2023 Guinea-Bissau clashes

Guinea-Bissau's semi-presidential system limits the powers of the president by allowing the majority party in the National People's Assembly to appoint the Cabinet, which also means that the legislature, currently dominated since elections in June 2023 by the opposition PAIGC party, which is critical of President Umaro Sissoco Embaló, also controls the National Guard, which falls under the jurisdiction of the interior ministry. In 2022, Embaló survived a coup attempt against him that left 11 people dead, which prompted him to dissolve the legislature, citing “unresolvable differences” with the body. Since independence from Portugal in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has had at least 10 attempted coups or coups, and only a single democratically elected president has completed a full term in office. ==Events==

Detention of ministers On the morning of 30 November 2023, Finance Minister Souleiman Seidi and Treasury Secretary António Monteiro were subjected to questioning by an anti-corruption inquiry amid investigations into the alleged irregular withdrawal of $10 million in state funds that were found to have been paid to 11 companies. Following the questioning, they were placed under arrest on orders of state prosecutors, who were presidential appointees. The leader of the opposition in the National People's Assembly alleged that the owners of the companies were close to leaders of the country's PAIGC-led governing coalition. after the Public Ministry ordered their rearrest, while the guardsmen involved in their release retreated to a barracks in the Santa Luzia district. as well as in the Luanda neighborhood in the outskirts of Bissau, where the National Guard's intervention brigade is based. Shooting continued until noon on 1 December, while security was increased around strategic installations such as the judicial police headquarters, the presidential palace and some ministries. Several residents also fled south of the capital. ==Aftermath==

Embaló, who was attending the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Dubai when the clashes broke out, returned to Guinea-Bissau on the evening of 2 December and ordered Victor Tchongo's dismissal as commander of the National Guard. He called the clashes an "attempted coup" that was prepared before celebrations on 16 November commemorating the founding of Guinea-Bissau's armed forces. Following a visit to the National Guard barracks, Embaló said that Tchongo was "ordered by someone" to release Seidi and Monteiro. Addressing the Guard, Embaló said that they had been "betrayed" by Tchongo and vowed that he would "pay dearly". On 4 December, Embaló issued a decree dissolving the National People's Assembly and ordered soldiers to be deployed at the headquarters of state media outlets National Broadcasting of Guinea-Bissau and Guinea-Bissau Television to replace their heads, who were seen as loyal to the assembly. On 20 December, Embaló dismissed Martins as prime minister and appointed Rui Duarte de Barros, another member of the PAIGC, to replace him. == Reactions ==

Domestic Government spokesman Francisco Muniro Conte said that a "president who is elected must complete his term of office", adding that "we cannot obstruct people who are facing justice, if the law is really respected." International ECOWAS issued a statement saying that it “strongly condemns the violence and all attempts to disrupt the constitutional order and rule of law in Guinea-Bissau" and called "for the arrest and prosecution of the perpetrators of the incident in accordance with the law." African Union chair Moussa Faki issued a statement saying that he "strongly condemns the recent violence in Guinea-Bissau, perpetrated by elements of the National Guard", while expressing concern over Embaló's decision to dissolve the National Assembly. Stéphane Dujarric, the spokesperson for United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, called for calm and urged the security forces and the army “to continue refraining from interference in national politics”. ==References==