Guinea-Bissau

Know this topic well? Help others and get FREE products!

Occupying 36,120 square kilometers (13,950 square miles), about three times the size of the U.S. state of Connecticut, the Republic of Guinea-Bissau is bounded on the south by the Republic of Guinea and on the north by Senegal. Its population was estimated in July 2004 at 1,388,363.

Historically known for its powerful kingdoms and as a major entry point of explorers, missionaries, and traders, Guinea-Bissau was colonized by the Portuguese in 1879. The campaign for independence began in the 1950s under the leadership of Amilcar Cabral (1924–1973) and the African Party of Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde. After more than a decade of armed struggle this small West African country gained its independence on September 10, 1974. For the first six years of independence Guinea-Bissau was led by Amilcar Cabral's half-brother, Luis de Almeida Cabral (b. 1931). In 1980 then-vice president Joao "Nino" Vieira (b. 1939) led a successful coup against Cabral, thus terminating any plans for political unity between Cape Verde and Guinea-Bissau. Despite several coup attempts against his regime, Vieira remained in power from 1980 to 1999.

Under Vieira's tenure as president and at times prime minister and commander in chief of the armed forces, Guinea-Bissau moved from a single-party state to a multiparty democracy in 1994. In the country's first multiparty elections, Vieira was reelected president by defeating opposition candidate Kumba Yalla of the Party for Social Renovation. Unfortunately, the advent of multipartyism meant at best a minor step toward democracy, for in 1998 an army uprising triggered a bloody civil war, and in 1999 a military junta, led by Kumba Yalla, ousted Vieira from power. In 2000, after transparent elections, Yalla took office and dissolved the People's National Assembly (ANP), only to be overthrown in a bloodless coup three years later. Under the leadership of interim president Henrique Rosa in 2004 Guinea-Bissau was considered to be both politically and economically unstable, ranking among the poorest countries in the world, with an estimated per capita income of $800 in 2003.

Legislative power has been vested in the ANP since independence. The ANP passes laws, ratifies decrees, and can revise the state constitution at any time, thus making it officially the highest political body in Guinea-Bissau. For instance, a new constitution was approved by the ANP in 1984, which was subsequently amended in 1991, 1993, and 1996. Further, constitutional amendments as approved by the ANP in 1991 provided for the operation of a multiparty political system. New political parties seeking registration must obtain 1,000 signatures, with at least 50 from each of the nine administrative regions. As a result, more than fifteen political parties were introduced after the legislation.

The ANP consists of 100 members, all whom are elected by universal adult suffrage to serve a four-year term. Similarly, the president is elected to a five-year term by universal adult suffrage, and in turn appoints a prime minister. Both the president, who is also head of government, and the prime minister are part of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers. Further, the judicial branch in Guinea-Bissau consists of a Supreme Court, nine regional courts, and twenty-four sectional courts. Under the provisions of the 1984 Constitution the president appoints nine Supreme Court justices. The Supreme Court is the final court of appeals in all civil and criminal cases. The regional courts are the first courts of appeal and hear all felony and civil cases. The sectional courts, where the judges are not necessarily lawyers, hear all civil cases under $1,000.

Despite economic and electoral chaos the government of Guinea-Bissau has maintained numerous international relations, including relationships with the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States, United Nation's Group of Seventy-Seven (G-77), the International Monetary Fund, the United Nations, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the World Health Organization.

Cape Verde.

Forest, Joshua. Guinea-Bissau: Power, Conflict, and Renewal in a West African Nation. Boulder, CO: Westview, 1992.

"Guinea-Bissau." In CIA World Factbook. Washington, DC: Central Intelligence Agency, 2005. <http://www.cia.gov/cia/publicat ions/factbook/geos/ek.html>.

Lobban, Richard, and Peter K. Mendy. Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 1997.

This is the complete article, containing 685 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page).