Poor road conditions seriously hamper access to refugee settlements in the Forest Zones, particularly during rainy seasons when unpaved roads become virtually impassable. Rains and poor roads effectively block aid to most refugees several months each year, aggravating hardships. Protection Concerns Armed attacks by Sierra Leonean insurgents against Sierra Leonean refugees in Guinea have increased in recent months, resulting in numerous deaths, abductions, and mutilations. An attack on May 22 killed 11 civilians. Aid workers urge Guinean authorities to move refugee sites to safer locations farther from the border.
Refugees complain of harassment by Guinean soldiers and police, including robberies and rapes.
Refugee leaders express concern about prostitution among refugee women. Guinean authorities intermittently close their border with Sierra Leone. This prevents new refugees from arriving in Guinea, or forces refugees to bribe authorities to obtain safe entry. Poorly managed food distributions to refugees in Guinea have produced inefficiencies, corruption, and undernourishment. Annual efforts to improve the system have fallen short.