Guinea-Bissau Civil War - Rebellion and Civil War

Rebellion and Civil War

Vieira dismissed the suspended Mané and appointed General Humberto Gomes to replace him on 6 June 1998. On 7 June, rebelling troops led by Ansumane Mané seized control of military barracks in Bissau as well as other strategic locations in the city, including the international airport. Mané subsequently demanded the resignation of Vieira and his administration and the conduct of free and democratic elections in July. With the support of 1,300 Senegalese and 400 Guinean soldiers, troops loyal to the government attempted unsuccessfully to regain control of rebel held areas of the city and heavy fighting ensued. In the following days more than 3,000 foreign nationals were evacuated from the capital by ship to Senegal. An estimated further 200,000 residents of Bissau fled the city prompting fears of a humanitarian disaster, with the hostilities preventing aid organizations from distributing emergency food and medical supplies to the refugees. Fighting continued into July, with many members of the Guinea-Bissau armed forces reportedly defecting to the side of the rebels. On 26 July, following mediation by a delegation from the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP), the government and the rebels agreed to implement a truce. On 25 August, representatives of the government and the rebels met under the auspices of the CPLP and ECOWAS on Sal Island, Cape Verde, where an agreement was reached to transform the existing truce into a cease-fire. The accord provided for the reopening of the international airport and for the deployment of international forces to maintain and supervise the cease-fire.

In September 1998, talks between the government and the rebels resumed in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire. The rebels demanded that all Senegalese and Guinean forces be withdrawn from the country as a precondition to a definitive peace agreement, which was rejected by the government. The rebels, in turn, rejected a proposal for the establishment by Senegal of a buffer zone within Guinea-Bissau territory along the border with Casamance. In October the rebels agreed to a government proposal for the creation of a demilitarized zone separating the opposing forces in the capital. Before the proposal could be formally endorsed, the cease-fire collapsed as fighting erupted in the capital and several other towns. On 20 October, the government imposed a nation-wide curfew, and on the following day President Vieira declared a unilateral cease-fire. By that time almost all of the government troops had defected to the side of rebel forces, which were believed to control approximately 99% of the country. On 23 October, Brigadier-General Mané agreed to observe a 48-hour truce to allow Vieira time to clarify his proposals for a negotiated peace settlement and agreement was subsequently reached for direct talks to be held in Banjul, The Gambia. At the talks, which took place on 29 October, the rebels confirmed that they would not seek Vieira's resignation.