28 mars 2024

Guinea: ECOWAS demands elections within 6 months

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The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on Thursday in Accra, Ghana, demanded "the holding of presidential and legislative elections (in Guinea) within six months to restore constitutional order.

ECOWAS also decided to maintain "the suspension of Guinea" from all its "bodies until the restoration of constitutional order.

These decisions were taken on Thursday in Accra during a summit of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government focused on the political situation in Guinea and Mali.

The Conference reiterated its strong condemnation of the September 5, 2021 coup in Guinea and reaffirmed its demand for the "immediate and unconditional release" of the ousted President Alpha Condé.

According to it, the members of the National Committee for Rally and Development (CNRD - in power since 5 September) are individually and collectively responsible for "the physical integrity of President Alpha Condé".

ECOWAS has also banned CNRD members and their family members from travelling and frozen their financial assets. CNRD members are also banned from standing as candidates in the upcoming presidential election.

Furthermore, the conference calls for the respect of the date of the end of February 2022 for the holding of elections in the Republic of Mali.

It calls on the Malian transitional authorities to submit, by the end of October 2021 at the latest, the timetable leading to the essential stages of the said elections.

ECOWAS has decided to accompany the two countries Guinea and Mali in the rapid resolution of their crises and in the preparation of their elections.

As a reminder, Guinean President Alpha Condé, in office since 2010, was overthrown by a coup d'état on 5 September 2021, led by the Groupement des forces spéciales (GFS) which is commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Mamady Doumbouya.

In Mali, the ruling Colonel Assimi Goita has carried out two coups in the space of a year.

First on President Ibrahim Boubacar Kéita (2013-2020) and the Transitional President Baw N'Daw (2020-2021), of whom he was vice-president.