Soldiers in Guinea attacked a number of unarmed civilians at a political demonstration in a stadium. Reports and photos taken by the civilians on their cellphones of the attack have continued to surface but their has been very little other coverage. However, last weeks New York Times has a horrifying account of what occurred in their stadium that day: I can't sleep at night, after what I saw," said one middle-aged woman from an established family here, who said she had been beaten and sexually molested. "And I am afraid. I saw lots of women raped, and lots of dead."
One photograph shows a naked woman lying on muddy ground, her legs up in the air, a man in military fatigues in front of her. In a second picture a soldier in a red beret is pulling the clothes off a distraught-looking woman half-lying, half-sitting on muddy ground. In a third a mostly nude woman lying on the ground is pulling on her trousers. [...]
The exact number of women who were abused is not known. Because of the shame associated with sexual violence in this West African country, victims are reluctant to speak, and local doctors refuse to do so. Victims who told of the attacks would not provide their names because they were afraid of retribution.
But the witnesses were adamant. "I affirm, in categorical fashion, that women were raped, not just one woman," said Mamadou Mouctar Diallo, 34, an opposition leader who said he had been severely beaten himself. "I saw many rapes." [...]
"They especially tore into the women," said another former prime minister, François Lonsény Fall, who was also at the stadium. "They were seeking to humiliate them."
The U.S. government has called on Guinean leaders to ensure the safety of the people, but by all accounts the ruling military are where the blame for this violence should be placed. Amnesty International has stepped up to ask for, "An immediate halt to all supplies of security and police equiptment to the Guinean government until it has taken practical steps to prevent violations by the security forces and has brought those responsible for Monday's acts to justice."
No comments:
Post a Comment