The Sierra Leone Ambassador to the Republic of Guinea, Alimamy Hassan Bangura, has said to the Guinea Minister of Foreign Affairs in diiplomatic terms that the procedure to send many Sierra Leoneans back to their country without any formal notification to the Sierra Leone Embassy was incorrect.

Ambassador Alimamy Hassan Bangura made the diplomatic observation during a meeting arranged by the Guinea Minister of Foreign Affairs after the Sierra Leone Embassy had formally condemned the repatriation procedure of the state authorities.

According to the Press Attache of the Siera Leone Embassy in Guinea, Sitta Turay, who was part of the Embassy delegation that attended the meeting, the Foreign Affairs Minister gave a background to what actually happened.

He said the Foreign Affairs Minister explained that the areas where Sierra Leoneans and other nationals, including Togolese, were evicted have become very dangerous to them as a country, citing the illegal substances that were sold and consumed in the areas, as well as the rampant prostitution and other social vices.

The Minister also told the meeting that the occupants of the demolished areas were informed three months before the demolition exercise and that they were noticed every month about the exercise.

On the part of affected Sierra Leoneans, the Minister said they were removed from the areas because they were without legal documentation. They failed to register with the Sierra Leone Embassy to make their stay in Guinea legal.

Sitta Turay disclosed that while other nationals who were removed from the demolished areas were arrested and charged to court, the Foreign Minister said the Guinea Head of State, Mamadi Doumbuya, insisted that on no account they should detain any Sierra Leonean and that the worst thing they could do was to check their documentations and repatriate those who were not staying in Guinea legally.

The Minister also quoted the Head of State as saying that nobody should harm Sierra Leoneans in Guinea because of Sierra Leone's response to the blasting of their petroleum terminal in Conakry, and that Sierra Leone was the only country that came to the rescue at that time of need.

Also, at the meeting, Ambassador Alimamy Hassan Bangura insisted that those who were to be repatriated to Sierra Leone should be brought back to Conakry since the repatriation process was incorrect, and the Foreign Affairs Minister yielded to the Ambassador's demand.

Sitta Turay said the people have been returned to Conakry and were now in a safe place, adding that they are now trying to negotiate the vetting in order to sort out Sierra Leoneans from non-Sierra Leoneans through rigorous interviews.

He furthered that if Sierra Leoneans, who would be vetted, were without the required documents issued by the Sierra Leone Embassy, they would be asked to return to Sierra Leone, and if they wished to go back to Guinea, they would return and obtain the Consular Card from the Embassy, which is the only document required for Sierra Leoneans to live legally in Guinea.