UN Secretary-General Condemns Killing of UN Peacebuilding Partner in Guinea

UN NEWS CENTRE: Ban condemns killing of UN peacebuilding partner in Guinea

Memorial service for Thierno Aliou Diaoune, National Coordinator for the UN Peacebuilding Fund, in Conakry, Guinea. Photo: UNDP Guinea

 10 February 2015 – The Secretary-General has today condemned, in the strongest terms, the killing of Thierno Aliou Diaoune, National Coordinator for the UN Peacebuilding Fund, in Conakry, Guinea, on 6 February 2015.

“Mr. Diaoune was a trusted United Nations partner and a tireless advocate for the construction of peace, democracy and human rights in Guinea,” said a statement issued today by Mr. Ban’s spokesperson.

The statement said the Secretary-General welcomed the Guinean Government’s announcement of a full investigation into Mr. Diaoune’s death and offered his sincere condolences to Mr. Diaoune’s family.

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Guinea: In Communique, Opposition Reiterates What It Reiterated Before –Including Ville Morte Monday and No Decision on Seats in the Assembly

Below is the latest communique from the opposition.  If you wish to read the French version, click on the link below.

sam, 23 nov 2013, 14:49 

Journée ville morte à Conakry : l’opposition guinéenne formalise sept décisions.

Translated into English via Google.

Ghost town in Conakry day: the Guinean opposition formalized seven decisions.

Political members of the Republican opposition parties came together to harmonize their positions on issues relating to legislation on 28 September 2013. They took the opportunity to issue a statement on seven points, Has said Saturday in a statement.

 

1 – Opposition condemns become recurrent abuses suffered by unarmed demonstrators by the security forces who enjoy total impunity in their missions repression. During these brutal actions, they do not hesitate to use weapons of war to provide services for maintaining order with as corollary of heavy balance sheets resulting in many deaths and gunshot wounds. Opposition deplores their latest crackdown has resulted in the death of a young citizen 15 years hit by a bullet during a protest in Cosa, in the commune of Ratoma and injuries to a dozen other young people from the same neighborhood;

2 – opposition deplores the violence against journalists are regularly in the exercise of their noble profession. It condemns molestage a journalist by members of the Presidential Guard, during an official ceremony and the attempted abduction by strangers of the director of a private radio;

3 – The opposition confirms its determination to enter supranational courts in order to assert these rights, under the resolution of electoral disputes arising recent elections;

4 – The opposition decided to inform the Secretary General of the United Nations a complete dossier highlighting fraud, serious shortcomings and gaps that have affected the election, thus removing him credibility and transparency expected;

5 – The Republican opposition acknowledges the dissolution of the Committee monitoring the implementation of the inter-Guinean political agreement of 3 July 2013 and regrets the lack of a framework for dialogue between the government and the opposition. So she wants to create a new framework for dialogue between the presidential camp and the Government on the one hand and the opposition, on the other hand, with the participation of representatives of the international community. Such a structure could, among other tasks, to follow up the implementation of the provisions of the agreement of July 3 last not yet executed;

6 – Opposition challenges to the next plenary debate on the question of its future participation in the National Assembly, the process of internal consultation initiated by some political parties are not at an end. An extension has been granted for that consensus is achieved within each political party before a meeting of the Republican opposition to define a common position regarding its participation or boycott the future parliament. The Republican opposition reiterates its determination to preserve its unity and cohesion usual to make the ultimate decision adopted in the coming days, a common position shared by all member parties;

7 – To protest against the resignation of the Supreme Court, which is self-challenged publicly expressing his incompetence to deal with appeals by political parties in the electoral disputes, Republican opposition decides to make Monday, November 25 2013 , a ghost town in the five communes of Conakry day. She called the people of the capital to refrain from any activity that day to protest against the serious institutional crisis created by the resignation of the Supreme Court and its refusal to resolve electoral disputes as there oblige the Constitution and the Code election;

The Republican opposition invites its members and supporters to respond massively to its slogan of dead city for the day of November 25 next while remaining mobilized to defend the democratic gains of the People of Guinea.

