COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL on the opening of consultations with Guinea Bissau under Article 96 of the revised Cotonou Agreement
Date: 2010-12-20
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: ACP countries, Cotonou Agreement, Guinea-Bissau, cooperation agreement, development policy

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 20.12.2010 
COM(2010) 766 final 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL 

on the opening of consultations with Guinea-Bissau under Article 96 of the revised 
Cotonou Agreement 

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COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL 

on the opening of consultations with Guinea-Bissau under Article 96 of the revised 
Cotonou Agreement 

1. Background 

Since  gaining  independence  in  1975  Guinea-Bissau  has  maintained  close  relations  with  the 
European Union, which has given it over €500 mill ion in cooperation financing. It remains a 
fragile  state,  however,  undermined  by  ethnic  tensions,  the  disproportionate size  of  the  army 
(non-professional and highly politicised) and endemic poverty. Added to this in recent years 
is  the  corrupting  effect  on  various  parts  of  society  (army,  political  parties,  the  government, 
etc.)  of  the  money  generated  by  drug  trafficking,  something  which  is  also  destabilising 
neighbouring countries as a result of the permeable borders created by free movement and the 
tense security situation in Casamance and Guinea-Conakry.  

In  the  first  half  of  2009  the  political  and  security  situation  in  the  country  was  affected  by 
renewed  tensions,  culminating  in  the  assassination  in  March  of  the  Chief  of  Staff  of  the 
Armed  Forces  and  of  President  Joao  Vieira.  In  early  June  the  minister  for  territorial 
administration and a former defence minister were killed and other key figures arrested. All of 
these  figures  were  in  President  Vieira's  inner  circle  and,  according  to  the  authorities,  were 
involved in an attempted coup. 

Despite  all  these  tragic  events,  the  early  presidential  election  held  to  find  President Vieira's 
successor took place peacefully. In the second round on 26 July Malam Bacai Sanhá (PAIGC) 
won with 63.31% of the vote. On 8 September 2009 he began his five-year term of office as 
President,  with  Carlos  Gomes  as  Prime  Minister.  In  his  inauguration  speech,  the  new 
President  stressed  that  his  priorities  included  national  reconciliation,  tackling  impunity  and 
reform of the security sector.  

A few days later the head of the navy, Admiral José Zamora Induta, a well-known reformer, 
was confirmed as Armed Forces Chief of Staff. At the end of October the President undertook 
a  major  government  reshuffle  which  affected  most  portfolios  and  brought  in  new  faces. 
Shortly  after  that  a  new  Attorney-General  was  appointed  with  the  task  of  improving  the 
record of the department of public prosecutions in both preventing and tackling crime and in 
pursuing official investigations to find those responsible for the political assassinations carried 
out in March and June of that year.  

The  new  government  seemed  more  determined  than  its  predecessors  to  tackle  the  country's 
problems  but  the  military's  continuing  grip  on  the  political  life  of  the  country  remained  a 
serious threat and cause for concern. 

The  EU  tried  to  tackle  this  situation  by  steadily  increasing  its  support  for  security-sector 
reform (SSR) in Guinea-Bissau, which was essential if civilian control over the military was 
to be re-established. In addition to providing EDF funding, the EU supported the authorities in 
implementing  the  SSR  with  a  common  security  and  defence  policy  (CSDP)  mission,  which 
arrived in May 2008 with the task of helping the authorities with the national SSR strategy, 
notably the army, police and the public prosecution department. 

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Despite  this  progress,  fears  were  confirmed  on  1  April  2010  when,  on  the  orders  of  the 
Deputy  Chief  of  Staff  of  the  Armed  Forces,  General  Antonio  Indjai,  a  group  of  mutinous 
soldiers  arrested  Chief  of  Staff  José  Zamora  Induta  (still  detained)  and  the  Prime  Minister, 
who was threatened with death before being released after several hours of detention. 

With  this  mutiny  General  Indjai  became  de  facto  Chief  of  Staff  before  being  officially 
appointed on 25 June by decree of the President, on a proposal from the government, despite 
the warnings of the international community. 

2. Reaction of the European Union 

In a statement of the High Representative issued on 2 April the EU condemned the mutiny of 
1 April as a "breach of the constitutional order"' and called on the Guinea-Bissau authorities 
to restore normal democratic order. Similar statements were issued by the African Union and 
ECOWAS. 

On 13 April the Council's Political and Security Committee (PSC) concluded that a period of 
reflection on the European Union's future engagement in Guinea-Bissau was needed and that 
it  was  important  to  give  the  civil  authorities  all  necessary  support  to  enable  them  to  deal 
firmly with the situation. 

