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A coalition of around two dozen human rights organisations has urged Guinea’s military-led government to break its silence over the whereabouts of two pro-democracy activists who disappeared a year ago, during mounting concerns over enforced disappearances and repression in the country.
Oumar Sylla, known popularly as Fonike Mengue, and fellow activist Mamadou Billo Bah vanished in July 2024 in the capital, Conakry. Both were key figures in the National Front for the Defence of the Constitution (FNDC), a movement critical of the ruling junta.
According to the FNDC, the pair were violently abducted by armed men—a disappearance the group says amounts to kidnapping.
In a joint statement released by Amnesty International on Tuesday, 25 Guinean and international rights organisations called on the junta to end its “unbearable silence” and provide information about the fate of the missing men.
Shortly after the activists were reported missing, Guinea’s public prosecutor denied they had been detained and announced an investigation. However, the rights groups say that no meaningful updates or evidence of any genuine inquiry have been made public.
“There is no sign that authorities have conducted any credible investigation into the fate of these two activists,” the statement read.
The coalition also raised alarm over the disappearance of journalist Habib Marouane Camara, who was taken by uniformed men in December from a suburb of Conakry. Camara was the founder of the independent news platform Lerevelateur224.
They noted that several lawyers and political figures in Guinea have also reported facing repeated threats to their safety.
Since seizing power in a 2021 coup, the Guinean military government, led by General Mamady Doumbouya, has faced widespread accusations of suppressing opposition voices and restricting press freedom. The regime has banned public protests demanding a return to civilian rule and shut down numerous media outlets.
The groups also cited the chilling case of Abdoul Sacko, another prominent junta critic, who was abducted from his home in February by masked assailants. He was later found in a critical condition, showing signs of torture, some 60 kilometres from the capital.
