On 3 April 1984 the military took control of the country, suspended the constitution, dissolved the ruling Parti Démocratique de Guinée, and launched the Military Committee for National Redress to run the nation under Lansana Conté.[1] In their first public statement the new rulers claimed they would treat human rights as a priority and named those who had "lost their lives simply because they wanted to express their opinions on the country's future" as martyrs.[19] Camp Boiro was closed and all political prisoners immediately released.[19] Following the death of a criminal suspect in police custody in September 1984, protests erupted in Kamsar and 200 people were arrested.[19]