Opposition Statement Provides More Details on Letter to Ban ki-moon, Monitoring Mission, Upcoming Elections,”Dead City” Day, and Whether to Seat Delegates at the National Assembly

Aboubacar Sylla, spokesperson of the opposition, read a statement this afternoon which provides more information on topics announced earlier in the day.  This is an excerpt.  If you wish to read this in French, please click on the link below.  Further below is the English version via Google and a bit of editing by Guinea Oye.

 

From: guineenews.org 

 

Le porte parole de l’opposition : « Notre position commune va attendre encore, certains partis ne sont pas prêts »

 

 

The Spokesperson of the Opposition: “ Our common position is to wait, some parties are not ready”

 

 

With respect to elections of September 28 we decided to enter the United Nations, inform the Secretary General of the United Nations in a letter which we reaffirm our refusal to accept the rigged elections, we reaffirm all fraud, all the imperfections, we remember everything that these elections have provided for us a real sham election and we attach to this letter provided sufficient documentation to attest to the truth of our accusations. This letter will also be sent to the African Union, ECOWAS and the European Union.

We also decided to send a letter to the authorities to take note of the end of the mission of the Monitoring Committee of the Agreement of 3 July 2013. We noted in effect that the cessation of its activities comes at a time when many provisions under the Agreement of 3 July have not been executed.

We want a permanent framework for dialogue to be established under the auspices of the international community to continue to place the provisions of the Agreement of July 3, including issues related to municipal and community elections to be held in principle before the end of the first quarter of 2014 and the presidential election in 2015 through change of technical operator, the recruitment of a new operator on the basis of international competition.

There are also many as you know obligations were subject to the authorities but not yet implemented, it is the neutrality of public administration, access to state media public service all currents of thought and opinion, compensation of those who were victims of the events that we have experienced in recent months in Guinea.

We also decided to organize a day ghost town next Monday, November 25. We therefore call on all people of Conakry to observe this day a day ghost town to protest against the resignation of the Supreme Court and the fact that this institution declares itself incompetent to judge electoral disputes, making our country the only country in the world where no recourse to electoral disputes can  be examined. 

 

We proposed to define our position with respect to our participation or not in the national assembly. As you know we had asked to see our respective bases for all political parties on the basis of consensus to consult with their different structures and arrive at a consensus decision. It is at the present day the work is not yet complete, it is a process of bringing ideas that sometimes takes time and some political parties have said they are not yet ready and cannot state their position on this important issue. So we postponed to the next day the decision on the participation or not of the Republican opposition to the next National Assembly. 

 

La « communauté internationale » en Guinée-CONAKRY : des ambiguïtés à expliquer à ceux et à celles qui veulent comprendre.

Mamadou Billo SY SAVANE

LEGUEPARD.net

Article publié par le 27 avril 2013 à 9h2

La « communauté internationale » en Guinée-CONAKRY : des ambiguïtés à expliquer à ceux et à celles qui veulent comprendre.

De tous les pays Noirs Africains, les Guinéens sont les plus prompts à implorer la «communauté» dite internationale à la moindre petite difficulté politique normale intérieure. Ici on invoque BAN KI MOON. Là, on sollicite le représentant de l‘Union Européenne qui se prend pour le Gouverneur Général de la Guinée, parce que son organisation financerait ceci ou cela. Ailleurs, on se soumet obséquieusement aux injonctions injustifiées de l’Ambassadeur des U.S.A. dont on cherche en vain le caractère diplomatique de ses agissements militants pour M. Alpha CONDE. En quelque sorte, la préférence pour un homme pourvoyeur de concessions minières, et le rejet de populations pacifiques délestées de leur propre pays. Singulière diplomatie.

Jamais par le passé, notre PATRIE n’a été si humiliée, si traînée dans la boue, depuis la cooptation de M. Alpha CONDE à sa tête, par des réseaux extérieurs dont les Guinéens de base comprennent désormais qu’ils défendent des intérêts absolument contraires aux leurs.

La diplomatie de menace et d’intimidation des populations guinéennes par l’ambassadeur des U.S.A. à CONAKRY est une source possible de radicalisation de la jeunesse du pays.

