Journalist & NYU Graduate student specializing in International Relations
CONAKRY – The countdown begins in just less than one week Guinea will hold their first democratic election after gaining independence from the French in 1958. The top three presidential favorites are: Alpha Conde, Cellou Dalein and Sydia Tore. The excitement and campaigning in the streets is non-stop, as cars attempt to dodge endless amount of traffic in heavy populated areas around the city center. On any given day near landmark locations Mouna Café and Madina Market, you can watch a sea of motorcycles campaign through the streets of Conakry. In addition, the radio stations are playing an active role in the political process. Issaitou, one of the popular radio personalities on Cherie FM, hosted a call in hour in English requesting listeners to give advice to the Guinean people on the day of elections. It is with excitement to see this country take on a spirit of reconciliation for the Guinean Massacre on September 28 th, 2009 appears to be a distant memory.
The presidential candidate selection process was rigorous for the specific guidelines helped narrow down the initial pool of over 100 candidates to 24. The requirements are the following: Guinean nationality and must be over 32 years old, in good health and provide a deposit of 400 million Guinean francs (62,000 dollars). The money is deposited and receipt is given by the National Electoral Commission. The final 24 candidates have to win 5% of the electorate or more to be reimbursed; otherwise their money will be forfeited. This process leaves a lot of room for skepticism. Maimouna Keita, a first year student studying telecommunications at Gamal Abdel Nasser University believes, “democracy in Guinea is not possible. Our next president will be who is most popular and has the most money, as oppose to who is best suited for the position.”
In a country that has been plagued with decades of corruption, autocratic rule and poor governance it seems unrealistic for a country to embrace the culture of democracy and “free choice by the people” in one election. In addition, we cannot ignore the ethnic segregation among Guinea’s two dozen ethnic groups. The three dominant groups are: Fulani, Malinke (also known as Mandinka, Mandingo, Manding or Maninka) and Soussou (also called Susu). The Fulani (sometimes called Peul), are the largest single group (40% of the population). Cellou Dalein’s political campaign director believes, “70% of the electoral vote will be ethnic and it will take several successful democratic elections for this mindset to change.” The consensus among many Fulani believe it is there turn to have a newly elected leader come from their ethnic group. The former President Lansana Conte was Susu and Sekou Toure was Malinke.
Despite the infancy stages of Guinea’s transition to a newly elected civilian leader; the international community on the ground and abroad is playing an integral role in maintaining transparency in the electoral process. Ultimately, a successful democratic election is the pre-condition for a new vision for Guinea.
Le 27 juin 2010, plus de quatre millions de guinéens se rendront aux urnes pour choisir, parmi 24 candidats, celui qui aura la charge de diriger le pays pour cinq ans. Qualifiée d’historique, la présidentielle du 27 juin s’annonce avec des enjeux énormes et des défis à relever nombreux.
Le premier enjeu de cette élection est lié à son organisation dans la transparence. Là-dessus, tous les regards sont tournés vers la Commission Electorale Nationale Indépendante (Ceni). Celle-ci collabore avec le Ministère chargé de l’Intérieur à l’organisation des consultations électorales et référendaires. A ce titre, la CENI prend part à la conception, l’organisation, la prise de décision et l’exécution, depuis l’inscription sur les listes électorales jusqu’à la proclamation des résultats provisoires.
A moins d’une semaine de la tenue du scrutin, la CENI s’active à jouer son rôle et à assumer pleinement ses responsabilités. L’organisation de l’élection est maintenue pour le 27 juin. Depuis le 10 juin, les documents électoraux ont été acheminés vers les circonscriptions électorales suivant un programme basé sur quatre axes principaux. La distribution des cartes d’électeurs a démarré sur toute l’étendue du territoire. Seulement voilà.
Il y a là un premier défi véritable à relever. Dans biens des quartiers de Conakry et certaines préfectures de l’intérieur du pays, la distribution des cartes d’électeurs a été émaillée d’irrégularités. Certains sont allés jusqu’à parler de vol de cartes d’électeurs. Parce que tout simplement, malgré la présentation de leurs récépissés, ils n’ont pas encore reçu les documents leur permettant d’accomplir leur devoir civique. Même que certains chefs de quartiers et élus locaux à l’intérieur de la Guinée refusent de délivrer les cartes d’électeurs à des citoyens qui ne partageraient pas leurs convictions politiques. Ce qui n’est pas de nature à apaiser la situation.
