“President Compaore is proposing a 30-member transitional authority to return Guinea to civilian rule following last December’s coup. The plan gives ten seats to the military, ten to the opposition coalition of politicians and labor leaders, and ten to other groups.

It is those other groups that led the opposition coalition to reject that plan because it believes those groups would be closely allied to the military, thus giving it a majority in the interim administration.”

Guinea Mediation Resumes Sunday

International mediation efforts resume in the Burkinabe capital, Ouagadougou, to discuss a power sharing agreement presented by regional mediator Blaise Compaore.

Scott Stearns | Conakry 12 December 2009
   

International mediation efforts resume in the Burkinabe capital Ouagadougou to discuss a power sharing agreement presented by regional mediator Blaise Compaore.

President Compaore is proposing a 30-member transitional authority to return Guinea to civilian rule following last December’s coup. The plan gives ten seats to the military, ten to the opposition coalition of politicians and labor leaders, and ten to other groups.

It is those other groups that led the opposition coalition to reject that plan because it believes those groups would be closely allied to the military, thus giving it a majority in the interim administration.

The military council this past week announced that it would not return to those mediation efforts until military leader Captain Mousa Dadis Camara recovers from being shot by members of the presidential guard ten days ago.

But the military government has since reversed that decision, with Prime Minister Kabine Komara saying negotiations must continue “in a spirit that takes the current situation into account.”

Following talks with the country’s acting leader Defense Minister Sekouba Konate, the prime minister said concessions must be made in Ouagadougou because, “Everyone needs to understand that the higher interest of the nation must prevail.”

State-run radio says the military’s decision to return to mediation shows that Captain Camara is in good health, that the ruling council remains strong, and that Guinea is a stable country where the situation is under control.

Captain Camara is recovering from gunshot wounds in a Moroccan hospital. While his condition is reportedly stable, it is not known when he might return to Guinea.

The former aide-de-camp responsible for his shooting remains at large with an unknown number of presidential guardsmen.

Acting leader Konate says the search for those men continues. The defense minister has spent much of the last week touring military camps in the capital calling for discipline and respect for civilians.

That approach has drawn cautious praise from some of the military’s political opponents, especially following the army’s killing of opposition demonstrators two months ago.

The leader of the Union of the Republican Forces party former prime minister Sidya Toure says Konate has made a “good start” by condemning violence and calling for discipline.

Human rights leader Cherif Mohamed Abdallah says it is an improvement.

Abdallah says the army must protect civilians, and he appreciates what General Konate is telling soldiers following the recent violence. Abdallah says he believes the general is a patriot who is a good Guinean.

Diplomats in Conakry note that during his calls for discipline this past week, Konate has been accompanied by presidential security advisor Claude Pivi in an apparent sign of unity between two powerful members of the ruling council, both of whom are in position to claim leadership in Captain Camara’s absence.

Both video and article from:  Alliance Guinea

 “WE ARE ALL GUINEANS”

United Nations, December 8, 2009

Guineans and supporters march to the UN rally

“We are all Guineans” – Rally at the UN demands concrete action
December 8th, 2009
Demonstrators marching to the UN on Dec 8

Demonstrators marching to the UN on Dec 8

From Mayor David Dinkins to opposition party leader Francois Fall, Radio Nostalgie journalist and September 28 eye witness Nassirou Diallo to students from Herricks High School on Long Island, Mme Kadiatou Diallo to New York activist and writer Kevin Powell, hundreds of people marched from the  Guinean consulate to the United Nations in New York today to say that we will not stand idly by as the latest military despots in Guinea act with impunity.  Instead, the crowd demanded that the perpetrators of the September 28 atrocities be brought to justice and that the international community take concrete action to protect the civilian population in Guinea, remove the military from power and help the organization of the first free and fair presidential elections in the country’s history.

