La Cedeao menace la Guinée-Bissau de "sanctions ciblées" après le coup d'Etat
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) threatened on Sunday to impose "targeted sanctions" on anyone who tries to obstruct the return to civilian rule in Guinea-Bissau following last month's coup.
This decision comes as the heads of state of the regional bloc met on Sunday at an ordinary summit in Abuja, Nigeria, whose agenda was dominated by the coup in Guinea-Bissau and another failed one in Benin a week ago.
"The authorities will impose targeted sanctions on individuals or groups of people who obstruct the transition process," ECOWAS Commission President Omar Alieu Touray told reporters after the meeting.
The coup in Guinea-Bissau took place at the end of November, the day before the scheduled announcement of the provisional results of the presidential and legislative elections held on November 23.
Both the camp of outgoing President Umaro Sissoco Embalo and that of opposition candidate Fernando Dias de Costa claimed victory.
The military had announced that they had taken "total control of the country", arrested outgoing President Umaro Sissoco Embalo and suspended the electoral process.
Located between Senegal and Guinea (Conakry), Guinea-Bissau had already experienced four coups d'état and a host of attempted coups since its independence in 1974.
- Coups d'état -
The regional bloc had already been shaken by a series of coups between 2020 and 2023 in Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mali and Niger, countries still ruled by military juntas.
"The events of recent weeks have shown concretely what regional solidarity means," said Omar Alieu Touray, the president of the ECOWAS Commission, at the opening ceremony of the summit in Abuja.
This regional meeting, held in a conference room on the green and highly secure campus surrounding the Nigerian presidential villa of Aso Rock, was planned before the coup in Guinea-Bissau and the foiled military takeover attempt in Benin, but these events emerged as major topics on the agenda.
According to the program, the presidents were to discuss a recent ECOWAS mission to Guinea-Bissau and "the situation in the Republic of Benin".
Trade liberalisation policies, as well as an "update on the transition process" in Guinea, are also on the agenda.
Security in the Sahel is a priority for ECOWAS, as jihadist groups are carrying out insurgencies in several West African countries.
- common security issues -
Led by military leaders, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger left ECOWAS and formed their own organization, the Alliance of Sahel States (AES).
Last week, Mr. Touray called for negotiations with the AES on common security issues, as the conflict continues to spread south.
"No border can protect us from violence," said Sierra Leonean President Julius Bio on Sunday, who currently holds the rotating chairmanship of ECOWAS.
The heads of state of Guinea and Guinea-Bissau, suspended after their military takeovers, are not present at the summit.
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu is also not attending; he is represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima.
In addition to military coups, democratic backsliding is also weighing on civilian governments in West Africa.
Commentaires (8)
La cedeao se porte bien il faut intégrer le Maroc et la Mauritanie
Je n aurai pas accepté cette presidence
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