by Alexis Gnonlonfoun, Guinea, November 1997
THEME = JUSTICE
There's been a number of changes in Guinea since President Lansana Conté took over in 1984. The most fundamental and important changes concern human rights and citizens' freedoms. As regards human rights, Guinea has made enormous progress
Sékou Touré ruled Guinea with a repressive hand and there had been six attempted coup d'etats or "conspiracies" since independence on 2 October 1958, launched by the following elite-groups opposed to Touré's regime:
In April 1960: The "reactionaries and feudalists".
In November 1961: the intellectuals, especially the teachers.
In September 1965: the traders.
In May and September 1967: the personnel of national enterprises.
In February 1969, November 1979 and July 1971: the military and high-ranking civil servants, also a number of important politicians.
In June 1976: the Peuls.
Human Rights were not a priority during Sékou Touré's time, and the country didn't have a Legal Code. This explains the dreadful way in which prisoners were interrogated, the appalling conditions they were held in, and the ghastly way capital sentences were carried out, whether or not prisoners had been formally condemned to death by the Revolutionary Tribunal or the High Court of Justice. It should be noted that High Court judges all belonged to, or were under the influence of the ruling party. The Revolutionary Tribunal had ideological affinities with the Prague and Havana regimes.
Today there's been a change, and Guinea has finally opted for the efficient administration of true justice, keeping in mind the country's republican traditions. There's a Justice Minister, a Supreme Court, an Appeals Court and an Attorney-General's Office.
Guinea has a population of roughly seven million, and greatly suffers from the lack of suitably qualified legal personnel. Steps have been taken to renovate and reorganise courts and civilian jails in Guinea's various regions: Guinée Maritime, Basse Guinée, Moyenne Guinée, Haute Guinée and Guinée Forestière. However, this exercise has not yet been completed, and certainly not everything is in apple-pie order to ensure that justice can be administered in a credible and efficient way.
An important step forward concerns the detention of suspects. Rules and regulations dealing with the holding of suspects in police cells and remand prisoners, have been established, and Guinea has abided by the various United Nations Conventions against torture and inhuman treatment (which used to be a feature of Guinea's judicial scene).
President Conté himself, is firmly convinced that human dignity must be respected, and he has done his best to carry this out in practice ever since his earliest days in power. Thousands of prisoners have received a presidential pardon and have been set free. Prisons are now empty of all political detainees. Many criminals have been rehabilitated and politicians in exile have been allowed to return. The Government has fixed the protection of human rights and citizens' freedoms as priorities on its political agenda. This is already underway with the establishing of courts and tribunals, and the training of legal personnel so that justice may be done in reality. Courts outside the normal judicial system have been done away with, and appropriate constitutional reforms set in motion.
But the President can't do everything by himself. He's obviously got to have the help of his fellow citizens and the country's organisations. That's why in spite of everything said above, a lot of practicalities still remain to be carried out.
There's a spirit of negligence going around. People don't seem to be too concerned about what's being achieved, and maybe our country's administrative structures are too weak.
Judges on the Bench and those in the Attorney-General's Office are appointed by the Justice Minister. Supreme Court judges are appointed following a special procedure which aims at strengthening their "independence" vis-à- vis the government: they are only appointed after their names have been put forward by the president of the Supreme Court, acting on the advice of the Senior Council of Judges. But frequently the proper appointment channels are not followed, and the government itself is frequently guilty of ignoring both the Constitution and the Law when it comes to appointments.
The fact is, justice in Guinea is not independent. Nevertheless, judges are recognized legally by the Constitution and by the Law. Legal texts guarantee their independence and course of action.
Alpha Doumbouya is a legal expert and he says: "At the moment, decisions are being handed down in our courts, which seem to have little to do with the law of the land. Isn't it time something is done to ensure that our fellow citizens can receive justice?" No easy task, it must be admitted!
It should be noted that justice, as it exists at the moment, is under the thumb of politicians, money and any number of social pressures. As one judge says: "Justice as it exists at the moment, is not true justice. It's certainly not the same for all".
The Bar Association is trying to put an end to all the weaknesses presently found within the judicial profession, which if allowed to continue, will lead to catastrophe. A number of lawyers are not above pocketing money which should have gone to their clients.
A big "mea culpa" needs to be made by lawyers, judges, clerks of court and sheriffs' officers.
It must be admitted that the country's present economic health does nothing to help those who must administer justice. Sékou Touré's government led the country into bankruptcy. Now, efforts are being made to restore a healthy economic situation, but it's not easy.
The judiciary needs to be helped, and this could be done by organising occasional conferences for judicial personnel. Subjects would include: the law, the correct administration of justice, the protection of the individual's rights within society, judicial procedure. The judiciary needs to be backed-up by suitable legal texts in line with the modern age, texts which must be clear and easy to put into practice.
The Penal Code needs re-vamping as well. The rights of the accused must be respected (within the country's republican traditions, of course) and public order safeguarded. Society must be rendered stable and it must be protected.
The Trade Unions and civil society in general are looking into the possibility of shortening the time an accused spends under remand (which is presently for 72 hours), perhaps even trying to find some other procedure, half-way between remand and complete freedom - this is known as Judiciary Supervision which requires the accused to submit, according to the decision of the Examining Magistrate, to one or a number of obligations.
Concerning the Examining Magistrates, every effort should be made to speed up the investigations' process, so that justice can be administered with a minimum of delay.
Importance must be given to the swiftness of justice and the guarantee that justice will be the same for all. This is laid down in the Penal Code and in the Civil and Business Codes.
Any judge has to reconcile the importance of arriving at a quick decision, while at the same time ensuring that justice is done. It's a matter of conscience. A judge has to act, following legal procedure and the safeguarding of the rights of every one concerned. Nobody should be allowed to take advantage of a judge's impartiality, and everyone should feel that they are equal in the eyes of the law. Unfortunately, not all judges can do their job properly. Many are not properly trained and lack the essential elements necessary for such a calling - an ethical approach to their work, love of work, regularity and preparedness to put oneself out in the service of justice and those appearing in court.
The same goes for those associated with the administration of justice and the duties they are asked to perform. It should be noted that working conditions are not of the best, and this certainly doesn't help them. A number of these officials have an extremely slipshod approach to their work, which is a great pity, because they have a great deal to offer in preparing cases, speeding up the course of justice, and making sure that everything proceeds in a satisfactory way in the court.
Not much has been done to overcome the difficulties the courts meet with during the hearing of cases. The necessary financing is simply not there. The judiciary doesn't have modern equipment to help them in their work.
So what's to be done? The judiciary must be properly trained. Means must be found to improve working conditions so that justice can proceed smoothly. Once again, it all comes down to what's happening at the top. So for justice and the judiciary to be the instruments whereby a modern Guinea can develop, various measures must be taken to rejuvenate and encourage our country's judges. They must become aware that they have an important part to play in ensuring that Guinea is truly a State which respects its citizens' rights.
END