Ce nouvel ambassadeur à CONAKRY, d’ailleurs très lié aux affairistes miniers Anglo-américains et Sud-Africains, ne cesse d’intriguer de simples citoyens guinéens. Car ses ingérences grossières dans les petits différends politiques intérieurs, sont très loin de la démarche diplomatique normale, mais très proches des intimidations de type bar bouzard.

Le militantisme RPGISTE outrancier du diplomate des U.S.A. à CONAKRY, ses agissements agressifs déraisonnables contre les adversaires politiques de M. Alpha CONDE, n’annoncent rien de bon pour mes compatriotes, ni maintenant, ni dans le futur proche et lointain.

Il va dans les camps militaires à KINDIA et ailleurs, comme si la Guinée était un simple Comté de l’Alabama, ou de l’Oregon. Il donne des leçons de «démocratie» aux Guinéens qui ne lui demandent rien. Je me suis laissé dire qu’il aurait ordonné à M. Alpha CONDE de fixer la date du 30 Juin pour les législatives. Or, il n’ignore pas que le KIT électoral WAYMARK-SABARI Technologie a déjà créé préventivement un stock de 750. 000 faux électeurs en Haute-Guinée, notamment à KANKAN, SIGUIRI, KOUROUSSA, KEROUANE (les bastions supposés de M. Alpha CONDE), et limité sévèrement les inscriptions au fichier électoral dans les régions réputées favorables à l’opposition (la Moyenne-Guinée, la Basse-Guinée et maintenant une bonne partie de la Guinée Forestière). Peut-être a t-il lui-même, ou ses amis Sud-Africains (Services Secrets de M. Jacob ZUMA qui peuplent le palais Sékoutouréya) contribué à créer ces faux électeurs ?

UN Head Phones ECOWAS Leader to Ensure Guinea’s Poll Takes Place on Time

Ban phones African regional leader to ensure Guinea’s poll takes place on time

Source: United Nations News Service

Date: 14 Oct 2010
14 October 2010 – Seeking to ensure that the much-delayed second round of Guinea’s presidential poll is held on 24 October as scheduled, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today phoned Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan in his role as head of a regional body that has been assisting the process.

The Secretary-General hoped that in the 10 days remaining before the scheduled second round of the Guinean presidential elections, any outstanding issues would be resolved, according to his spokesman.

He thanked President Jonathan, who is chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), for his direct engagement together with President Blaise Compaoré of Burkina Faso to ensure that the poll is held in a peaceful climate.

Mr. Ban’s Special Representative for West Africa, Said Djinnit, is already in the region for talks with Guinea’s Interim President Sékouba Konaté and the two candidates in the presidential run-off as well as with Mr. Jonathan.

Guinea’s independent electoral authority earlier cited technical difficulties when it postponed the ballot between Cellou Dalein Diallo and Alpha Condé, the two candidates with the highest number of votes in the first round in June.

Mr. Djinnit has warned that further delays could seriously undermine the transition process in Guinea. At least one person died earlier this month following clashes in the capital, Conakry, related to the election tensions, and Guinea has been plagued by misrule, dictatorships and coups since it gained independence in 1958.

The election is the final stage of the interim Government’s efforts to set up a democracy after the forces of Captain Moussa Dadis Camara – who seized power in a coup in 2008 after the death of long-time president Lansana Conté – shot, raped and attacked hundreds of civilian demonstrators attending a rally in Conakry in September 2009, killing at least 150

UN Chief Welcomes Closer Cooperation with Francophone Countries on Human rights

Ban welcomes closer UN cooperation with Francophone countries on human rights

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon meets with Abdou Diouf, Secretary-General of the International Organization of La Francophonie.

25 September 2010 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed moves by the United Nations and the community of French-speaking nations to work more closely on human rights, peacekeeping and other issues, saying it can only contribute to greater security worldwide.

Speaking last night to an International Organization of la Francophonie (OIF) event in New York, Mr. Ban said the two organizations were working closely together on many fronts, from peace and security to economic development.

“We continue to strengthen our cooperation in the crucial areas of peacekeeping, conflict prevention and electoral assistance,” he said. “We are on the ground together in Haiti, in the Central African Republic (CAR), in Guinea, Niger, Madagascar, Mauritania and the Comoros.”

Earlier this year the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay and OIF Secretary-General Abdou Diouf signed an agreement for closer collaboration on promoting human rights.