The organizers of the march, the September 28 Coalition for Justice and Democracy in Guinea – led by the Commission of the Guinea Forces Vives in the US, Alliance Guinea and the Amadou Diallo Foundation – delivered this memo to the Secretary General demanding that the international Commission of Inquiry investigate and prosecute the crimes to the fullest extent of the law, that the UN assist ECOWAS and the African Union in finding another mediator to replace or work with Blaise to *get the CNDD out of power,* and that the international community provide the technical, financial and political assistance necessary to provide an intervention force to shepherd Guinea through a transition to a democratically elected civil government. With the chaos in the military and uncertainties of Guinea’s rule worsening by the day – we need this assistance more now than ever.

Guinea junta leader’s candidacy ‘not negotiable’: official

(AFP) – 2 hours ago

OUAGADOUGOU — Guinean junta leader Captain Moussa Dadis Camara’s candidacy in any fresh presidential elections is “not negotiable” in the current mediation talks, Communications Minister Idrissa Cherif said Sunday.

“There are some issues which are not negotiable. One is the president’s (Camara’s) candidacy (in new elections),” Cherif said.

“We will also not discuss the break-up of the CNDD (the junta),” he added.

Cherif said, however, that the junta were willing to form a unity government with the opposition parties to choose a prime minister

Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaore, who is mediating in Guinea’s crisis, on Saturday met with members of the junta and officials from Active Forces, an opposition, trade union and civil society umbrella group.

On Friday, the group rejected Compaore’s proposal that Camara should stay on as president during a 10-month transition period.

Under that same proposal, Camara and any other government members could stand in the presidential elections but only if they resign four months before the vote.

Further meetings are set to be held between the CNDD and Compaore on Tuesday.

Camara came to power in a bloodless coup on December 23 last year after the death of dictator Lansana Conte, who had led the country since 1984.

After an initial period of optimism, the mood turned sour in the mineral rich country.

Then government troops killed scores of opposition protesters in a Conakry stadium on September 28. The opposition had gathered to urge Camara not to run in a presidential election he has slated for January.

(This is a Google translation with editing by Guinea Oye!  To view the original in French, click here.) 

Jeuneafrique.com

The Guinean opposition agrees to talk with the junta

05/11/2009 10:17:54 | AFP

The Guinean opponents believe that the transition should last six months.

Burkinabe President Blaise Compaoré, mediator in the crisis in Guinea, received Wednesday the proposals of the  Guinean opposition seeking dissolution of the junta and the establishment of a transitional authority for six months, according to different opposition leaders

At the request of Mr Compaore, the opposition leaders in Guinea have finally agreed to resume dialogue with members of the junta and the self-proclaimed president of Guinea, Captain Dadis Moussa Camara, a month after the massacre of opposition demonstrators by the army.

The proposals of the “lifeblood” of Guinea (opposition parties, unions, civil society), contained in a document of 8 pages, were handed over Wednesday evening to Mr. Compaore.

“On the merits, the call has been well heard for the dissolution of the CNDD (National Council for Democracy and Development, junta) and the departure of the head of the junta has been heard,, in order to set up a transitional authority identified consensually” said former Prime Minister (2004-2006) Cellou Dalein Diallo. “

Six months of transition

“We proposed a timetable. We think the transition could take six months from the establishment of the new authority of the transition,” said Diallo.

The Ombudsman then stated: “I think the proposals are both constructive and pertinent to the pursuit of my mission.”

The spokesman of the “lifeblood”, Jean-Marie Dore has also stressed that direct talks could leave the military coup in power for ten months: “Yes, through the mediation of President Blaise Compaoré, we agreed to talk with the junta in order to overcome the present situation. “

“As the purpose of dialogue is to establish a new transitional authority, then we accept dialogue, but very quickly, Guinea is in a different context management policy,” continued Mr. Dore.

At the turn of the junta to make proposals

Mr. Compaore should receive a delegation from the junta Guinea, Ouagadougou “next Tuesday,” at the earliest.

 ”We have not listened to that part. We will shortly receive the points of view and suggestions from the other camp, including the CNDD, and it is from there that we can define both a work program but also an electoral timetable, “said Compaore.

Mediation began after the killing of opposition demonstrators, carried out September 28 in the biggest stadium in Conakry, under the command of officers of the presidential guard, according to many witnesses.

