Siaka Touré (1935–1985) was the commandant of

Camp Boiro Camp Boiro or Camp Mamadou Boiro (1960 – 1984) is a defunct Guinean concentration camp within Conakry city. During the regime of President Ahmed Sékou Touré, thousands of political opponents were imprisoned at the camp. It has been estimated th ...

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 ...

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 ...

during the regime of Guinean President

Ahmed Sékou Touré Ahmed Sékou Touré (var. Sheku Turay or Ture; N'Ko: ; January 9, 1922 – March 26, 1984) was a Guinean political leader and African statesman who became the first president of Guinea, serving from 1958 until his death in 1984. Touré was am ...

. During this period, many of the president's political opponents died in the camp.

Biography

Siaka Touré was born in 1935 in Kankan, and studied in Paris and Moscow. He was a nephew (or perhaps cousin) of the President, Sékou Touré. As such, he was also a descendant of Samori Ture. He became an army officer, and also served as Minister of Transport. After the Labé plot was announced by the government in February 1969, Captain Siaka Touré became a member of the three-person Revolutionary Committee along with the President and General Lansana Diané, the Minister of Defense. Siaka had a collection of cars which he confiscated at will, imprisoning those who had the arrogance to protest.

Operation Green Sea

During the coup attempt (" Operation Green Sea") of November 1970, when Portuguese troops and Guinean fighters invaded Conakry and seized Camp Boiro among other locations, Siaka managed to hide in the Camayenne hotel and avoid capture. After the coup attempt failed, many opponents of the regime were rounded up and imprisoned in Camp Boiro. Siaka Touré presented a mild-mannered facade during interrogations, often proposing to act as an intermediary between the prisoner and his family. He was the sole master of the camp, allowing nobody to enter or leave without his permission. During his long tenure, many political prisoners died, some executed, some as a result of torture, and some from the "''diète noire''", or "black diet", meaning that they received no food and no water.

Guinean Market Women's Revolt

In 1977, there was a demonstration in Conakry, called the

Guinean Market Women's Revolt The Market Women's Revolt of 1977 was a series of large demonstrations and riots across Guinea brought about by the imposition of government-set prices for goods sold in the country's public markets. The riots began on 27 August 1977 when women v ...

, staged by women complaining of regulations against private traders. Siaka Touré met the demonstrators with a detachment of troops, and when they failed to stop ordered the troops to open fire. One woman was killed and many others were arrested. After the death of Sékou Touré in March 1984, Siaka Touré was imprisoned by the military regime that took power. Following an attempted coup by Diarra Traoré in July 1985, he was executed along with other members of the former regime such as Ismaël Touré, Mamadi Keïta and Moussa Diakité.

References

Reference sources

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Biography

Operation Green Sea

Guinean Market Women's Revolt

References

Reference sources

Further reading