West Africa’s main political bloc, ECOWAS, has rejected a transition programme announced by Guinea-Bissau’s military rulers and is demanding a quick return to constitutional rule.
Meeting at a summit in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, ECOWAS leaders warned they could impose targeted sanctions on individuals or groups seen as blocking the transition back to civilian government.
Coup sparks regional concern
Guinea-Bissau’s military seized power on 26 November, when army officers calling themselves the Military High Command removed President Umaro Sissoco Embalo from office. The following day, the officers named Major-General Horta Inta-a as interim president.
The takeover has added to growing worries about democratic decline in West and Central Africa. Guinea-Bissau is now the ninth country in the region to experience a coup in the past five years, at a time when many states are already facing insecurity and political instability.
Call for detainees’ release
At the Abuja meeting, ECOWAS leaders called for the immediate release of all political detainees, including opposition figures.
They also insisted that any transition period must be short and inclusive, involving key political and civil society actors.
ECOWAS Commission President Omar Touray said the bloc was determined to take a firm stance against military takeovers. “What ECOWAS leaders have resolved to do is to ensure that there is zero tolerance for unconstitutional change of government,” he said.
Elections and next steps
ECOWAS said elections held in Guinea-Bissau on 23 November had been judged free and transparent by its observers, as well as by the African Union and the Community of Portuguese Language Countries.
The bloc has now tasked its chair with leading a high-level delegation to Guinea-Bissau to hold talks with the military authorities.
If the junta fails to meet ECOWAS demands, the organisation says it will move ahead with targeted sanctions. It has also called on the African Union and international partners to back its efforts to restore constitutional order.