This verdict has sparked widespread outrage among opposition figures and civil society organizations.
Bah, a prominent critic of the military junta, was arrested on December 26, 2024, near the Guinea-Sierra Leone border. His legal team denounced the arrest as a politically motivated “judicial witch hunt” aimed at silencing dissent.
The trial, which was widely condemned as a “sham” by Bah’s defense lawyers, resulted in a conviction based on insufficient evidence. This has led to accusations of a “moral decay” within Guinea’s judiciary and a deliberate attempt to suppress freedom of expression.
International human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, have called for Bah’s immediate release, denouncing his imprisonment as a violation of international principles of free expression.
Political leaders, including Cellou Dalein Diallo, leader of the Union of Democratic Forces of Guinea (UFDG), have strongly condemned the verdict, labeling it a “judicial farce” and an assault on fundamental rights.
This sentencing has further heightened political tensions in Guinea. Civil society groups and opposition leaders have vowed to continue their struggle against the junta and to defend democratic freedoms. The verdict raises serious concerns about the rule of law and the respect for human rights under the current military regime.
ARD/te/sf/lb/abj/APA