The InterDependent

CONAKRY – Said Djinnit, the United Nations’ top official in West Africa, traveled on Oct. 13 to the Guinean capital, Conakry, as a show of support for the nation’s Oct. 24 runoff presidential election. The country has been gripped by authoritarian rule and has never held a credible election since its independence from France 52 years ago. It is rich in bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold and uranium and agriculture. Recent preliminary findings show the possibility of oil offshore.

Djinnit, who resides in Dakar, the capital of Senegal, met with the Guinean military junta leader and interim president, General Sékouba Konaté, as well as the two candidates who qualified for the country’s much-delayed second-round runoff election. Djinnit, who went on to Nigeria after his short visit to Guinea, said at a press conference that he supported efforts by both candidates and the president and hoped the election would happen on time and peacefully.

[In an update on Oct. 22, the election has been postponed with no new date set.]

Joe Penney

Alpha Conde, in the front poster, is one of two candidates in the Oct. 24 runoff for president of Guinea. The other candidate is in the second poster, Cellou Diallo. The country, a former French colony, is plentiful in minerals but poor from decades of dictatorships.

Guinea’s first- round vote -- the most viable and transparent presidential election in its history — was held on June 27, promising an end to decades of dictatorships for this country of nearly 10 million people. No candidate won an outright majority, so a second-round runoff poll between Cellou Dalein Diallo and Alpha Condé was scheduled for Sept. 19.

Technical issues, like the distribution of new voter cards and the creation of new polling stations, forced a postponement, whereas a follow-up date of Oct. 10 fell through before the new date, Sunday, Oct. 24, was named by presidential decree.

But a dispute over the neutrality of the head of Guinea’s Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI), Lousény Camara, threatens to derail the democratic process once again.

Joe Penney

Louseny Camara, the head of Guinea's electoral commission, is accused of stealing ballot cards during the initial vote in June, threatening to derail the runoff election this month.

Diallo’s Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea party accused Camara of stealing ballot cards during the first round in a populous suburb of Conakry, where Camara served as poll administrator. Although Camara denied the allegations, Diallo’s party took Camara to court on charges of fraud and threatened to boycott elections if Camara was not replaced.

On Oct. 12, after Diallo met with Condé for talks, the Union of Democratic Forces’ position on Camara had not changed.

“If, by Thursday, there is no official change at the CENI head, we will not start our campaign,” said Oury Bah, vice president of the Union of Democratic Forces. A presidential decree had opened campaigning this week.

“We do not want to engage in the process and act like we accept Lousény as the head of the CENI,” Bah added.

[On Tuesday, Oct. 19, in a decree read on state TV, General Konaté named a Malian general, Siaka Toumany Touré, to be the new head of the country's electoral commission, demoting Camara to vice president. Touré was serving on the International Francophonie Organization's technical support team for the election before his recent appointment. Both Diallo and Condé accepted the change in leadership, which was viewed as an attempt to stop further violence after protests from Diallo’s supporters led to clashes with the police. Two people were killed and dozens wounded on Oct. 18 and Oct. 19. Police reportedly opened fire on youth in Conakry’s poorest suburbs as the protestors were throwing rocks and blocking roads by burning tires.

Both candidates and General Konaté have reaffirmed their commitments to elections on Oct. 24. But problems like the distribution of the alphanumeric voting cards have yet to be resolved.]

The UN has expressed concern that more delays will bring violence and instability to the country, which could portend a military takeover and threaten the region’s security. Clashes between supporters of Condé and Diallo killed one person and injured more than 50 in Conakry in September, one reason that the election was postponed. The country also remembers a stark event on Sept. 28, 2009, when at least 150 people were killed by security forces during a rally and at least 100 women were raped or sexually assaulted, mostly in public.

Then, the country’s junta president, Captain Moussa Dadis Camara, was shot in the head in December 2009 by his aide-de-camp Toumba Diakite, forcing Camara to seek medical care in Morocco. Under pressure from the US and Europe, Camara has remained in Burkina Faso.

Gen. Konaté was installed as president of Guinea, along with a prime minister, Jean-Marie Dore, in what was presented as a civilian government.

“The risk of the army taking over if things go wrong is real,” Djinnit of the UN told Reuters recently.

[This article was updated on Oct. 20 and Oct.22.]