Conakry, Paris, 24 July 2024. It is the end of a historic trial, that of the 28 September 2009 massacre, with a verdict expected on 31 July, 2024. FIDH, OGDH, and AVIPA, the civil parties in the trial, and the more than 736 victims they are accompanying expect recognition and reparation for the immense suffering caused. FIDH, OGDH, and AVIPA have been actively participating in the trial since 28 September 2022,the trial’s opening date.
On 28 September 2009 and in the days that followed, members of the Guinean defense and security forces, including members of the presidential guard, orchestrated a massacre in and around the Conakry 28 September Stadium. At least 156 people were killed among the peaceful demonstrators gathered in the stadium, dozens went missing and 109 women were victims of rape or other forms of sexual violence, including sexual mutilation and sexual slavery.
FIDH and OGDH reacted on the very day of the massacre and have tirelessly supported the victims in their quest for justice. The fight for justice to be done and for the spiral of impunity in Guinea to continue unabated. The imminent verdict is the culmination of a legal battle that has lasted almost 15 years.
"Bringing this trial to a successful conclusion was an enormous challenge, which the Guinean judiciary was able to meet. The search for the truth is all the more important when it is carried out by the justice system of the country where the crimes were committed. This trial has shown that no one, not even a former president, is above the law", said Drissa Traoré, FIDH Secretary General, member of the FIDH Legal Action Group, and victim’s lawyer.
"We hope for a verdict that firmly condemns the defendants responsible for crimes against humanity, which is the only legal qualification available to do justice to the systematic and heinous nature of the atrocities committed on 28 September 2009 and in the days that followed. On that day, murders, mutilations, kidnappings, rapes, and sexual violence were committed with the aim of terrorising and subjugating the Guinean people, whom they sought to break in order to maintain power through fear", declared Mr. Martin Pradel, lawyer, and member of the FIDH Legal Action Group.
"The question of reparations for the victims is central and is eagerly awaited. The judiciary and the Guinean state have yet to demonstrate their ability not only to punish those responsible, but also to help and protect those who have been weakened, injured, and bereaved by these crimes from another era", said Me. DS Bah, vice-president of OGDH, lawyer, and coordinator of the collective of civil party lawyers.
In this final phase before the verdict, FIDH, OGDH, and AVIPA are concerned about the increasing pressure and threats against members of civil society and the court, which appear to be acts of reprisal. Our organisations reiterate that justice must be dispensed in optimum conditions of serenity and security for all stakeholders, including human rights defenders who are on the front line, alongside the victims and their families.
For more information, see the page dedicated to the 28 September 2009 trial on the FIDH website: Guinea: past and future under reconstruction at the 28 September 2009 massacre trial.