At the trial for the Conakry stadium massacre on Monday, December 11, General Ibrahima Baldé, the former head of the gendarmerie, underwent his second round of questioning as a witness.
Throughout the proceedings, the prosecutor and lawyers posed inquiries to General Baldé, who maintained a consistent narrative. He provided an account of the events of September 28, 2009, during which over 150 individuals lost their lives at an opposition rally due to actions by security forces. General Baldé depicted a scenario of overwhelmed law enforcement operations during the aforementioned events.
The testimony of the former chief of the gendarmerie is clear and straightforward, perhaps a bit too flawless, as noted by the lawyer representing the civil parties, Halimatou Camara: “You have been categorical here, stating that none of your men were present when the presidential guard arrived. None?”
“Before the military arrived, they had withdrawn just at the Donka intersection,” claims General Ibrahima Baldé.
Halimatou Camara pointed out inconsistencies in the testimony of the former head of the Guinean gendarmerie: “At the Donka intersection, your men did not even witness gunfire? Since the distance between Donka and the stadium is not what one would consider significant.”
In his short-sleeved blue suit, Ibrahima Baldé remains composed. His men saw nothing, heard nothing, he asserts.