Vu l’engouement avec lequel les populations sont décidées à aller au vote, c’est un paramètre à prendre très au sérieux. La CENI devrait donc mieux communiquer sur les modalités de vote. En procédant notamment à la vulgarisation de la décision conjointe N°203 du MATAP et de la CENI. Celle-ci stipule, en son article 1, que dans le cadre de l’élection présidentielle du 27 juin 2010 et des autres consultations électorales, le vote se fait avec la carte d’électeur biométrique ou exceptionnellement et dans les conditions déterminées par la présente décision, le récépissé d’enregistrement avec photo. Toutes choses qui pourraient éviter des troubles le jour du vote.
Le deuxième enjeu de la présidentielle du 27 juin s’articule autour de l’acceptation des résultats, non seulement par les candidats mais aussi par leurs militants et sympathisants. S’il est évident chez la plupart des observateurs que l’élection sera serrée, il n’en n’est pas de même chez certains leaders politiques. Plus d’un candidat pense qu’il sera vainqueur dès le premier tour.
Aujourd’hui, la Guinée compte 129 partis politiques. Paraît que c’est le pays qui en détient le plus sur le continent. Une autre exception guinéenne ?
Mais osons l’écrire : la plupart de ces partis sont à base ethnique ou régionaliste. Si l’on n’y prend garde, c’est à ce niveau que les problèmes pourraient surgir au lendemain du vote. Les différents candidats ont beau crié sur tous les toits, qu’ils sont contre l’ethnocentrisme et le régionalisme, leurs militants n’en n’ont cure. Les débats dans les cafés, taxis, marchés, familles et même au sein de l’élite en font foi. Et puis, il suffit de fréquenter les états-majors de ces partis ou d’assister à leurs réunions hebdomadaires, pour se rendre compte de la réalité du communautarisme. Le vote du 27 juin échappera-t-il à cette vérité ? En tout cas, c’est à ce seul prix qu’un candidat pourrait l’emporter dès le premier tour. Attendons donc de voir !
Le troisième enjeu est le rôle des autorités de la transition. Jusque-là, nous n’avons assisté à aucune immixtion d’un quelconque ministre dans la campagne électorale. C’est un bon signe de neutralité. Mais force est de reconnaître que le gouvernement n’a pas été très « chaud » pour ce scrutin. Le Premier Ministre, chef du gouvernement, qui avait été chargé par le Président de la transition à préparer le terrain à l’organisation d’élections libres et transparentes, s’est montré très sceptique à la tenue du scrutin au 27 juin. Il mettait en cause les moyens insuffisants accordés à la CENI. Il n’était pas favorable à l’adoption de la nouvelle Constitution par ordonnance.
M.Jean-Marie Doré, aurait souhaité l’organisation d’un référendum. Ce qui contraste avec la volonté du Général Sékouba Konaté à aller vite aux élections et à rendre le pouvoir à un civil. Malgré les intentions des uns et des autres, le Président Konaté a maintenu le cap : la présidentielle se tiendra le 27 juin 2010. Il a réaffirmé, haut et fort, qu’il n’a ni candidat à faire élire ni à soutenir.
Après 50 ans de régime tyrannique et militaire, la Guinée n’a pas le droit de rater cette occasion. La présidentielle du 27 juin demeure un scrutin très ouvert. Pour la première fois dans l’histoire du pays, il n’y a ni Président au pouvoir, ni parti au pouvoir encore moins de ministre comme candidat. Le destin des 24 candidats est entre les mains des électeurs. Puisse le vote se déroulé en toute transparence et quiétude.