On 14 April the Council's Africa Group (COAFR) asked the EU heads of mission in Bissau to 
make  representations  to  the  Guinea-Bissau  authorities  and  engage  in  an  enhanced  political 
dialogue on the basis of Article 8 of the Cotonou Agreement on the following points: (i) the 
immediate release of the Chief of Staff and other persons detained since 1 April; (ii) the legal 
responsibility  of  and  disciplinary  sanctions  against  those  implicated  in  the  incidents  of 
1 April; (iii) the necessary obedience and respect due to the legitimate democratic authorities. 
These representations were made on 19 April 2010. 

On 26 April COAFR considered the report of the EU heads of mission in Bissau and noted 
that: (i) security-sector reform (SSR) was of crucial importance for democracy and stability in 
the country; (ii) the EU's future engagement in Guinea-Bissau would depend on forthcoming 
political developments there. 

On  30  April  the  PSC  asked  the  Council  General  Secretariat  and  the  Commission  to: 
(i) propose immediately short-term measures designed to improve the situation on the ground; 
(ii) carry out by the end of June a strategic review of the EU's engagement in Guinea-Bissau 
based on all the instruments at the EU's disposal: the final decision on the EU's engagement, 
in particular the CSDP, would be taken in July 2010 on the basis of that strategic review and 
future developments in Guinea-Bissau. 

On  7 May  the  Council  confirmed  that  any  CSDP  commitment  to  SSR  in  Guinea-Bissau 
beyond  30 September  would  be  conditional  on:  (i)  a  return  to  constitutional  order;  (ii)  the 
release of the former Chief of Staff, Zamora Induta; (iii) prosecution of persons involved in 
the events of 1 April; (iv) adoption of an SSR legislative package. 

In  May  there  was  a  joint  mission  (Commission,  Council,  COAFR  Presidency)  to 
Guinea-Bissau  on  the  basis  of  the  short-term  measures  proposed  by  the  CGS  and  the 
Commission.  The  mission  concluded  that  the  Guinea-Bissau  authorities,  while  sharing  the 
EU's  analysis  of  the  mutiny,  were  not  in  a  position  to  fulfil  its  request  for  a  return  to 
constitutional order. 

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In a statement issued on 5 July the High Representative expressed dismay at the appointment 
of General Antonio Indjai to the post of Chief of Staff as he was mainly responsible for the 
mutiny  of  1 April.  The  HR  also  expressed  serious  concern  about  José  Zamora  Induta's 
unlawful  detention  and  called  on  the  Guinea-Bissau  authorities  to  put  an  end  to  it.  In  her 
statement  the  HR  said  that  the  situation  might  constitute  a  violation  of  Guinea-Bissau's 
commitments to human rights, democracy and rule of law, which were essential elements of 
the  Cotonou  Agreement,  and  called  for  a  review  of  the  EU's  overall  engagement  in 
Guinea-Bissau.  Similar  statements  were  issued  by  the  African  Union,  ECOWAS  and  the 
United States. 

On  7 July  COAFR  discussed  a  new  report  from  the  EU  heads  of  mission  in  Bissau:  (i)  it 
welcomed  the  heads  of  mission's  recommendations;  (ii)  it  deplored  the  appointment  of 
General  Indjai  as  Chief  of  Staff  and  considered  that  this  appointment  might  violate  the 
principles  of  democracy  and  the  rule  of  law  and  the  essential  elements  of  the  Cotonou 
Agreement; (iii) it invited the heads of mission to propose a list of individuals responsible for 
the  chronic  instability  and/or  involved  in  illicit  activities  on  whom  targeted  EU  sanctions 
might  be  imposed;  (iv)  it  welcomed  the  unanimous  reaction  of  the  international  community 
and reiterated the importance of closely coordinating our response with that of the rest of the 
international community, including the AU, ECOWAS and the UN. 

On  9 July  the  PSC  decided:  (i)  to  end  the  current  CSDP  SSR  mission;  (ii)  to  invite  the 
Council Secretariat and the Commission to make proposals for bolstering the EU presence in 
Guinea-Bissau with expertise in the field of SSR. 

By  letter  dated  27 July  the  HR  informed  the  Prime  Minister  of  the  definitive  closure  of  the 
existing  CSDP  mission  on  30  September  2010,  of  the  impossibility  of  deploying  a  new 
mission in the current political climate and of the need to review the EU's overall engagement 
in Guinea-Bissau through an enhanced political dialogue between both parties. 

3. Commission proposal 

The Commission considers that the mutiny of 1 April 2010 and the appointment of one of its 
main instigators as Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces has substantially changed the political 
and  security  environment  in  Guinea-Bissau  and  is  in  itself  a  violation  of  Guinea-Bissau's 
commitments  to  human  rights  and  the  rule  of  law,  which  are  essential  elements  of  the 
Cotonou Agreement. 

