SUMMARY

On 22 March 2020 an election process in Guinea that included a constitutional referendum intended to allow incumbent President Alpha Condé to run for a third term, sparked clashes between his supporters and opponents throughout the country. In Nzerekoré, clashes turned into intercommunal and ethnic violence that broke out between an alliance formed by Konianke and Malinké peoples, seen as Condé’s supporters, and Kpelle, commonly identified as part of Condé’s opposition.

The clashes lasted three days (from 22 to 24 March 2020), during which dozens of people were shot, beaten to death, hacked or burned alive. Several of the survivors were seriously injured. Additionally, there were instances of rape, and numerous homes, shops and churches were destroyed.

After failing to effectively prevent or contain the violence, the security forces tried to cover the severity of it by reporting only four deaths. Only after an official investigation was it revealed that the authorities had buried the dozens of bodies in a common grave, without allowing families the opportunity to identify their dead or hold proper funerals. The Government of Guinea justified the measure on the grounds of public health precautions, arguing that Nzerekoré’s hospital morgue had exceeded its capacity. These findings did not lead to the families’ recovery of their relative’s bodies.

Deadly violence between these three ethnic groups in the Nzerekoré region is not new. In 2011, the killing of a Malinké man by a Kpelle sparked clashes between the groups, leaving a death toll of 25. Kpelle and Konianke clashes took place following election processes, leaving a death toll of 98 in 2013 and of 30 in 2020.

The non-state conflict between Kpelle and Konianke and Malinké is first included in UCDP data in 2020. In March of that year, violent clashes flared up in Nzerekoré, resulting in 30 deaths.