Freemuse Defending Artistic Freedom
29 November 2019
UPDATE
Guinean reggae singer Elie Kamano and nine other detainees were released from prison on 28 November, reported Guinee News.
Their release was determined during the first appeal hearing.
Judge of the Court of Appeal Magadouba Sow has forwarded the case to debate on 5 December.
25 October 2019
Guinea: Reggae singer sentenced to prison for attending a protest
Guinean reggae singer Elie Kamano was arrested by the Central Directorate of the Judicial Police (DPJ) on 14 October and sentenced to one year of imprisonment on 18 October, reported Africa Guinee.
The arrest happened after activists of the National Front for the Defense of the Constitution (FNDC) began peaceful demonstrations against the third term of power for President Alpha Condé. Kamano, together with other activists, has been charged with “unlawful participation in a gathering likely to disturb public order”.
The trial of arrested activists started at the Mafanco Court of First Instance, reported Guinee7 on 16 October.
On 18 October the court sentenced Kamano to one year of imprisonment, including six months suspended. The public prosecutor had asked for a three years sentence and a fine of one million Guinean francs (96 euro). The artist’s lawyers announced that they appealed the decision.
In his live stream published on Facebook on 23 October, Kamano commented his sentence saying “We will not back off, we will continue to fight for this country to be a true state of law, which respects democratic values.”
Kamano’s case is illustrative of a trend that Freemuse documented throughout the last year, where artists are detained as a result of their expression during political protests.
The trend is also visible in Valsero’s case who was arrested for his attendance at the ‘White Marches’ peaceful demonstration in Cameroon’s capital Yaoundé on 26 January 2019. After nine months of detention, Valsero has been released.