BAH Boubacar « AZOCA »
Administrateur du site http://www.guineedirect.com
Azoka2004@yahoo.fr
Tel : +224 60 34 17 66 / 64 20 30 49 / 62 89 44 32
Guinea Vote 2010 Witness system using Ushahidi technology to go live Tuesday, June 15
New York, NY, June 13, 2010 – With less than two weeks to go before the first open, multi-party presidential elections in Guinea since independence, preparations for the June 27 vote are proceeding with unprecedented collaboration between state, civil society and international actors. Starting Tuesday, June 15, Guinea will have yet another tool to help these historic elections be as free and fair as possible. Civil and government groups will join cell phone companies and even Miss Guinea to launch Guinea Vote 2010 Witness (or GV10 Témoin in French).
“This system will surely contribute to making these elections more credible. Furthermore, it will turn every citizen into an active observer of the process,” says Thierno Seydou Bayo, Head of Communications for Guinea’s National Independent Election Commission (CENI).
“The use of GV10 Witness will allow people in Guinea and around the world to report on and follow election developments in real time, going a long way to helping this landmark vote be as transparent, peaceful and free as possible,” said Alliance Guinea co-founder Jennifer Swift-Morgan. “After decades of hoping for truly democratic rule in Guinea, the desire for a fair election runs deep. And this is evident in the range of groups working around the world to launch this cutting-edge election monitoring system.”
Alliance Guinea, a non-profit non-partisan coalition of Guineans and friends of Guinea, is working in partnership with the African Elections Project, the CENI and several other partners in Guinea with support from the US Embassy in Conakry and the country’s major telecommunications operators to deploy GV10 Witness using Ushahidi SMS- and internet-based technology. Ushahidi, which means “testimony” in Swahili, is an open source crowdsourcing platform first developed in Kenya during post-election violence in 2008. It has since been deployed in several countries around the world.
The GV10 Witness partners will announce the initiative at a press conference on Monday, June 14, 2010 at 11:00 in Guinea’s capital of Conakry at the CENI Communications Centre in the Coléah-Lanséboungni neighborhood. Miss Guinea will act as a spokesperson and promoter for the initiative.
The GV10 Witness system will serve as a tool to track election-related incidents such as violence, threats of violence, and election fraud. It will also elicit commentary and information related to campaign events, voter education, etc. Citizens and observers can use their cell phones or computers to send messages via SMS, email, and Twitter into the GV10 Witness platform. The messages will then be posted to the website www.GV10Temoin.org on a map of Guinea, organized by incident location and type of incident or report. People monitoring the elections – whether election administrators and observers, international media, civil society organizations or the general public – will then be able to follow developments on the site or through email updates.
Alliance Guinea will filter, code, and map reports online using a corps of volunteers who have signed up from around the world to support the initiative. Additional volunteers are encouraged to sign on through the organization’s website at www.AllianceGuinea.org.
Information reported to the GV10 Witness system will be used to spur investigative reporting, inform and catalyze dialogue around the elections both in country and across the world, and increase and inform international media coverage of this historic and critical transition. In addition, the system will serve as an important tool for election administrators and election security workers in Guinea to share information and respond quickly to any reports of malfeasance and violence.
To send a report to GV10 Witness, email guinea@africaelections.org; tweet using the hashtags #guinee, #guineavotereport, or #guineaelections; or file a report using the form at http://bit.ly/GV10Help. Starting Tuesday June 15, people in Guinea will also be able to text in messages to 8008.
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For more information, contact Alliance Guinea at allianceguinea@gmail.com or
www.allianceguinea.org. To volunteer, please fill out the form at http://bit.ly/GV10Help
Want to be a part of history? Be a Guinea election monitor from home!! Alliance Guinea and AfricanElections.org, in partnership with the National Independent Election Commission and others in Guinea are about to launch “Guinea Vote 2010 Witness” – an SMS- and internet- based election monitoring effort using Ushahidi technology. Through GV10 Witness, election monitors, journalists, and ordinary citizens on the ground in Guinea will be able to use their cell phones to share information about election challenges and successes with the entire world.
What we need now are volunteers to help process this information – and that means YOU! All you need is access to a computer, a few hours in the next two weeks and a passion for democracy. Sign up now and we’ll get you oriented and ready to help from the comfort of your home.
The first democratic presidential elections in Guinean history are less than *3 WEEKS* away – and we need all hands on deck to help them be as free and fair as possible. Be a part of history.
