Street protests spread across Guinea

By BOUBACAR DIALLO, Associated Press Writer

(Updated Thursday, January 18, 2007, 3:52 AM)

CONAKRY, Guinea (AP) - Security forces fired tear gas at demonstrators in Guinea's capital on Wednesday as street protests spread across the West African country on the eighth day of a general strike aimed at forcing the volatile nation's ailing president to step down.

In Conakry, around 200 protesters led by Rabiatou Sera Diallo, president of the National Confederation of Guinea Workers, walked halfway to the parliament building before they were surrounded by military vehicles. Police in riot gear lobbed canisters of tear gas to disperse the crowd.

Police took Diallo and seven of her colleagues into custody and ferried them in a military car to meet the head of Guinea's parliament, to whom they were brought in a bid to negotiate an end to the street protests. The group rejected any deal and was released shortly after.

Outside parliament, hundreds of demonstrators waited for Diallo to re-emerge, chanting, "Long live Diallo! Down with Conte!"

The 72-year-old president, Lansana Conte, grabbed power in a 1984 coup and has refused to relinquish control in spite of a heart condition that has required him to travel several times to Switzerland for medical care in the past year.

The strike began Jan. 10 after Conte halted the trial of two men accused of stealing millions of dollars from the state. Union leaders have said they will not stop striking until Conte releases his grip on power and appoints an interim government.

Elsewhere in Guinea, demonstrations spread to seven other towns, with state television reporting more than 300 protesters had taken to the streets in Labe, 186 miles northeast of Conakry.

New York-based Human Rights Watch called on the country's security forces to use restraint. During a strike in June, security forces beat, robbed and allegedly raped residents, Human Rights Watch said.