M'Balia Camara (1929 – February 18, 1955) was a

Guinea Guinea, officially the Republic of Guinea, is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Guinea-Bissau to the northwest, Senegal to the north, Mali to the northeast, Côte d'Ivoire to the southeast, and Sier ...

n independence activist. February 9th was named Guinean Women's Day in honour of her.

Life

Born in Posséah in the

Dubréka Prefecture Dubréka is a prefecture located in the Kindia Region of Guinea. The capital is Dubréka Dubréka is a town in Guinea, lying immediately north of Conakry. Population 8,300 (2008 est).Democratic Party of Guinea Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

(DPG) and

Rassemblement Démocratique Africain The ''Rassemblement Démocratique Africain'', commonly known as the RDA and variously translated as African Democratic Assembly and African Democratic Rally, was a political party in French West Africa and French Equatorial Africa which was impo ...

, alongside her husband, Thierno Camara. She also became the leader of the women's section of the DPG. The couple lived in

Tondon Tondon is a town in western Guinea. It is located in Dubreka Prefecture in the Kindia Region. Population 16,030 (2008 est).

, where she oversaw the work of the party's local committee of women. Local chief Almamy David Sylla was opposed to the actions of the RDA, and in February 1955 came to the village of Bembaya to collect taxes, after he had already collected taxes. A conflict broke out, and Sylla broke into the Camaras' house; M'Balia was there, heavily pregnant. Sylla attacked her with his

sabre A sabre or saber ( ) is a type of backsword with a curved blade associated with the light cavalry of the Early Modern warfare, early modern and Napoleonic period, Napoleonic periods. Originally associated with Central European cavalry such a ...

, cutting her open. She was taken to a hospital in

Conakry Conakry ( , ; ; ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guinea. A port city, it serves as the economic, financial and cultural centre of Guinea. Its population as of the 2014 Guinea census was 1,660,973. The current population of C ...

, but the baby was stillborn on February 11. M'Balia died one week later. Camara's death has been described as a galvanizing event in the history of the Guinean independence struggle; one estimate placed the crowd at her funeral at over 10,000 people, rather than the 1,500 claimed by police. Songs were written about her sacrifice, and she was held up as a model for Guinean women to follow in the fight against colonialism. She was such an influential part of her community, February 9th was named Guinean Women's Day in honor of her and her efforts. She is still honored in Guinea for her militant activism. The main market square in Conakry bears her name.

References

{{authority control 1929 births 1955 deaths People from Kindia Region Susu people Guinean activists People murdered in Guinea Assassinated Guinean people Assassinated activists Guinean women activists Deaths by edged and bladed weapons Guinean women in politics Violence against women in Guinea