Chaos in Guinea as Muslims Engage Christians in Bloody Battle
8th February 2010 · 1 Comment · By Newstime Africa
Dadis Camara Shaking Hands with Sekouba Konate - A Shaky Truce
Clashes between Muslims and Christians in the south-eastern part of Guinea have entered their third day. Mobs of people armed with machetes and knives went on the rampage attacking each other in what was first thought to be a religious conflict. But the situation has taken a new twist as the center of the turmoil is the birth town of exiled Junta leader, Moussa Dadis Camara. The Guinea leader is currently in Burkina Faso after an agreement was reached to return the country to a civilian-led administration. The ICC recently expressed its intention to start investigations on the September 28 massacre which left 157 people dead. The Junta was accused by human rights organisation of crimes against humanity.
It appears that the problem was sparked by a religious dispute and there are fears the dispute may become politicised. Reports coming out of the country states that that mostly Christian supporters of Camara appeared to be attacking Muslims in the town. At least one person had been killed in clashes that had taken place despite a curfew being imposed. There were reports of gunfire for much of Saturday. The shooting started again late on Sunday after a small break and many injured people were being taken to hospital. Soldiers are firing warning shots to try to disperse the crowds. According to reports, the dispute degenerated into violence last week after a Christian woman, accused of wearing indecent dress while passing Muslims at prayer, was attacked. In retaliation, Christians stoned Muslims trying to pray.
The local people there have been angered by the sidelining from power of Camara. The Junta leader is a member of one of the minority Forestier ethnic groups of the region. A few weeks ago this press urged the ICC not to pursue criminal investigations against the Junta at this sensitive moment, and this outcome was predicted. But there are reports that the ICC is sending a delegation to the country as we go to press. The politics of Africa is often misunderstood, and time and again, this has led to regrettable bloodshed and pandemonium. The international community should allow common sense to prevail as any conflict in Guinea has the potential to spread right across the region.
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Tags: dadis camara, Forestier, Guinea, ICC, Sekouba Konate
Without doubt the International community especially the Western democracies has nothing to offer us in resolving our conflicts . All they know is that a panadol can cure any ache and as such anything other than panadol is either irrelevant or compromising to any other ache/ pain. The ICC as shown in the Sierra Leonean situation solves no problem ; in fact it rather inflames issues .
Each passing day the idea of democracy is being totted as Western way of life- meaning a way of doing things fashioned on long held traditions and culture . But when it come to Africa they’ll throw every traditional and cultural process in the bin. What they get at the end is failure . You see the Middle Eastern policies ,it’ll never work as long as the everything is about the Western values only , unless annihilation is part of the process .
It’s no hidden secret that the ICC is a political rather than a legal bench . Like Sierra Leone the leaders of the civil defence forces that wrestled power from the RUF/NPFL /AFRC rebels and restored the civilian government are languishing in jail for nothing other than a blatant miscarriage of justice by the ICC and its sponsors .
Instead that money wasted on that proceeding could have been used to improve the lives of many of those whose lives have been shattered by the conflict .Rather it has been spent on wig wearing men and women with minimal idea of the situation ,ensconced in a temperature controlled environment , chauffeured in dark mirrored 4×4 vehicles . As bad as the Liberian situation is i hope Liberians will reject any effort to bring in the ICC nonsense .