Jean-Marie Doré (12 June 1938 – 29 January 2016) was a Guinean politician who was the prime minister of Guinea from January 2010 until December 2010. Doré, who was the president of the Union for the Progress of Guinea (UPG), was an opposition leader for years before being chosen to head a transitional government that was in place during the preparation and conduct of the 2010 presidential election.
Political career under Conté A native of Bossou in Guinea's Forestière region,Saliou Samb, "Possible candidates for Guinean PM job", Reuters, 14 January 2010."Guinea in Transition", Crisis Group Africa Briefing, number 37, 11 April 2006, pages 5–6 Doré received his higher education in France, where he studied law."Who is new Guinean premier Dore?", Reuters, 19 January 2010. He emerged as an important opposition leader in the early 1990s.
Doré, an intellectual known for his "fiery rhetoric and a sometimes outlandish persona", was a radical opponent and vitriolic critic of President Lansana Conté. Considered a "gadfly" on the political scene by some observers, Doré never participated in the government under Lansana Conté.
With his main support base among the minority ethnic groups of the Forestière region,Paul Melly, "Guinea: Early Warning Analysis", Writenet, August 2003, page 4. Doré was a candidate in the 1993 presidential election;Political Parties of the World (6th edition, 2005), ed. Bogdan Szajkowski, page 275. according to official results, he placed sixth with 0.9% of the vote.Dieter Nohlen, Michael Krennerich, and Bernhard Thibaut, Elections in Africa: A Data Handbook (1999), Oxford University Press, pages 455–457. Subsequently he was elected to the National Assembly in the 1995 parliamentary election,, National Assembly website . winning a seat through national list proportional representation. He was the only UPG candidate to win a seat.
Doré ran again as the UPG candidate in the December 1998 presidential election."Guinea: Tight security for elections", IRIN, 14 December 1998. On 7 December 1998, shortly before the 1998 election was held, he called for it to be delayed due to inadequate preparations."Guinea: Opposition wants presidential elections postponed", AFP, 8 December 1998. After the election, he was placed under house arrest for a short period while votes were counted."U.S. Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices 1998 – Guinea", United States Department of State, 26 February 1999. The official results showed Doré placing fourth with 1.7% of the vote.
During the 1990s civil war in Liberia, Doré expressed friendship with Charles Taylor, the leader of one of Liberia's main armed factions.Adam Nossiter, "Guinea junta picks opponent as premier on path to civilian control", The New York Times, 20 January 2010, page A10. Following a UPG extraordinary congress, Doré held a press conference in late February 2001 in which he said that Conté and Taylor should act to facilitate peace by ceasing their mutual practice of giving shelter to the other's armed opponents. Doré called on Conté to disarm members of the anti-Taylor United Liberation Movement of Liberia for Democracy (ULIMO) who were in Guinea, saying that in doing so he would deny Taylor "a pretext for making trouble in Guinea"."Guinea: Opposition leader calls for end to Guinea-Liberia war", IRIN, 26 February 2001.
Speaking in July 2001, Doré denounced the ruling party's campaign for a constitutional amendment that would allow President Conté to run for another term and threatened to withdraw the UPG from a national dialogue if the ruling party continued the campaign. He also stressed the importance of holding a new parliamentary election."Guinea: Opposition leader criticizes constitution amendment campaign", Africa No. 1 radio, Libreville (nl.newsbank.com), 16 July 2001.
Although most of the opposition chose to boycott the June 2002 parliamentary election, the UPG participatedPage on 2002 election at IPU PARLINE. and won three seats; Doré was among those elected. . However, the UPG contested the official results of the election, which showed it winning three seats, and boycotted the National Assembly."Guinea: Opposition party boycotts parliament in protest over election results", Africa No. 1 radio, Libreville (nl.newsbank.com), 14 July 2002.
FRAD and the 2003 presidential election In the run-up to the December 2003 presidential election, Doré was the spokesman of the Republican Front for Democratic Change (FRAD), which grouped seven opposition parties. FRAD boycotted a dialogue that the government attempted to initiate in July 2003; later, in September 2003, Interior Minister Moussa Solano said that opposition activities could be covered in the state media, but Doré, acting as FRAD spokesman, stressed that nothing less than a "signed statement by the authorities" would suffice, and he observed that the government had ignored opposition demands for the creation of a new and independent electoral commission."Guinea: Opposition rejects offer of access to state media", IRIN, 26 September 2003. At a meeting between FRAD and the government on 29 September 2003, there were initially tensions between Doré and government supporters, but the government agreed to establish two commissions to review opposition demands and FRAD in turn agreed to participate in dialogue."Guinea: Opposition to resume dialogue with government", IRIN, 30 September 2003.
