In an exclusive interview, Rabiatou Serah Diallo, leader of one of two main unions behind Guinea’s strikes, told IRIN that a march on Wednesday that turned violent was supposed to be peaceful, and blamed the security forces for instigating the violence, but said the unions will not back down.

Guinea’s two largest unions, the Guinean Workers Union (USTG) and the National Confederation of Guinean Workers (CNTG), of which Diallo is secretary general, launched a widely observed nationwide strike in Guinea last Wednesday.

Veering away from their previous demands that the government improve living conditions for ordinary Guineans, the unions last week explicitly linked the country’s economic problems to its leadership.

On Monday Diallo and her USTG counterpart Ibrahima Fofana delivered an ultimatum to President Conte to reform his government and relinquish his powers, but on Tuesday in a message delivered by the president of the National Assembly, Conte asked for more time to consider.

On Wednesday three people were killed and at least six injured by security forces in demonstrations in Conakry and seven provincial towns. A subsequent meeting between Diallo, Fofana and President Conte failed to draw a line under the strikes.

IRIN: Why did you call for the march on Wednesday?

DIALLO: “We organised it because we are convinced that the message delivered yesterday evening by the president of the National Assembly did not come directly from President Conte. We do not have confidence because the head of state told us that he would study the document and would respond personally to the proposals.”

IRIN: What happened that made the march turn violent?

DIALLO: “We marched until we saw a tank and military trucks ahead of us. We were very satisfied because we had a well-attended and pacific march. But I believe that the security forces got the order to fire on us. They opened fire and launched tear gas.”

IRIN: What other incidents did you experience on the march?

DIALLO: “We returned to the union headquarters where we had the impression that a crowd was waiting for us. We were suprised to see riot police firing at the crowd with rubber bullets. They were shooting and breaking windows until we were inside the building. Everything is broken there.”

IRIN: What will you do next?

DIALLO: “The solution to this strike is in the hands of President Conte and the institutions of the Republic. We have made our proposition. It is up to President Conte to take us seriously, because we say [he] is incapable of leading the country because of his sickness. We will continue to fight until the total satisfaction of our points. The movement continues around the country.”