On May 20, Alliance Guinea participated in the roundtable called by the US State Department, represented by Steering Committee Members Alhoussaine Bah and Doussou Conde Sanoh.
After welcoming every participant, US Assistant Secretary of State for Africa Johnnie Carson gave a summary of the situation in Guinea. He started by the case of chief of the CNDD Moussa Daddis Camara who is still in Ouagadougou, and then commented on the optimism of Guineans to have free and fair presidential elections on June 27, 2010.
There were many important participants in the roundtable such as the representative of the UNDP, Ms Priya Gajraj; US State Department Desk officer for Niger and Guinea, Jane Dennison; Abigal Wilson and Almami Cyllah of the UN NGO IFES, and Laurent Bertin of Action Guinea. Most gave their point of view of the situation in Conakry. It is interesting to note that Alliance Guinea and Action Guinea representatives were the only Guineans present at the meeting, and our interventions appeared to have been greatly appreciated by the other attendees and the State Department.
In particular, the Alliance Guinea representatives expressed our concern about the Guinean elections on June 27. While recent positive developments on ground give us reason to be optimistic, we expressed that there is a serious risk of violence if there is not transparency. We shared the following points of view from our members:
The CENI and the government must do their best to have free and fair elections. To help these efforts:
Every party should emphasize their own non-violence during and after the election.
Every party should prepare their supporters to accept the result.
The government should assure the security of the population and the election during the campaign and after – and should continue to pursue the participation of ECOWAS observers in this effort, as mandated by the Ouagadougou Accords.
Election support funds flowing through the NGO IFES should support private media coverage of the elections in addition to public media.
The international community should support and congratulate the winner as soon they announce the results.
Immediately after inauguration of the new president, the international committee must emphasize the need to address concerns of justice and the prosecution of suspected perpetrators of the September 28 massacre, related crimes and previous human rights abuses that have consistently been met with complete impunity.
The U.S. State Department has called a roundtable on Guinea this Thursday, May 20 in Washington with the highest authority of the department responsible for Africa, Assistant Secretary of State Johnnie Carson – Alliance Guinea will be there to represent YOU. Share with us below the analyses, questions and suggestions that you have for the U.S. government around these historic elections – especially as regards the election process with all the logistical and political challenges still ahead. Make your voice heard during this critical time and leave your comments here to join the discussion.
The campaign for the presidential election in Guinea scheduled for June 27 officially started Monday, May 17, 2010. In this context Alliance Guinea in partnership with other civil society organizations interested in free and fair elections and the triumph of democracy in Guinea, launched the campaign for democracy in Guinea .The campaign is to collect information on the character, track-record and programs of the candidates and to promote informed voting through a participatory process. With our partners such as key Guinean media outlets and associations like RougeJauneVert.com, Alliance Guinea is has launched this effort to collect questions that ordinary people would like to discuss with their candidates. A questionnaire of 15 to 20 points covering the policy platform and experience of the candidate will be submitted to all candidates for a democratic and civil debate on the issues of real importance to everyday Guineans.
The objectives of this initiative are to:
1.Allow Guineans inside and outside of the country to participate in the political debates and discuss the future of the country with the candidates.
2.Allow Guineans of voting age to understand the agendas and policy platforms of the various candidates, and to distinguish between the candidates other based on their programs and accomplishments.
3.Provide a forum for candidates to explain their policies and projects and to debate them with their political opponents.
4.Reduce the tension and politically-based violence through informed dialogue.
5.Reduce the ethnic vote, and allow coalitions based on policies and governance philosophy to emerge and consolidate.
To design the questionnaire for candidates, we need your ideas on the most relevant questions to ask. What are your priority concerns and aspirations? What questions can we ask to solicit responses that are well thought-out that will allow us to distinguish between the candidates?
To join the coalition of Guineans who want to vote for a new Guinea, please fill out the form via the link below. Contribute to the political debate in Guinea in devising your questions to the candidates. The success of this initiative depends on you, because we rely on as much participation as possible to represent the interest of everyday Guinea in the political debate at this crucial moment in the history of Guinea. We are relying on everyone’s spirit of good citizenship to share this form with as many people as possible.
