Guinea to put 60 people on trial for unrest

CONAKRY: Some 60 people, including opposition figures detained for months, will stand trial in Guinea over deadly protests surrounding last year’s presidential election, according to the government.

Alpha Conde’s bid for a third term in office was met with months of demonstrations by political opposition and civil society groups, which security forces countered with sometimes brutal force, and dozens of people died after the protests began in October 2019.

In March 2020, at the same time as legislative elections, Guinea held a referendum to change the constitution and allow the president to serve more than two terms.

Despite mass opposition and claims of an "electoral coup d’Etat", Conde, 83, was re-elected in the first round in October 2020. The United States, the European Union and France questioned the credibility of the vote.