. A port city, it serves as the economic, financial and cultural centre of Guinea. Its p ...
, soldiers fired into the air, held the deputy chief of staff of the army prisoner, and engaged in looting. The government promised to pay the soldiers, and by the end of May the situation was reportedly calm. On May 20, 2008, President
Lansana Conté Lansana Conté (30 November 1934 – 22 December 2008
dismissed Prime Minister
Lansana Kouyaté Lansana Kouyaté (born 15 July 1950) is a Guinean politician and diplomat who served as Prime Minister of Guinea from 2007 to 2008. Previously he was Executive Secretary of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) from 1997 to 2002. ...
and replaced him with
Ahmed Tidiane Souaré Ahmed Tidiane Souaré (born 1951
."Guinea's president fires prime minister"
, Associated Press (''International Herald Tribune''), May 21, 2008. Soldiers who were dissatisfied over their failure to receive wage arrears that in some cases dated back to 1996 were unhappy with Kouyaté's dismissal, feeling that without Kouyaté they had no one to whom they could address their grievances."Angry soldiers embark on rampage in Guinea"
Sapa-AFP (''IOL''), May 28, 2008.
The unrest began with gunfire at the Alfa Yaya Diallo barracks in Conakry early on May 26. During this unrest, the soldiers fired into the air and demanded payment of their wage arrears; General
Mamadou Sampil Mamadou is a common given name in West Africa among predominantly Muslim ethnic groups such as the Mandé and Wolof people. It is a variant of the Arabic name Muhammad. Academics *Mamadou Diouf (historian), Senegalese professor of West African his ...
, the deputy chief of staff of the army, was taken prisoner by the soldiers at the Alfa Yaya Diallo barracks when he went to talk to them."Guinea premier agrees to pay soldiers"
Sapa-DPA (''IOL''), May 27, 2008.
"Soldats en colère en Guinée: 1 mort, 8 blessés, le ministre de la Défense limogé"
AFP (Jeuneafrique.com), May 27, 2008 .
Eight people were reported injured and one was reported killed on May 26. Among the injured were Major Korka Diallo, the officer in charge of military finances, and two other officers; these three officers were flown to
Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...
for medical treatment."Guinea soldiers call for sacking of top brass"
AFP (''IOL''), May 29, 2008.
In response to the unrest, Souaré's government promised to pay the soldiers, and Minister of Defense Mamadou Bailo Diallo was dismissed by Conté. Speaking on television on May 27,"Guinée: le Premier ministre lance un appel au calme"
AFP (Jeuneafrique.com), May 27, 2008 .
Souaré called for calm, noting that the government had agreed to meet most of the soldiers' demands. He said that up to five million
Guinean franc The Guinean franc (french: franc guinéen, ISO 4217 code: ''GNF'') is the currency of Guinea. It is subdivided into one hundred ''centimes'', but no centime denominations were ever issued. History First Guinean franc The first Guinean franc was ...
s would be paid to each soldier to account for the wage arrears; additionally, he assured the soldiers that they would not face punishment and said that soldiers who had been arrested in connection with 2007 unrest would be freed. Regarding the soldiers' demand that the price of rice be subsidized, he said that the government would try to improve the army's living conditions."Guinean govt meets demands of restive soldiers"
African Press Agency, May 28, 2008.
Souaré also said that a commission, including both civilians and members of the military, had been set up at the beginning of the crisis to review the soldiers' demands. He said that "stability and social peace in the country depend mainly on order and discipline within our national armed forces". Despite Souaré's assurances, violence escalated on May 28, with soldiers engaging in looting in Conakry and continuing to fire into the air; at least 20 injuries were reported. Late on May 28 they entered the airport in Conakry, firing into the air and forcing a recently arrived cargo plane to depart without unloading its cargo; the soldiers deemed this cargo plane to be suspicious. Due to the disruption, the airport was closed and incoming flights were diverted; among these was an
Air France Air France (; formally ''Société Air France, S.A.''), stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the flag carrier of France headquartered in Tremblay-en-France. It is a subsidiary of the Air France–KLM Group and a founding member of the SkyTeam global air ...
flight carrying the
Guinea national football team The Guinea national football team ( French: '' Équipe de football du Guinée'') represents Guinea in men's international football and it is controlled by the Guinean Football Federation. They have never qualified for the FIFA World Cup finals, ...