Your opinion counts – make yourself heard and we will ensure that your answers are compiled in order to inform the questionnaire that will soon be submitted to the candidates.Once the questionnaire itself is ready we will keep you informed about the next steps of having this serious debate on the future of Guinea. Speak up and we will make sure that you are heard.
The Stabile Student Center at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism in New York, New york was filled to capacity Wednesday night with Guineans, journalists, students, and others interested in Guinea and in freedom of the press for the event “Democracy Under Fire: Freedom of Media in Guinea”. The panel discussion was hosted by Alliance Guinea, the Committee to Protect Journalists and the Columbia “J School” in partnership with the Guinean Forces Vives in the USA and Columbia University’s African Studies Working Group. Everyone was so interested in what the panelists had to say they stayed until almost an hour after the event was supposed to end!
The event was moderated by Milton Allimadi, Publisher and CEO of Black Star News, and the featured speaker was Nassirou Diallo, a Guinean journalist who witnessed the massacre on September 28th and is now in exile in the United States. Mr. Diallo recounted what happened to him and other journalists in Guinea, how he had been targeted by the military on several occasions for his reporting, and how he had to flee Guinea the night of the massacre for fear of retribution for his eyewitness accounts. His heroism and integrity was greatly felt by the audience. Mr. Diallo also talked about the linkages between journalism and activism – especially in a political context as difficult as that in Guinea – and how he is now using new media such as BlogTalkRadio to continue his work through his new program “Le 4ème Pouvoir” even while physically far from Guinea.
Earlier in the day, Mr. Diallo appeared on the Brian Lehrer Show, a critically acclaimed talk show on New York’s premier public radio station, WNYC, to talk about democracy and the challenges for media in Guinea. To hear Mr. Diallo together with Jennifer Swift-Morgan of Alliance Guinea on that show, listen here:
At Columbia, Mr. Diallo was joined by two panelists: Josh Friedman, former head of international programs at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and a board member for the Committee to Protect Journalists and Alice Backer, former Global Voices Online editor responsible for African blogs, new media and a communications consultant. Mr. Friedman spoke about his many different experiences as a journalist in conflict zones and the various ways journalists must confront these dangers, and he spoke of a journalists “natural talent” which he felt Nassirou possessed in abundance.
Pulitzer-prize winning journalist and Committee to Protect Journalists board member Josh Friedman addresses the crowd at Columbia University's School of Journalism
Ms. Backer talked of the exciting new ways people can participate in sharing news and in “amplifying global voices”. She described the general feeling among many that the stories reported in the mainstream press in the Western world do not accurately reflect the complexities and positive aspects of many developing countries. Ms Backer, who is Haitian, used Haiti as an example of the “countless untold stories” when she said that Haiti is known as the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere but no one knows that it is the second oldest republic (after the United States) in the Western Hemisphere and has a long history of promoting democratic movements. The participation of civil society and regular civilians, whether in blogs or other forms of new media, is crucial to a more representational form of news, especially for women who often are not represented.
The event ended with questions from the audience. One journalist from Guinea asked how to fight corruption in journalism and another journalist from India made a comment that new media can also be used by the oppressors, such as the military in his region. Corruption seemed a central point and was also cited by Mme Doussou Conde Sanoh, member of the Alliance Guinea steering committee and a Guinean women’s rights activist, who discussed how corruption is used to silence strong women in the political sphere in Guinea.
When: Wednesday, May 12, 7-9pm
Where: Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, Stabile Student Center
Moderator: Milton Allimadi, Publisher & CEO, Black Star News
Featured Speaker: Nassirou Diallo, Le 4ème Pouvoir
Panelists:
Josh Friedman, Head of international programs, Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and board member, Committee to Protect Journalists
Alice Backer, Former Global Voices Online editor responsible for African blogs, new media communications consultant
On September 28, 2009, the military of the West African country of Guinea stormed a stadium filled with tens of thousands of peaceful pro-democracy demonstrators and opened fire. In the end over 150 people were killed, 1700 wounded and more than 100 women and girls brutally raped in what a Human Rights Watch and a UN Commission of Inquiry have deemed crimes against humanity.
