African Union suspends Guinea-Bissau as president flees
A coup in the impoverished West African state of Guinea-Bissau has seen its ousted president flee to Brazzaville, capital of the Republic of Congo. The African Union moved to condemn the coup and suspend the country.
Brazzaville (AFP/AP) - Guinea-Bissau's ousted president Umaro Sissoco Embalo arrived in the Republic of Congo's capital Brazzaville on Saturday, days after he was overthrown by the military, Congolese government sources told AFP.
The military took "total control" of the west African country on Wednesday - a day before the provisional results of national elections were due to be announced - and Embalo initially left for neighbouring Senegal.
"Embalo arrived in Brazzaville late in the morning on a private jet," a source close to the Congolese government said on condition of anonymity.
A presidency source said Embalo, who had claimed victory in the election, intended to remain in the country, which is also known as Congo-Brazzaville.
Coup motives unclear
The true motives for the coup in Guinea-Bissau remain unclear, with speculation and conspiracy theories circulating - including that the coup was carried out with Embalo's blessing.
Sandwiched between Senegal and Guinea, Guinea-Bissau had already undergone four coups and a host of attempted takeovers since its independence from Portugal in 1974.
Among the world's poorest countries, it has now joined the likes of Burkina Faso, Mali, Madagascar, Niger and Sudan on the list of states suspended from the African Union following coups.
AU suspends
The African Union has suspended Guinea-Bissau following the coup, saying it would not tolerate unconstitutional changes.
In a resolution adopted by the AU Peace and Security Council on Friday, the organization reiterated it has "zero tolerance on unconstitutional changes of government." It moved to "immediately suspend the Republic of Guinea-Bissau from participating in all activities of the Union, its organs and institutions, until constitutional order is restored in the country."
Speaking to The Associated Press on Saturday evening, former president Umaro Sissoco Embaló's chief of staff said the ousted leader travelled to the Republic of the Congo overnight and arrived Saturday morning.
"Yes, the president is already in Brazzaville. We left Dakar last night and arrived in Congo-Brazzaville this morning," Califa Soares Cassamá, the former president's chief of staff, confirmed to AP.
Embaló had previously arrived in neighbouring Senegal on Thursday on a flight chartered by the Senegalese government.
Repeated coups
Guinea-Bissau, one of the world's poorest countries, has been dogged by coups and attempted coups since its independence from Portugal more than 50 years ago, including a coup attempt in October.
The country of 2.2 million people is known as a hub for drug trafficking between Latin America and Europe, a trend that experts say has fuelled its political crises.
On Saturday, the president of the Transitional Republic, Gen. Horta Inta-a, appointed a new 28-member government, most of whom are allies of the ousted president.
The West African regional bloc known as ECOWAS on Thursday suspended Guinea-Bissau from its decision-making bodies until the constitutional order is restored.
The military takeover Wednesday came after presidential and legislative elections on Sunday. Incumbent President Embaló and opposition candidate Fernando Dias each claimed victory.
Following the coup, the military high command in the West African nation inaugurated former army chief of staff Inta-a, as the head of the military government, which will oversee a one-year transition period, according to a declaration broadcast on state television.