Legal Correspondent: Arunav Bhattacharjya
September 6, 2021: Guinea's new military leaders sought to tighten their grip on power after overthrowing President Alpha Conde, and ordering the soldiers from his presidential guard to join the junta forces and barring any government officials from leaving the country. After putting the West African nation back under military rule for the first time in over a decade, the junta already had dissolved the National Assembly and the country's constitution. On Monday, regional military commanders replaced Guinea's governors. Junta leader Colonel Mamadi Doumbouya said the military regime would not pursue vendettas against political enemies, although the regime has asked the officials from Conde's deposed government to turn over their passports.
"There will be no spirit of hatred or revenge. There will be no witch hunt, but justice will be the compass that will guide every Guinean citizen" said Doumbouya, who had led the Guinean army's special forces unit before seizing power on Sunday.
The military junta has refused to issue a timeline for releasing the former President, saying that the 83-year-old deposed leader still has access to medical care and his doctors. The West African regional bloc known as ECOWAS has called for his immediate release and threatened to impose sanctions if the demand was not met. Conde's removal by force on Sunday came after the president sought and won a controversial third term in office last year, saying the term limits did not apply to him.
The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has condemned the coup attempt in Guinea and called for the release of President Alpha Conde. The United States on the other hand has also condemned the seizure of power by the military in Guinea calling on all parties to avoid violence and engage in dialogue as issues of recognition lament.
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