The junta was condemned internationally after the bloody suppression of a demonstration by opponents who said “no to dictatorship” and “no” to the possible candidacy of presidential Dadis.

The authority said that 56 civilians were killed and 934 wounded September 28, but NGOs estimate that at least “150 to 200″ people died.

“You shouldn’t lead the country into a state of non-governance. You have an army in power, how are you going to oust it? You cannot mess around with that,” he told AFP.

–Idrissa Cherif, spokesman for junta leader, Dadis Camara 

Guinea junta warns sanctions may cause chaos

(AFP) – 5 hours ago

DAKAR — Guinea’s military junta warned Friday that sanctions imposed by the African Union, the United States and the European Union could cause chaos in the country.

“We take note of these sanctions,” Idrissa Cherif, a spokesman for junta leader captain Moussa Dadis Camara, told AFP in a phone interview from Conakry.

But he warned that the international community was pushing the country into a situation “that could degenerate”.

“You shouldn’t lead the country into a state of non-governance. You have an army in power, how are you going to oust it? You cannot mess around with that,” he told AFP.

“Chaos should be avoided in Guinea or we will see other tensions in the region,” he warned, stressing that Guinea was surrounded by fragile countries like Liberia, Sierra Leone and Ivory Coast.

On Thursday the African Union and the United States joined the European Union in imposing fresh sanctions on Guinea’s military rulers.

The moves came a month after junta troops opened fire at a rally in a Conakry stadium urging Camara not to stand in presidential elections planned for January.

At least 150 people died, the United Nations says. Human rights groups put the toll at 157 dead and more than 1,200 injured, including women who were publicly raped.

The military regime has said that 56 people died and 934 were wounded.

Despite the new sanctions against the junta the Guinean leadership is giving the priority to the mediation attempt by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaore is the mediator appointed to facilitate talks to end the crisis in Guinea.

“The president (Dadis Camara) has said that he is putting the fate of Guinea in the hands of mediator Compaore. He cannot say more than that,” his spokesman said.

On Monday Compaore is due to meet the Guinean anti-junta opposition but Cherif said the military leadership and the junta-backed government were not called to Ouagadougou where the talks will be held.

However, he added, “we are ready to go to Ouagadougou immediately if President Compaore calls on us. We are also ready to make enough concessions in order to get appeasement and to form a consensus government.”

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

___________________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release                                                      October 20, 2009

 

Statement by the Press Secretary
on the October 17 Economic Community of West Africa States Summit

 

The United States strongly supports the Economic Community of West African States’ (ECOWAS) decision to impose an arms embargo on Guinea and to work with the African Union to develop a regime of targeted sanctions against individuals. We welcome this action, to address the growing crisis in the region. The United States continues to condemn the brutal murders and rapes which occurred on September 28 in Guinea and calls on all parties to cooperate fully with the United Nations Commission of Inquiry charged with investigating the violence. We will continue to work with our international partners and the ECOWAS/African Union-appointed facilitator, President Blaise Compaore of Burkina Faso, to urge the junta in Conakry to step aside and allow for the establishment of a transitional authority that can lead the country toward credible elections.

The United States also welcomes the ECOWAS decision to impose an initial group of sanctions on Niger. Nevertheless, we urge ECOWAS to move towards the immediate imposition of full sanctions given President Tandja’s non-compliance with the ECOWAS request to suspend legislative elections. The United States remains deeply concerned by President Tandja’s disregard for Niger’s institutions of democratic governance. We urge President Tandja to resolve the political crisis in Niger through dialogue, rather than through self-serving actions that continue to erode Niger’s ten-year commitment to democracy and good governance.

We look forward to working with ECOWAS on democracy and the rule of law and applaud its rejection of unconstitutional accession to or maintenance of power.

11 Décembre 2007 : le Burkina Faso renoue avec la célébration de la Fête Nationale qui correspond à l’anniversaire de la proclamation de la République en 1958. On a aussi le 05 Août (Indépendance en 1960) autour duquel s’est greffé le 04 Août (Debut de la Révolution Burkinabè en 1983).

