Guinea: End Impunity Now

The ITUC General Council, which met last week in Berlin, ruled resoundingly in favour of sanctions against the ruling military junta in Guinea. The Council resolution calls on the junta to ensure the immediate and unconditional release of all those detained as well as to provide full medical care for all those injured, including the women who were raped.

Brussels, 14 October 2009 (ITUC OnLine): The ITUC General Council, which met last week in Berlin, ruled resoundingly in favour of sanctions against the ruling military junta in Guinea.

The Council resolution calls on the junta to ensure the immediate and unconditional release of all those detained as well as to provide full medical care for all those injured, including the women who were raped.

The trade unionists gathered in Germany supported the call for an impartial and independent international inquiry, with a view to bringing an end to the impunity surrounding the incidents that have been taking place since 2006, and in particular those of Monday 28 September 2009. They also backed the call for all those responsible for these human rights violations, the perpetrators and the instigators, to be brought to justice before an international court.

The three leaders of the Guinean trade union centres affiliated to the ITUC (CNTG, ONSLG and UNTG) went to Abuja on Monday to take part in the 7th Session of the International Contact Group on Guinea (ICG-G), under the auspices of ECOWAS. Their demands met with positive support. The ICG-G also firmly condemned the deliberate acts of violence perpetrated against unarmed civilians during the peaceful demonstration held on 28 September 2009. It also insisted on the withdrawal of the CNDD (National Council for Democracy and Development) and the establishment of new transitional authorities, underlining the need for credible, free and fair elections to be held as soon as possible and within a climate of peace.

Trade unions in Guinea called for Monday 12 and Tuesday 13 October to be declared national days of mourning. Their call met with wide support, all activities were suspended, and the two days passed in a climate of calm, despite security forces being deployed at certain strategic points of the city.

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