On 21 October 2003, the government refused to allow broadcast of a statement from FRAD that accused the government of planning fraud, and it also announced, without the opposition's agreement, that the election would be held on 21 December. Doré reacted to the two decisions with outrage, saying that the dialogue had been exposed as nothing but a pretense."Guinea: Presidential elections set for 21 December", IRIN, 22 October 2003. Doré and the other major opposition leaders announced in early November 2003 that they would boycott the election."Guinea: Conte faces virtually no opposition in presidential election", IRIN, 12 November 2003.
In an interview with Radio France Internationale on 13 November 2003, Doré said that Conté's medical certificate, which cleared him to stand as a candidate despite his obviously failing health, was farcical. He also characterized the candidacy of Mamadou Bhoye Barry—a minor politician who was standing as Conté's only opponent in the election—as a calculated ploy, arguing that Barry was "planted by President Conté himself to show a semblance of democracy in the election." Doré was arrested later on the same day."Guinea: Opposition leader arrested following radio interview", IRIN, 13 November 2003. Minister of Security Aboubacar Sampil spoke of putting him on trial for the offense of insulting the President, but he was quickly released, apparently due to pressure from the West,"Guinea: Outspoken opposition leader released from jail", IRIN, 17 November 2003. after 21 hours in detention. Doré struck a defiant tone upon his release from prison: "This will not cower me into submission ... as a matter of fact I am now determined more than before to see an end to the regime of Conté. The Conté of today is not the Conté of 10 years ago. He has lost his energy to govern." In an interview with IRIN, he said that he was held in "deplorable" conditions at a maximum security prison and that he "slept on an arm chair with [his] suit and shoes still on".
At a news conference on 18 November 2003, FRAD denounced Sampil for "turn[ing] this country into a police state" and demanded a delay in the election, vowing to disrupt it if it was held as planned in December. On the same occasion, Doré thanked his supporters for their show of solidarity."Guinea: Opposition hits back at security minister", IRIN, 19 November 2003. When Conté, who was easily re-elected, was sworn in for his new term on 19 January 2004, Doré said that it was "a sad day for Guinean politics", and he observed that several important regional leaders were not present for the occasion."Guinea: Ailing Conte is sworn in for another seven term", IRIN, 20 January 2004. Doré expressed satisfaction with Conté's decision to dismiss Moussa Solano from the government on 1 March 2004, saying that Solano was "the greatest obstacle to true democracy in this country"."GUINEA: Conte sacks economic team in reshuffle", IRIN, 2 March 2004.
Activities during Conté's last years (2005–2008) As Conté's health was known to be failing, there was much speculation for years about what would happen upon his death. Doré stressed that the opposition parties needed to agree on a strategy for the post-Conté era. He also said that if the military took power after Conté's death, it would "not be able to last more than a few months, because it will get no financial backing from the international community and will not be able to meet people's basic needs"."Guinea: Politics and Economy", IRIN, 10 January 2005. Later, on 10 September 2005, Doré read a statement on behalf of FRAD in which he described Conté as "an obstacle to Guinea's development" and urged him to resign: "You are not what the country needs. You are sick. You must make the wise decision to leave now before others make it for you.""Guinea: Opposition calls for president's resignation", IRIN, 12 September 2005. Doré announced on 29 October 2005 that FRAD would participate in the December 2005 municipal elections; while he stressed that "there are no guarantees of fair play", he said that FRAD would nevertheless "show the international community that we are committed to helping our country go forward"."Guinea: Opposition throws hat into ring for local elections", IRIN, 31 October 2005.
When Conté went to Switzerland for medical treatment in March 2006, Doré again called attention to the state of Conté's health, saying that there was a legal requirement for the President to be sufficiently healthy to exercise his duties. He also said that the people deserved to know more about the situation and that "health bulletins should be published" to keep them informed."Guinea: Ailing president in Switzerland for medical treatment", IRIN, 20 March 2006. Later in 2006, amidst negotiations concerning a planned parliamentary election in 2007, Doré reiterated that negotiations between the government and opposition were ultimately futile if an independent electoral commission was not established."Guinea: President flown to Switzerland for new medical check", IRIN, 11 August 2006.
Doré was alone among major opposition leaders in boycotting the March 2006 National Consultation, which proposed various reforms and a political transition. In January 2007, amidst a general strike backed by the opposition, Doré said that the people were outraged by Conté's "arrogant show of impunity" in releasing two of his friends from prison. He also emphasized that the people were "fed up with living in a country where nothing works even when there is not a general strike. People have nothing to lose."Alex Duval Smith, "Soldiers open fire on Guinea protesters", The Independent, 23 January 2007.
Events since 2008