ECOWAS Court Holds Guinea Liable for 2012 Mine Site Killings [1]
On November 10, 2020, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Court held [3] that the Republic of Guinea violated the human rights of protesters at a 2012 conflict in the village of Zoghota. The conflict resulted in six deaths and the unlawful arrest, injury, or torture of 15 others. The conflict was a result of demonstrations against the abusive practices of a nearby iron-ore mining project. According to Reuters [4], the Court found that, "Guinea violated the right to life, the right not to be subject to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment, the right not to be arrested or detained arbitrarily, and the right to effective recourse." The ECOWAS Court ordered Guinea to pay the plaintiffs’ total damages, as well as the plaintiffs’ litigation costs. The attorneys representing the plaintiffs have issued a statement [5].