SUMMARY

In May 2011, communal violence broke out in the southeast of Guinea after being sparked by a witch-hunt and lynching following the mysterious deaths of several men. The southeast of Guinea shares borders with some of the more unstable regions of Liberia and Ivory Coast and has had a history of ethnic tensions. The short series of clashes occurred between the indigenous Kpelle and Malinké people from other parts of the country in the town of Galakpaye.

According to residents in Galakpaye, the clashes began when they consulted a medicine man from Liberia to ascertain the cause behind the mysterious deaths of several young men that had occurred over the past two months. The medicine man accused an 80-year old Malinké man of casting spells on the victims. Upon hearing this, the Malinké man had his throat cut by a Kpelle relative of one of the dead, leading to the spark of clashes between the peoples.

Some of the casualties had been burnt alive, while others had been hacked to death by machetes. Police forces responded to the clashes, which only lasted a few days, and managed to defuse the situation.

The non-state conflict between Kpelle and Malinké is first included in UCDP data in 2011. In May of that year violent clashes flared up in the town Galakpaye, resulting in at least 25 battle-related deaths.