(Redirected from Guinea Bissau)
'Guinea-Bissau', officially the 'Republic of Guinea-Bissau' (
pronounced ; , ), is a country in
western Africa, and one of the smallest nations in continental Africa. It is bordered by
Senegal to the north, and
Guinea to the south and east, with the
Atlantic Ocean to its west. Formerly the
Portuguese colony of
Portuguese Guinea, upon independence, the name of its capital,
Bissau, was added to the country's official name in order to prevent confusion between itself and the
Republic of Guinea.
History
Main articles: History of Guinea-Bissau
Guinea-Bissau was once the kingdom of
Gabù (
Kaabu), part of the
Mali Empire; parts of the kingdom persisted until the
eighteenth century. Although the rivers and coast of this area were among the first places colonized by the Portuguese, who began
slave trade in the
seventeenth century, the interior was not explored until the
nineteenth century.
An armed rebellion beginning in 1956 by the
African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC) under the leadership of
Amílcar Cabral gradually consolidated its hold on the country. Unlike other Portuguese anticolonial efforts, the PAIGC rapidly extended its military control over large portions of the country, aided by the jungle-like terrain and large quantities of arms from
Cuba,
China, the
Soviet Union, and other African countries. Cuba also agreed to supply artillery experts, doctors and technicians.
[1] The PAIGC even managed to acquire a significant anti-aircraft capability in order to defend itself against aerial attack. By 1973, the PAIGC was in control of most of the country. Independence was unilaterally declared on
September 24, 1973, and was recognized by a 93-7 UN General Assembly vote in November 1973.
[1] Recognition became universal following the 1974 socialist-inspired
military coup in
Portugal. The country was controlled by a revolutionary council until 1984. The first multi-party elections were held in 1994, but an army uprising in 1998 led to the president's ousting and the
Guinea-Bissau Civil War. Elections were held in 2000 and
Kumba Ialá was elected president.
In September 2003, a coup took place in which the military arrested Ialá on the charge of being "unable to solve the problems." After being delayed several times,
legislative elections were held in March 2004 . A
mutiny of
military factions in October 2004 resulted in the death of the head of the armed forces, and caused widespread unrest.
In June 2005, presidential elections were held for the first time since the coup that deposed Ialá. Ialá returned as the candidate for the PRS, claiming to be the legitimate president of the country, but the election was won by former president
João Bernardo Vieira, deposed in the 1998 coup. Vieira was a candidate for one of the factions of the PAIGC. Vieira beat
Malam Bacai Sanha in a runoff-election, but Sanha refused initially to concede, claiming that the elections have been
fraudulent in two
constituencies, including the capital Bissau.
Despite reports that there had been an influx of arms in the weeks leading up to the election and reports of some 'disturbances during campaigning' - including attacks on the presidential palace and the Interior Ministry by as-yet-unidentified gunmen -
European monitors labelled the election as "calm and organized".
[2]
Politics
Main articles: Politics of Guinea-Bissau
Guinea-Bissau is a republic. In the past, the government has been highly centralized and multiparty governance has been in effect since mid-1991. The president is the head of state and the prime minister is the head of government. At the legislative level, there is a unicameral "Assembleia Nacional Popular" (National People's Assembly) made up of 100 members. They are popularly elected from multi-member constituencies to serve a four-year term. At the judicial level, there is a "Supremo Tribunal da Justiça" (Supreme Court) which consists of nine justices appointed by the president. They serve at the pleasure of the president.
João Bernardo "Nino" Vieira became President of Guinea-Bissau in 2005. Vieira returned to power in 2005 after winning the presidential election only six years after being ousted from office during a civil war. Previously, he held power for 19 years after taking power in 1980 in a bloodless coup. In that action, he toppled the government of Luís Cabral.
Regions and sectors
Main articles: Regions of Guinea-Bissau,
Sectors of Guinea-Bissau
Guinea-Bissau is divided into 8
regions (''regiões'') and one
autonomous sector (''sector autónomo''). These in turn are subdivided into thirty-seven
sectors. The
regions are:
Geography
Map Of Guinea Bissau
At 13,945
sq mi. (36,120
km²), Guinea-Bissau is nearly identical in size to
Taiwan, and somewhat larger than the US state of
Maryland. This small, tropical country lies at a low altitude; its highest point is 984
feet (300
m). The interior is
savanna, and the coastline is swampy plain. Its
monsoon-like rainy season alternates with periods of hot, dry
harmattan winds blowing from the
Sahara. The
Bijagos Archipelago extends out to sea.
Economy
Main articles: Economy of Guinea-Bissau
Guinea-Bissau gained its independence from Portugal in 1974 after a protracted liberation war that brought tremendous damages to the country’s economic infrastructure. The civil war that took place in 1998 and 1999 and a military coup in September 2003 again disrupted economic activity, leaving a substantial part of the economic and social infrastructure in ruins and intensifying the already widespread poverty. Following the parliamentary elections in March 2004 and presidential elections in July 2005, the country is trying to recover from the long period of instability despite a still-fragile political situation.
