People deprived of their freedom

The ICRC visits people who are being held in custody on premises under the jurisdiction of the Ministries of Justice and Security. The purpose of these visits, which are conducted on the basis of an agreement signed with the government in 1999, is to improve inmates’ treatment and conditions of detention, if necessary, in cooperation with the responsible authorities. The ICRC submits its findings and recommendations in the course of an ongoing confidential dialogue with local and national authorities. Since 2004, the ICRC has been running a project which offers structural support to the National Prison Administration Directorate (Direction nationale de l’administration pénitentiaire, DNAP) to enable the latter to manage the country’s prisons with maximum efficiency.

In 2007, the ICRC:

• visited more than 2,500 detainees during 134 visits to 36 places of detention under the authority of the Ministry of Justice;
• supplied nutritional assistance to some 500 detainees suffering from malnutrition in 7 prisons in various parts of the country;
• helped 2 central prisons to handle a cholera epidemic and to provide mass treatment for scabies. In collaboration with detention authorities it distributed hygiene kits (soap, bucket and jerrycan), blankets, sleeping mats and recreational items. Rehabilitation work was carried out in 18 prisons. Each establishment received a kit containing medicines and medical supplies and equipment;
• organized seven regional round tables on “health in detention” in partnership with the Ministries of Public Health and Justice.

Restoring family links

In Guinea the consolidation of sub-regional political stability, greater freedom of movement after the complete opening of borders, expanding means of communication and continuing repatriation operations by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees have considerably lessened the need to restore and maintain family links. For this reason the ICRC and the Red Cross Society of Guinea now offer their Red Cross message (RCM) services only to the most vulnerable people. The ICRC is continuing to monitor about 40 children who have been separated from their families as a result of conflicts in the region and it is also endeavouring to find their parents.

In 2007, The ICRC :

• collected 85 RCMs, 45 of which were written by children separated from their families;
• distributed 206 RCMs, 78 of which were intended for children separated from their families;
• monitored 22 cases of vulnerable children and adults after family reunification;
• located 5 people in Guinea for whom tracing requests had been filed;
• reunited 10 children with their families;
• registered 1 demobilized child soldier;
• issued travel documents for 11 vulnerable children and adults.

Medical support

During the strikes in January and February 2007, the ICRC strove to meet the needs of hospitals and clinics overwhelmed by the number of people with gunshot wounds by distributing essential surgical and medical supplies. Hospitals in Conakry, Nzérékoré, Boké et Kankan were the main beneficiaries. A health delegate was sent to provide additional support for medical facilities.

The ICRC donated:

• surgical supplies for in-hospital care for at least 100 patients with gunshot injuries;
• 4 first-aid kits to treat 50 wounded.

A new training programme was devised in the wake of the events of January and February 2007:

• two ICRC surgeons taught 25 young surgeons from hospitals in Conakry how to treat gunshot wounds;
• 30 doctors and nurses from hospitals in Conakry and Nzérékoré were trained in emergency ward care and in triage;
• 56 nurses from the surgical services and operating theatre of the same hospitals took part in training in preoperative and postoperative care and hospital hygiene;
• first-aid training for 27 orderlies and stretcher-bearers was provided by a first-aid instructor from the National Society;
• registers were distributed to the Donka mortuary.

Water, sanitation and habitat

The ICRC helped the Guinean Water Board to maintain drinking water supplies throughout the country despite the crisis at the beginning of the year by donating 111 tons of water-treatment chemicals - a three-month supply.

As part of a support programme for health facilities the ICRC drew up rehabilitation and sanitation plans for 8 hospitals. To date the rehabilitation of three of them has been completed and work is proceeding on the five others. The organization has also undertaken to rehabilitate the water-treatment plants of Kankan and Labé in order to improve the water supply to hospitals and the population.

The ICRC endeavours to promote international humanitarian law (IHL) in academic circles and in the armed forces and security forces. It supports the authorities’ efforts to implement IHL and takes part in measures to raise IHL awareness and to disseminate fundamental humanitarian rules among arms bearers (Guinean army, gendarmerie and police).

Attention should be drawn to:

• the organization of the third inter-university IHL competition in which three Guinean universities - Kankan, Kofi-Annan et Sonfonia – took part;
• the holding of several information sessions on the International Red Cross Movement, ICRC activities in Guinea, IHL, humanitarian principles and the notions of maintaining order, which were attended by 60 members of the Guinean armed forces and 90 police officers;
• the distribution of 500 copies of the Guinean version of the Soldier’s Handbook in the military camps of Labé and Mamou.

The ICRC as the main partner of the Red Cross Society of Guinea closely collaborated with it in order to organize the provision of medical assistance throughout the country during the incidental violence which flared up around the strikes in January and February 2007.

On that occasion more than 700 Guinean Red Cross volunteers and first-aid workers mobilised in all four corners of the country assisted, cared for and/or evacuated 1,636 people with gunshot wounds, 683 of whom were seriously injured. They transported 81 bodies to health facilities. ICRC support was concentrated on financial assistance, the provision of first-aid supplies and the making available of ICRC vehicles, drivers and communication equipment.

In order to help the National Society to enhance its emergency preparedness the ICRC donated two Land Cruisers, 11 motorbikes and 16 bicycles to improve coordination and the transport of injured persons, 5 HF and VHF radio stations, as well as first-aid and assistance kits for 50 brigades.