Several demonstrators calling for an end to electricity cuts and the construction of a hydroelectric dam were injured and arrested Tuesday, July 21, in eastern Guinea, during clashes with the police.
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This is the fifth demonstration in two months against the power cuts in the city of Kankan, a stronghold of President Alpha Condé, in Upper Guinea (East). Contacted by AFP from Conakry, the governor of the region, Sadou Kéita, did not wish to speak. “ The demonstrators (were) very violent. They preferred confrontation to negotiation. I cannot tell you how many were injured or arrested, just remember that there were, ”a security source told AFP.
Hundreds of people protested to demand the construction of a hydroelectric dam, a promise according to them by President Alpha Condé, said witnesses joined by AFP. " No power, no elections in Upper Guinea, no third term " for President Condé, elected in 2010 and re-elected in 2015, chanted the demonstrators.
Protesters against a 3rd term for Alpha Condé
The 82-year-old Guinean leader is suspected by the opposition of wanting to run for a third term in the presidential election scheduled for October. Demonstrations against this possible third term resumed Monday in Conakry, after a hiatus of several months due to the coronavirus pandemic. They were marked by clashes between demonstrators and the police.
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Alpha Condé remains unclear on his intentions, repeating that it is up to his party to decide whether he will be a candidate for a new term. “ The security forces charged the demonstrators with tear gas and used batons to try to disperse (them) ,” Karamoko Kaba, a witness in Kankan, told AFP.
The demonstrators “ threw stones at the police. At least 16 people (among them) were injured and around 20 were arrested, ”he said. Demonstrations against power cuts are recurrent in Guinea. Despite the wealth of its subsoil in bauxite, gold, diamonds and iron ore, more than half of the population of this West African country lives below the poverty line, on less than one euro a day, according to the 'UN.