Guinea-Bissau is one of the world's poorest countries, with more than two-thirds of its population living below the poverty line. The economy depends mainly on agriculture and fishing, and cashew nuts are its major exports. A long period of political instability has resulted in depressed economic activity, deteriorating social conditions, and increased macroeconomic imbalances. The key challenges for the country in the period ahead will be to restore fiscal discipline, rebuild public administration, improve the climate for private investment, and promote economic diversification.
In April 2007, UN Office on Drugs and Crime head,
Antonio Maria Costa, said he feared Guinea-Bissau could become a "narco-state" following several large cocaine seizures in the country.
[2]
Demographics
Main articles: Demographics of Guinea-Bissau
The population of Guinea-Bissau is ethnically diverse and has many distinct languages, customs, and social structures. Nearly 99% of Guineans are black and can be divided into the following three categories:
Fula and the
Mandinka-speaking people, who comprise the largest portion of the population and are concentrated in the north and northeast; the
Balanta and
Papel people, who live in the southern coastal regions; and the
Manjaco and
Mancanha, who occupy the central and northern coastal areas. Most of the remaining 1% are ''
mestiços'' of mixed
Portuguese and black descent, including a
Cape Verdean minority. White Portuguese comprise only a very small portion of Guinea-Bissauans. This deficit was directly caused by the exodus of Portuguese settlers that took place after Guinea-Bissau gained independence. The country has also
Chinese minority, including
Macanese people of mixed Portuguese and Chinese blood from
Macau. Only 14% of the population speaks the official language
Portuguese. 44% of the population speaks
Kriol, a
Portuguese-based creole language, and the remainder speaks native African languages. White Portuguese and mestiços speak one of the African languages and Kriol as second languages.
French is also learned in schools, as the country is surrounded by French-speaking countries and a full member of the
Francophonie. Most people are farmers with traditional religious beliefs (
animism); 45% are
Muslim, principally the Fula and Mandinka peoples; and less than 8% are
Christian, most of whom are
Roman Catholic.
Culture
Main articles: Culture of Guinea-Bissau
: ''See also:
List of writers from Guinea-Bissau,
Music of Guinea-Bissau
The music of Guinea-Bissau is usually associated with the
polyrhythmic
gumbe genre, the country's primary musical export. However, civil unrest and a small size have combined over the years to keep gumbe, and other genres, out of mainstream audiences, even in generally syncretist African countries.
The
calabash is the primary
musical instrument of Guinea-Bissau, and is used in extremely swift and rhythmically complex
dance music. Lyrics are almost always in
Guinea-Bissau Creole, a
Portuguese-based
creole language, and are often humorous and topical, revolving around current events and controversies, especially
AIDS.
The word ''gumbe'' is sometimes used generically, to refer to any music of the country, although it most specifically refers to a unique style that fuses about ten of the country's
folk music traditions.
Tina and
tinga are other popular genres, while extent folk traditions include
ceremonial music used in
funerals,
initiations and other rituals, as well as
Balanta brosca and
kussundé,
Mandinga djambadon and the
kundere sound of the
Bijagos islands.
Matriarchy
In the
Bolama archipelago, a
matriarchal or at least
matrilineal social system has survived to the present day
[3], although it is currently being eroded by
globalization and
Christian missionary influence.
In this system, women choose husbands who are compelled to marry them, and religious affairs are controlled by a female priesthood.
See also
★
Communications in Guinea-Bissau
★
Foreign relations of Guinea-Bissau
★
List of Guinea-Bissau-related topics
★
Military of Guinea-Bissau
★
Transport in Guinea-Bissau
★
Scouting in Guinea-Bissau
References
1.
2. BBC news
★
★ Richard Andrew Lobban, Jr. and Peter Karibe Mendy, ''Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau'', third ed. (Scarecrow Press, 1997) ISBN 0-8108-3226-7 Includes extensive bibliography
External links
'News'
★
allAfrica - ''Guinea Bissau'' news headline links
'Overviews'
★
BBC News ''Country Profile - Guinea-Bissau''
★
CIA World Factbook - ''Guinea-Bissau''
'Directories'
★
Open Directory Project - ''Guinea Bissau'' directory category
★
Stanford University - Africa South of the Sahara: ''Guinea-Bissau'' directory category
★
The Index on Africa - ''Guinea-Bissau'' directory category
★
University of Pennsylvania - African Studies Center: ''Guinea-Bissau'' directory category
★
Yahoo! - ''Guinea-Bissau'' directory category
'Tourism'
★
'Other links'
★
Map of Guinea-Bissau
★
United States consular information sheet/travel advisory for Guinea-Bissau
★
Devaneios Desintéricos - Oil in Guinea Bissau?
★
[4]
★
'Drug barons turn Bissau into Africa's first narco-state' (article from ''
The Independent'' (UK))
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