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UN report finds Guinea military junta committed crimes against humanity

By Bernard Hibbitts (editor) and University of Pittsburgh School of Law students.

[JURIST] The Guinean military junta committed crimes against humanity during the September 28 incidents at Conakry, according to a report by a UN fact-finding mission leaked Monday. The commission concluded that military junta leader Moussa Dadis Camara should be held responsible for the violence at the pro-democracy rally in which soldiers allegedly opened fire, killing more than 150 civilians and wounding more than 1,200. The report was received by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon last week and sent to the UN Security Council for review. The Security Council is now holding closed-door consultations on the report, and it is unclear what, if any, steps will be taken. Camara currently remains hospitalized, having been shot and wounded by one of his own soldiers earlier this month. In October, the Security Council called for an investigation into the alleged human rights abuses. Earlier that month, Guinean Minister of Foreign Affairs Alexandre Cece Loua said during a visit to the International Criminal Court (ICC) that the Guinean judiciary is capable of and intends to investigate and prosecute any crimes committed during the incidents of September 28. The Guinea junta has created a National Commission for an Independent Investigation that will work with the committee established by Ban to look into possible human rights abuses by Guinean soldiers. The ICC has placed the Guinean military under preliminary investigation for human rights violations during the Conakry incident.

Full post as published by JURIST - The Paper Chase on December 21, 2009 (boomark / email).