Former coup leader returns to Guinea

The man who led a 2008 coup in Guinea and whose brief rule was marked by a stadium massacre returned to the West African country Wednesday after more than a decade in exile in Burkina Faso.

Moussa “Dadis” Camara left Guinea in December 2009 after narrowly surviving an assassination attempt carried out by one of his own bodyguards.

Many in Conakry are happy for his return.

“Really, I’m delighted by his return after a decade in exile out of his country. I’m so happy”, said Kalvigui Foromo, a Conakry resident.

Camara’s exile eventually paved the way for Guinea’s first democratic elections since independence from France, which put Alpha Conde in power.

“In memory of the victims of these painful events, for the respect of the institutions of the Republic, and for the integrity of history, I am fully committed, as I have always been, to tell my version of the truth in this matter of 28 September”. (…) “And I am ready to put myself at the disposal of the courts because nobody is above the law, so that this kind of event will never again plunge Guinea into mourning”,

For years the government had sought to prevent Camara’s homecoming.

Another coup earlier this year in Guinea put a military junta in power that was less obstructive of Camara’s return.

Source: Africanews