. Instead, the flight landed in
Dakar Dakar ( ; ; wo, Ndakaaru) (from daqaar ''tamarind''), is the capital and largest city of Senegal. The city of Dakar proper has a population of 1,030,594, whereas the population of the Dakar metropolitan area is estimated at 3.94 million in 2 ...
. On May 29, it was reported that the soldiers had increased their demands to include the dismissal of all officers above the rank of colonel; on the same day, during an exchange of gunfire between presidential guards and mutinous soldiers at the November 8 Bridge, two presidential guards were reportedly injured. The home of dismissed Defense Minister Mamadou Bailo Diallo in Dubreka, near Conakry, was reportedly destroyed; also, the home of Mougne Donzo, the Commander of the Presidential Security Battalion, in Koloma District was reportedly ransacked. Early on May 30, supporters of Conté held a demonstration at the Palace of the People in Conakry, condemning the unrest. The soldiers began receiving their back pay on May 30,"Guinée: situation apaisée, début du paiement de primes aux soldats mutins"
AFP (Jeuneafrique.com), May 31, 2008 .
"Conakry regains calm as mutinying soldiers get salary arrears"
African Press Agency, May 30, 2008.
as initial payments of one million Guinean francs were distributed; subsequently, Conakry was reported calm, but on May 30 most markets, shops, offices, and gas stations remained closed. On the same day, Conté met with the mutinous soldiers at the Samory Touré camp."Conakry, upcountry regain calm following mutiny"
African Press Agency, June 1, 2008.
The National Council of Guinean Civil Society Organizations (CNOSCG) condemned violence against civilians and called for an unconditional end to gunfire in a statement on May 31. Life in Conakry returned to normal by June 1, as gas stations reopened, black market gas prices fell substantially, transport fares were brought down to the normal level, and the normal flow of traffic in the city resumed. Calm was also reported in
Kindia Kindia ( N’ko: ߞߌ߲ߘߌߦߊ߫) is the fourth largest city in Guinea, lying about 85 miles northeast of the nation's capital, Conakry. Its estimated population in 2008 was 181,126. Kindia serves as the capital and largest city of Kindia Prefe ...
and
Nzérékoré Nzérékoré (N’ko: , Adlam: ; also spelled N'Zérékoré) is the second-largest city in Guinea by population after the capital, Conakry, and the largest city in the Guinée forestière region of southeastern Guinea. The city is the capital of ...
. Conté again met with leaders of the mutinous soldiers on June 1 at the Samory Touré camp; he reportedly asked them to return to their barracks while he considered their demands."Le président Conté promet d’examiner avec sérieux les revendications des mutins"
African Press Agency, June 1, 2008 .
"Guinée: le président promet aux soldats mutins d'examiner leurs revendications"
AFP (Jeuneafrique.com), June 1, 2008 .
They reportedly dropped their demand that the highest-ranking officers be dismissed, which was their most radical demand. On June 16, police officers began a strike to demand payment of their own wage arrears; they also wanted higher pay and a larger subsidy for rice, and to press their demands, they fired into the air and took some senior officers hostage, although the hostages were quickly released. It was suggested by some that the police, having witnessed the soldiers' successful pursuit of their wage arrears, were thus encouraged to take a similar course."GUINEA: Police strikes turn bloody"
IRIN, June 17, 2008.
Soldiers from the Alpha Yaya Diallo base responded to the police strike by attacking the Anti-Riot Squad (CMIS) police base in Conakry early on June 17,"Three die in shooting between police, soldiers in Guinea"
African Press Agency, June 17, 2008.
ransacking and looting it. In gunfire exchanged between soldiers and the police on this occasion, two police officers and one civilian were reportedly killed.


See also

*
2008 Guinean coup d'état The 2008 Guinean coup d'état occurred in Guinea on 23 December 2008, shortly after the death of long-time President Lansana Conté. A junta called the National Council for Democracy and Development (french: Conseil National de la Démocratie et ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2008 Guinean Military Unrest Guinean Military Unrest, 2008 Military of Guinea History of Guinea