Journalist Nassirou Diallo was there – covering the events live on the radio before the station owner cut the signal. It wasn’t the first time his reporting and political talk shows had put him in danger and the previous threats, arrests, and beatings he and other journalists in Guinea had received from soldiers told him that this last eye witness report would not be tolerated. He left Guinea that night and is now a journalist in exile living in New York City, using new media to continue his work in the run-up to the Guinean elections now scheduled for June 27. If held they will be the first democratic presidential elections in the country’s history.
Nassirou Diallo reports live from the demonstrations of September 28, 2010 in Conakry
Join this discussion with a journalist and panel on the frontlines addressing questions of the freedom of media in times of political and social turmoil and the situation in Guinea in particular, the nexus of journalism and activism, and the role of new media in opening the space for expression across borders and diasporas.
Presented in partnership with the Guinean Forces Vives in the USA and Columbia University’s African Studies Working Group
For Black Star News’ feature on Nassirou Diallo, “Guinea Frontline Reporter,” see here.
At the March 5 State Department briefing led by Deputy Assistant Secretary for African Affairs William Fitzgerald, members of Alliance Guinea joined with a couple dozen representatives of American and US-based Guinean NGOs for an off-the-record discussion on the current situation in Guinea. The general feeling is that the current climate is much better given the establishment of the new government and concrete movement towards elections – but that the situation still must be monitored very closely.
The primary focus of the briefing and subsequent question and answer discussion was squarely on the presidential elections, now set for June 27 – clearly the State Department’s top priority in Guinea at this time. With some concern that there may be threats to the elections from spoilers upset with waning CNDD power, the importance of even simply civil-political observers from ECOWAS (as is permitted by the Ouagadougou accord signed January 15 by Dadis, Konaté and Compaoré) was discussed – and emphasized by Alliance Guinea members.
The briefing also discussed concern around the ambitiousness of the June 27 election date, given the formidable registration and logistical preparations that are still needed and the added challenge of the rainy season starting soon. Overall, however, the State Department seemed confident that there is considerable international support and financing going to what are understood to be historic elections in Guinea – and the first step towards long-term political, governance and economic reform. In addition, it was emphasized that per the Ouagadougou accord, neither Prime Minister Jean-Marie Doré nor any other member of the interim government should be planning a presidential bid.
During the briefing the importance of security sector reform (SSR) was also discussed, especially given how intertwined military power and political power has been in Guinea for decades. The emphasis was on the following the lead of ECOWAS and the Guinean security forces themselves – and the critical need for disarmament, demobilization and reintegration work to ensure that soldiers exiting the armed forces can then enter viable livelihoods. It was understood that while this process needs to start now, that full SSR in Guinea will be a long-term process over the course of several years rather than months.
With all of the focus on the political transition in Guinea, the sense from the briefing is that the US is focusing first on the elections and only then on justice for the September 28 crimes against humanity and other human rights violations committed in Guinea. Alliance Guinea members raised concern that while it is understandable to set priorities and consider a strategic chronology of action, that it was essential that the justice and human rights objectives not be forgotten in the meanwhile as far too often been the case. Discussants agreed that more work could be done in the meanwhile to strengthen local human rights groups in Guinea and to begin judicial reform. The US also supports the ICC’s ongoing investigation into the crimes.
The briefing left us Alliance members in attendance with the sense that the State Department’s Africa Bureau is taking the Guinea transition process seriously, despite the many other difficult issues elsewhere in Africa and around the world currently competing with US government attention. It will be critical, however, for all of us to work to ensure that this remains the case – and that US and other international support does not begin and end with this one election alone.
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Alliance Guinea, the 
At the March 5 State Department briefing led by Deputy Assistant Secretary for African Affairs William Fitzgerald, members of Alliance Guinea joined with a couple dozen representatives of American and US-based Guinean NGOs for an off-the-record discussion on the current situation in Guinea. The general feeling is that the current climate is much better given the establishment of the new government and concrete movement towards elections – but that the situation still must be monitored very closely.