This panel at this event assessed Guinea's political, security, and social environment in the wake of the September 28, 2009 clash between the Guinean military and demonstrators protesting Dadis Camara's candidacy in next January's presidential elections.

Within hours of President Lansana Conte’s death in December 2008, a military junta headed by Dadis Camara took over, promising political reforms. Initially welcomed by many Guineans, the junta has been increasingly criticized, as it has continued to renege on these promises. The September 28, 2009 clash between the Guinean military and demonstrators protesting Camara’s candidacy at next January’s presidential election resulted in nearly 160 dead and scores of public rapes. The politicization of security forces, the stalling of political reform, the rising tension surrounding next year’s elections, and the growing politicization of ethnicity heighten concerns about Guinea’s political future and the region’s stability. 

What does the latest crackdown portend for Guinea, and what actions should be taken to address the violence? What role can the region and the larger international community play in preventing an escalation of violence and promoting the promised political reforms in Guinea? How can Guinean civil society participate in reforming Guinea’s key institutions?

Speakers

  • Ambassador Dane Smith
    Center for Strategic and International Studies
  • Siba Grovogui
    Johns Hopkins University
  • William Fitzgerald
    U.S. Department of State
  • Dorina Bekoe, Moderator
    U.S. Institute of Peace

Related Publications

Countering Coups: How to Reverse Military Rule Across the Sahel

Countering Coups: How to Reverse Military Rule Across the Sahel

Thursday, August 3, 2023

By: Kamissa Camara;  Susan Stigant

Three years of coups around Africa’s Sahel region — eight of them in six nations, from Guinea on the Atlantic to Sudan on the Red Sea — leave many African and other policymakers frustrated over how to respond. The Sahel’s crises have uprooted more than 4 million people and could add millions more to our record levels of global human migration as Africa’s population grows and its climate destabilizes. Yet the pattern of coups and other evidence — notably from USIP’s Sahel fieldwork, counter-coup research and bipartisan analysis teams — offer guidelines for effective responses by African, U.S. and international policymakers.

Type: Analysis

Global Policy

A Coup in Niger: What It Means for Africa, U.S. and Partners

A Coup in Niger: What It Means for Africa, U.S. and Partners

Thursday, July 27, 2023

By: Kamissa Camara

This morning’s coup d’etat in Niger only deepens the pattern of instability across Africa’s Sahel and damages what has been a rare process of fairly steady democracy building in the region. Niger’s democratically elected government has been a valued partner for African and international efforts to stabilize the Sahel against its web of insurgencies, extremist movements and military coups. Kamissa Camara, a former foreign minister of Niger’s neighbor, Mali, now an analyst on the region with USIP, says the coup underlines lessons already evident about how to improve international efforts to build democracy and peace.

Type: Analysis

Civilian-Military RelationsDemocracy & Governance

Ask the Experts: The Fight Against Violent Extremism in Coastal West Africa

Ask the Experts: The Fight Against Violent Extremism in Coastal West Africa

Tuesday, May 9, 2023

By: Andrew Cheatham;  Ambassador Terence P. McCulley

An explosion of violent extremism in the Sahel has begun spilling over into Coastal West African states. International efforts to stave off the spread have fallen short, which recently prompted the United States to include five countries in the region — Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea and Togo — in the U.S. Strategy to Prevent Conflict and Promote Stability. USIP’s Andrew Cheatham spoke with Ambassador Terence McCulley about the strategy’s focus on good governance as a means to counter violent extremism, the need for sustained coordination in the strategy’s implementation and the hope that this might spark further international support for peace and stability in Coastal West Africa.

Type: Blog

Democracy & GovernanceViolent Extremism

Coastal West Africa Senior Study Group Final Report

Coastal West Africa Senior Study Group Final Report

Monday, December 12, 2022

By: Coastal West Africa Senior Study Group

The countries of Coastal West Africa are currently facing significant challenges to peace and security as extremist violence spills over from the neighboring Sahel region. Attacks in 2022 in the northern parts of Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, and Togo illustrate the immediacy and gravity of the threat, and governments across the subregion are grappling with protecting fragile communities in the north, addressing porous borders that facilitate attacks from neighboring states, and building the capacity of security forces to address the threat.

Type: Report

Conflict Analysis & PreventionDemocracy & GovernanceFragility & ResilienceGlobal PolicyReconciliation

View All Publications