Guinea's junta says ousted leader Alpha Condé has returned home

Guinea's junta has announced that deposed president Alpha Condé was sent to his wife's home in the capital Conakry on Monday, after holding him incommunicado for months.

Alpha Condé at a meeting in Kissidougou, Guinea Forestière, on 12 October 2020 Carol Valadee/RFI

83-year-old Condé led the country for nearly 11 years before being deposed in a military coup on the 5th of September.

In a statement broadcast on state TV, the junta said Condé was now home with his wife, Hadja Djene Kaba Condé, in the Conakry suburbs.

It was not specified whether Condé was under house arrest or if he faces other restrictions.

Military authorities in Guinea have announced that Former president Alpha Condé has been transferred to his wife’s home in Landreah district in Conakry- adding he wld continue to be given treatment ‘worthy of his rank’.
Condé had been in military custody since September 5th coup pic.twitter.com/N4ELbzRGcV

— Samira Sawlani (@samirasawlani) November 30, 2021

The junta, which calls itself the National Rally Committee for Development (CNRD), said it "will continue to provide the former head of state with treatment worthy of his rank, and this without any national or international pressure."

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) had imposed sanctions on individual coup leaders and demanded the "unconditional release" of Condé.

ECOWAS also suspended Guinea from the bloc and called for elections to be held within six months.

• Regional body ECOWAS slaps Guinea with sanctions
• Guinea junta leader to hold conference on transition to civilian rule

Return to civilian rule

The country's new strongman, Colonel Mamady Doumbouya, was sworn in as interim president last month.

While he has pledged to restore civilian rule after elections, Doumbouya has so far refused to commit to a timeframe for the transition.

The 41-year-old former French legionnaire justified his putsch by accusing Condé of corruption and authoritarianism.

The junta has so far dissolved the government and replaced ministers, governors and prefects with handpicked administrators and soldiers.

Condé became Guinea's first democratically elected leader in 2010, but last year sparked mass protests when he changed the constitution to allow himself to seek a third term in office.

Though Condé was re-elected, his critics denounced the poll as a sham.