Guinea: Military Leaders Dissolve Government

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Facts

  • Guinea's military junta, which took power in a coup in 2021, said it has dissolved the government. It also froze the bank accounts of government ministers and ordered them to hand in their passports and official vehicles.1
  • The announcement was made via a pre-recorded video, in which the presidency's Secretary General, Brig. Gen. Amara Camara, conveyed the message while armed and masked soldiers stood beside him. However, he didn't explain why the military made the decision.2
  • Camara also announced that lower-level government officials will take over the ministries until the junta has been handed full power. Soldiers have also been ordered to 'seal' all national borders until the takeover is complete.3
  • The military ousted former Pres. Alpha Conde — the West African nation's first democratically elected leader — in September 2021, with Colonel Mamady Doumbouya taking his place. This came after Conde attempted to create a new Constitution to allow him to run for a third term.2
  • Doumbouya said he was saving the country from chaos when he took power but has since been criticized for making no difference. The regional bloc of West African nations, ECOWAS, has recently pushed the military to return power to civilian rule, with elections scheduled for 2025.4

Sources: 1BBC News, 2Al Jazeera, 3Arise News and 4FOX News.

Narratives

  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Csis. Former Pres. Conde's attempt to create a new Constitution was a sad state of affairs, especially due to it resulting in a military coup. Regional African bodies have been inconsistent and weak in their enforcement of rules and sanctions, which is likely why Doumbouya has taken so long to pursue his promised return to civilian rule. If West African states like Guinea are going to progress, neighboring states and international partners will have to apply more pressure.
  • Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Intercept. When observing all the West African coups in recent years, it's important to know that before almost all of them, the US military had been training the same men that later overthrew their governments. US Green Berets were training Mamady Doumbouya in the summer of 2021, during which he and his men took a break from the course and violently overthrew the president. The US Dept. of State and Pentagon should be questioned about these conveniently timed coups.