“This is a wide spectrum of activity, and testimony to our strong partnership,” he said, noting that an estimated 200 million people worldwide are French speakers.

UN Chief, Nigerian President Meet on West African Issues, Including Delay in Guinea Election

UN chief, Nigerian president meet on West African issues
Nigerian 09:38, September 25, 2010      

UN Secretary-general on Friday met with Nigerian President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to discuss issues impacting West Africa, a UN readout released here said.

The meeting of Ban and Jonathan took place on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly general debate, which opened here on Thursday.

Ban spoke to Jonathan about elections in Nigeria scheduled for next year, and thanked Nigeria for its assistance to UN peacekeeping missions, the readout issued by Ban’s spokesman said, adding that the two also talked about conflicts and election delays in several West African countries.

“Given that President Jonathan is the current Chairman of ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States), the secretary- general also took the opportunity to discuss a number of regional issues including concerns over delays in the holding of planned elections in Cote d’Ivoire and Guinea, continuing concerns over the situation in Guinea-Bissau and the progress being made in Liberia’s peacebuilding efforts,” the readout said.

According to the readout, President Jonathan also “raised the need for the international community to assist in curtailing the proliferation of small arms in Africa.”

Source: Xinhua

UN Envoy, Said Djinnit, Arrives in Guinea to Discuss Election Crisis

UN envoy arrives in Guinea to discuss election crisis

(AFP) – 4 hours ago

CONAKRY — A top UN envoy arrived in Guinea Saturday at the head of an international delegation for talks with key players in the crisis over the suspended presidential election.

A senior member of presidential contender Cellou Dalein Diallo’s party meanwhile threatened to shut down the capital if activists arrested during last weekend’s violence were not released.

Said Djinnit, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s special representative for West Africa, led members of the International Contact Group for Guinea into talks with election officials and political leaders on Saturday.

Djinnit and the other foreign envoys were due to meet members of the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI) which decided to postpone the presidential runoff vote that had been due to take place on Sunday.

They were also due to meet the country’s interim president General Sekouba Konate and the two presidential candidates, Diallo and Alpha Conde, in a bid to fix a new date for the vote.

The second round vote was postponed after clashes last weekend in Conakry between supporters of the two candidates left one person dead and 50 injured.

Veteran opposition leader Conde said the July first-round result, in which Diallo won 44 percent of the vote to his 18 percent, was fraudulent, and blamed CENI.

But both candidates have called for the election to take place as soon as possible.

A senior member of Diallo’s Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea said activists would take to the streets Monday if police did not released around 200 of the party’s young supporters arrested during last weekend’s violence.

“If they are not released between now and Sunday we will shut down Conakry,” warned party vice-president Amadou Bah Oury.

Its activists would also be pushing hard to get a date for the vote set, he added.

CENI has said it postponed the vote for logistical and technical problems.

“We need two weeks to prepare well,” CENI spokesman Thierno Ceydou Bayo said on Friday.

UN Head, Ban, Calls for Resolution of Obstacles to Guinea’s Run-Off Vote

http://allafrica.com/stories/printable/201009161032.html

Guinea: Ban Calls for Resolution of Obstacles to Presidential Election Run-Off

16 September 2010

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Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today called on authorities in Guinea to swiftly resolve all technical and logistical obstacles to holding the run-off round of presidential polls – which has just been postponed by electoral officials – so it can be staged as soon as possible.

Mr. Ban noted the decision yesterday of Guinean electoral authorities to delay the run-off, originally scheduled to take place this Sunday, citing technical reasons, according to a statement issued by his spokesperson.

Addressing any outstanding technical or logistical challenges is now vital “to create the conditions necessary for the holding of transparent and credible elections as soon as possible,” the statement noted.

Cellou Dalein Diallo and Alpha Conde will contest the run-off after they scored the highest number of votes of 24 candidates who entered the first round in June, widely considered to be the first free elections in a country plagued by misrule and dictatorship since independence in 1958.

In his statement Mr. Ban warned that anyone who tries to “disrupt an orderly and peaceful transition would be held accountable by Guineans and by the international community as a whole.”

He urged Guineans to exercise utmost restraint during the remainder of the presidential campaign and to refrain from violence or acts of incitement.