Le 11 Décembre a été désignée comme celle qui devait rassembler tous les Burkinabè autour de leurs jeune Nation. Je trouve cette initiative vraiment louable vu tout ce que nous avons pu connaitre ces dernières années et principalement la (ou les celebrations) du 15 Octobre dernier où l’on a pu voir 2 Burkinas s’adonner à des jeux pour lesquels le mot RI-DI-CU-LE est insuffisant à qualifier. (Voir mon article à ce propos.)

Ce 11 Décembre doit permettre à tous les Burkinabè de se retrouver et de se pardonner avec le coeur BLANC, afin que chaque fils du pays puisse apporter sa pierre à l’Edification d’une Nation solide. Autrement, que deviendra ce pays, le seul que l’on ait?

Aux Sankaristes, je demanderai “Est-ce parce que Blaise Compaoré est toujours au Pouvoir qu’il ne faut pas nous battre pour notre Patrie? Faudrait-il négliger le plaisir que cela donne de voir le drapeau Rouge et Vert avec l’Etoile Jaune flotter à la face du monde?”

Aux partisans de Blaise: “On dit souvent des Sankaristes qu’ils sont radicaux, mais je pense que vous l’êtes encore plus! En quoi, laisser l’autre camp s’exprimer librement peut vous nuire, tout le monde connait l’histoire! Croyez-vous que l’on puisse catalyser l’oubli dans la mémoire de tout un peuple?”

A tous les Burkinabès: “Celebrons dans la joie cette Journée! Pardonnons-nous et levons nous pour la patrie, l’avenir n’attendra la fin des querelles! Et n’oubliez pas toutes les grandes Nations de ce bas monde se sont construites dans la douleur (cf les Etats-Unis, la France, la Chine…)

Et pour finir, aux différents comités d’organisations, mettez un peu d’eau dans votre vin, nous ne sommes pas un pays pétrolier, alors pour les manifs, veuillez revoir l’envergure des fêtes.
Car le Burkina réel est tout autre, n’est ce pas?

C’est une ville que j’aime,
un peuple adorable,
des souvenirs impérissables,
des amitiés définitives!

Le maire de Ouaga, Simon Compaore, soutient Bertrand Delanoé: il a bien raison!
Et nous devons soutenir l’Afrique et le Burkina en particulier.
Pourquoi ? Parce que le Burkina n’intéresse personne car il n’ a pas de ressources naturelles exploitables. Le pays est donc un peu à l’écart de l’économie mondiale et pauvre. Ils ont besoin de notre solidarité active.

Simon Compaore, Maire de Ouagadougou
envoyé par bertranddelanoe

Here they are!!!

Comme c’est bizarre, pour ceux qui comme moi ont eu la chance (?) de vivre le 19 Septembre 2002 presque simultanement en Cote d’Ivoire et au Burkina Faso.

Pendant que chez les uns ” la Cote d’Ivoire est attaquée [...] par des assaillants venus du Burkina … “, chez les autres “la crise ivoiro ivoirienne constituait un alibi pour massacrer les Burkinabè residant en RCI…”

Aujourd’hui, les Burkinabè sont devenus les nouvelles stars en Cote d’Ivoire. Et Gbagbo est devenu la coqueluche des Médias (d’État et autres) à Ouaga! Y a qu’à suivre les JT des 2 pays frères liés à jamais. (Devinez qui a pu dire ça)

Mais au delà de cette mode, que s’est-il passé sur le terrain? Quels impacts tous ces évènements ont-ils pu avoir les relations entre les populations? Que penser de toute cette médiatisation?

Pour ma part, depuis Septembre 2002, j’ai continué à fréquenter la Cote d’Ivoire, les amis sont restés les amis (peut-être même que les relations sont devenues plus sérieuses ), bref tout allait bien, sauf peut-etre à Bouaké…

Maintenant, une petite devinette, comment se portera le tout puissant axe Abidjan-Ouaga dans 6 mois? Politiquement, bien sûr! Parce que nous les populations avons tout compris…