Since 10 January 2007, the workers of Guinea have been on strike to demand better living conditions, respect for public morality, and the enthronement of democracy. In the face of the demands presented to the Government by the workers' union, CNTG-USTG, supported by the majority of the peoples of Guinea, the government of President Lansana Conté has adopted an approach laden with contempt for the citizenry and the use of naked force against the populace. Dozens of protesters in Conakry, Simbaya, Lambanyi, Matoto, Télémelé, Mamou, Kankan, and Labé have been murdered in cold blood or maimed for life by the security services. And yet, in spite of the ferocious repression unleashed by the government, the Guinean people have, at great personal and collective peril, intensified their self-mobilisation on a scale not seen since the historic defeat of colonialism. Invariably, the response of the regime has been to do even more of what it has always done best: Arrest and torture union leaders and ordinary citizens, impose a state of emergence/state of siege presided over by the military high command, and threaten even more mayhem against the populace.

CODESRIA, as an organisation of African intellectuals who are fully conscious of their social responsibilities cannot remain indifferent in the face of the latest act of naked repression that the Conté regime has deployed against Guineans, repression that has crippled the country, impoverished its peoples and brought the state to the brink. The Council observes that academics in Guinean universities who have been part of the popular movement for change have not been spared the repressiveness of the regime and the principle of academic freedom that is a foundational pillar of CODESRIA has been put at bay in Guinea. The Council would, therefore, like to add its voice to the voices of democrats all over the world who have expressed their solidarity with the people of Guinea and denounced all forms of dictatorship. The Council also joins the Guinean trade union movement and other social movements in the vanguard of the struggle for change in their demand for democratic and equitable management of the Guinean commonwealth.

The struggles of the people of Guinea remind us that freedom is not given but won – often at a high cost. This we know very well as members of an institution which produced the Kampala Declaration on Academic Freedom and the Social Responsibility of Scholars (see the CODESRIA Website: to prevent the wanton abuse of freedoms in the African higher education system. I would, therefore, like to invite all members of the Council to take a moment to remember the people of Guinea and to solidarise with them, doing so in the settled knowledge that their victory will be another important step towards democracy and development in Africa - just as it was when Guinea's historic 'No' against Charles De Gaulle's project of a French federation to perpetuate colonial rule emboldened and accelerated the African independence project.

Members of CODESRIA wishing to express their solidarity with the people of Guinea and their struggles are invited to send their messages to: [email][email protected] and they can rest assured that the messages will be forwarded to the trade union and academic staff leaderships in Conakry. We have a duty at this time to let the people of Guinea know that they are not alone!

Adebayo Olukoshi
Executive Secretary, CODESRIA