Violent clashes on the weekend in the capital, Conakry, claimed at least one life and injured dozens of others.

The head of Guinea’s electoral commission also reportedly died overnight on Monday, a week after being convicted of falsifying results in the first round of the presidential ballot.

Said Djinnit, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for West Africa, is holding consultations by phone with the key stakeholders in Guinea, including the two presidential candidates, members of the Government, electoral authorities and the UN Country Team as part of the UN’s role to support efforts to resolve the current crisis.

He is also speaking with his counterparts from the African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to coordinate their response.

Mr. Djinnit was to travel today to Guinea but he postponed his visit to allow for consultations. He travelled instead to Abuja, Nigeria, to further discuss the issue with AU and ECOWAS on the margin of an ECOWAS summit. He is expected to make a high-level visit in the coming days.

Yesterday he voiced concern to the UN News Centre about the recent violence and political tensions and urged Guinea’s political parties not to waste the opportunities to make progress.

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UN Envoy, Djinnit: W. Africa Still at Crossroads Despite Recent Progress

West Africa still at crossroads despite recent progress, says UN envoy

Special Representative for West Africa Said Djinnit

13 July 2010 – Root causes of conflicts in West Africa, including ethnic tensions and governance challenges, could overturn gains made in consolidating peace, leaving the region at a crossroads, a senior United Nations official said today.

“This requires the continued support of the international community, including the United Nations, to maintain the momentum for peace and stability in the sub-region,” Said Djinnit, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s Special Representative for West Africa, told the Security Council.

In the six months since his last briefing to the Council, Mr. Djinnit said that the situation in the region has improved. Earlier this year, a constitutional crisis was brewing in Niger, while the lives of large segments of Guinea’s population were affected by food insecurity, drug trafficking and other obstacles.

Since then, the staging of peaceful elections in Togo – with the subsequent formation of a new Government with the participation of part of the opposition – and the continued commitment of Niger’s authorities to a transition programme are “encouraging signs of progress,” he said.

In Guinea, steps are being taken to restore constitutional order, with the first round of presidential polls having been peacefully held on 27 June. Unrest erupted last year after the forces of Moussa Dadis Camara, who seized power in a coup in 2008 following the death of long-time president Lansana Conté, opened fire on unarmed protesters at a rally, killing at least 150 people.

“Needless to say… stable and peaceful democratic governance in Guinea will have far-reaching implications for regional stability,” especially in bolstering hard-won peace in Sierra Leone and Liberia, Mr. Djinnit pointed out.

Progress in Guinea could also help to address the ongoing crisis in neighbouring Guinea-Bissau, which has seen political and security tensions rise in recent months, he said.

A series of political assassinations last year had threatened security and stability in Guinea-Bissau, but order was restored with the election of Malam Bacai Sanhá in the June 2009 presidential election.

The past six months has seen economic growth in West Africa supported by the global economic recovery, but Mr. Djinnit noted that these improvements have not resulted in sustainable poverty reduction schemes.

At the same time, “prospects for achieving the Millennium Development Goals [MDGs] remain weak,” he said, referring to the eight anti-poverty targets world leaders have pledged to achieve by 2015. Also of concern, he said, is the food crisis touching the lives of millions of people in the Sahel, especially in Niger, home to more than 7 million hungry people.

Later in closed-door talks with Council members, Mr. Djinnit presented the Secretary-General’s latest report on the UN Office for West Africa (UNOWA), which notes that despite progress in shoring up peace and human rights, such strides are being undercut by the paucity of good governance.

“The resurgence of coups d’état in West Africa, which I have consistently denounced, and the major role played by the armed forces in these coups, are a reflection of the difficult civil-military relationships in situations of bad governance,” Mr. Ban wrote.

The Special Representative told the Council today that “recent experience in the subregion has shown that opportunities for crisis prevention and sustainable peace are now available more than ever,” underscoring the key role international assistance could play in promoting human rights, supporting electoral processes and helping in the fight against drug trafficking, among others.

The 15-member body took note “of the proactive role played by UNOWA in mobilizing the system of the UN in the subregion and in forging strong partnerships with regional and continental partners and also mobilizing international support,” he told reporters after the meeting.