Rule of Law in Guinea – World Countries for Kids
The judiciary still remains subject to political influence and corruption, lacks transparency and is understaffed. The judiciary suffers from acute lack of resources and personnel. Shortly after overthrowing Alpha Condé, junta leader Doumbouya ordered the return of properties and cars from judges who approved Conde’s third term. Besides the creation of a new anticorruption court, there has been no significant reform of the judiciary since the 2021 coup. Many civil society activists have alleged that the courts are being pressured by the junta in the trials of important figures within the FVG (Forces Vives de Guinee).
The junta freed political detainees imprisoned by Condé. Since the 2021 coup, the junta’s security forces have carried out their own arbitrary arrests and detentions. Due process is upheld irregularly in the state justice system, and many disputes are settled informally via traditional justice systems; these systems also apply due process irregularly, and verdicts are not subject to appeal procedures. Citizens possess the right to appeal against the state administration; however, most either lack the financial resources to do so, or the courts take way too long to respond to their appeals. Most of the confined population consists of people in protracted pretrial detention.
The trial of former junta leader Camara and other suspected perpetrators of the 2009 Conakry stadium massacre started in September 2022 on Doumbouya’s orders, and was continuing as of year-end 2023. The victims were not guaranteed safety for testimony against the accused perpetrators during the trial, which were being monitored by ICC (the International Criminal Court). Media coverage of the trial was televised without restriction.
In November 2023, armed men stormed a jail in Conakry and freed Camara and three associates who were facing trial, killing nine people, including two civilians. Camara and two others were recaptured soon after the incident. But, former minister of presidential security Claude Pivi, an important figure in the trial, remained at large at year’s end, and some witnesses allegedly feared testifying as a result.
Security forces have indulged in arbitrary arrests, torture, the killing of protesters, and other kinds of physical violence with apparent impunity. Jails are characterized by severe overcrowding, malnutrition, and poor health care and sanitation. Violent crime is recurrent, especially in the suburbs of Conakry, but is less rampant in rural areas.
Women face unescapable societal discrimination and disadvantages in both the traditional and formal justice systems. Several ethnic groups indulge in mutual discrimination with respect to hiring and other matters. Antidiscrimination laws do not offer safety to LGBT+ people. Same-sex sexual activity is a punishable criminal offense that can invite up to three years in jail.