Article 96(2) of the ACP-EC Partnership Agreement signed in Cotonou on 23 June 2000 and 
revised  in  Ouagadougou  on  22  June  2010  refers  to  the  essential  elements  on  which  the 
partnership is based, which are set out in Article 9. Democratic principles, the rule of law and 
human  rights  underpin  the  domestic  and  international  policies  of  the  parties  and  constitute 
essential elements of the Agreement. In the light of these principles, and given the conditions 
in  which  a  military  mutiny  took  place  in  Guinea-Bissau  on  1 April  2010,  the  Commission 
finds that there has been a particularly serious and clear violation of these essential principles 
and deems the situation to be a case of special urgency within the meaning of Article 96(2)(b) 
of the Agreement. It therefore considers it necessary to open consultations with the authorities 
in power in Guinea-Bissau in order to examine possible solutions to the  crisis which would 
re-establish  democratic  order.  These  consultations  will  be  conducted  in  accordance  with 
Article 96 of the revised Cotonou Agreement and their main aim will be to discuss a list of 
undertakings with the authorities, including: 

–  an end to the illegal detention of Vice Admiral Zamora Induta and others arrested during 

the events of 1 April; 

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–  the  opening  and  conclusion  of  fully  independent  investigations  into  the  events  that  took 

place between 1 March 2009 and 1 April 2010; 

–  the  appointment  of  persons  of  integrity  not  implicated  in  acts  of  violence  and 

unconstitutional conduct to lead Guinea-Bissau's armed forces; 

–  the acceptance by the authorities of any experts' mission and civil and military support that 
may  be  proposed  by  ECOWAS/the  CPLP  and/or  other  partners  to  supervise  and  support 
the reform of the security sector and protect political staff; 

–  adoption, enactment and publication of the SSR legislative package; 

–  adoption by the government of an operational programme to implement the SSR package; 

–  any  other  undertaking  likely  to  improve  the  country's  democratic  governance  and 

security-sector reform. 

Such dialogue will give the authorities in Guinea-Bissau an opportunity to take steps to end 
the crisis and enable the EU to judge whether and how it could, on the basis of this dialogue, 
support initiatives directed at compliance with the principles of the Cotonou Agreement. 

The  Commission  therefore  proposes  that  the  Council  invite  Guinea-Bissau  to  hold 
consultations  under  Article  96  of  the  revised  Cotonou  Agreement  in  accordance  with  the 
attached draft letter.  

Pending  the  outcome  of  these  consultations,  the  Commission  will  adopt  precautionary 
measures in respect of development cooperation operations under way in Guinea-Bissau, with 
the  exception  of  payments  for  contracts  already  under  way,  humanitarian  measures  or 
measures  that  directly  benefit  the  local  population,  regional  projects  and  projects  to  combat 
transnational  crime,  and  preparatory  measures  for  the  implementation  of  future  projects,  as 
long as the specific conditions of the relevant instruments and agreements are adhered to. 

In  accordance  with  consolidated  practice,  and  given  the  particular  circumstances  of 
Guinea-Bissau,  the  African  Union,  ECOWAS  and  the  CPLP  will  be  invited  to  attend  these 
consultations. 

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ANNEX 

Draft letter 

President of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, 

Prime Minister of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, 

Sirs, 

Since  the  mutiny  of  1 April  2010  the  European  Union  has  on  several  occasions  expressed 
concern  about  the  flouting  of  the  democratic  order  by  senior  officers  and  the  violation  of 
human  rights  in  Guinea-Bissau.  It  has  asked  your  authorities  to  take  steps  to  re-establish 
constitutional  order.  Despite  the  EU's  representations  to  your  country's  authorities  on 
19 April 2010  and  the  joint  mission  (Commission,  Council,  Spain)  sent  in  May  2010,  a 
number  of  factors  seem  to  indicate  that  unfortunately  your  country  is  not  moving  in  that 
direction.  This  situation  -  in  a  context  of  increasing  drug  trafficking  -  is  a  source  of  major 
concern for the EU. 

In her statement of 5 July 2010 the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and 
Security Policy and Vice-President of the Commission reacted strongly to the appointment of 
General Indjai as Chief of Staff and reiterated her deep concern about the illegal detention of 
Vice Admiral Zamora, calling on your authorities to end his detention. 

In  her  letter  of  27  July  2010  the  High  Representative/Vice-President  informed  you  that  the 
current EU mission to support security-sector reform would come to an end on 30 September 
2010, that it was impossible to deploy a new mission in the current political climate and that 
the EU's overall engagement in Guinea-Bissau would have to be reviewed on the basis of an 
enhanced political dialogue. 

In application of Article 96(2)(a) of the revised Cotonou Agreement and in view of the serious 
and manifest violation of the essential elements referred to in Article 9 of that Agreement, we 
have  the  honour,  on  behalf  of  the  European  Union  and  its  Member  States,  to  invite  your 
country to hold consultations in order, as provided for in the Agreement, to jointly study the 
situation  in  a  comprehensive  and  constructive  manner,  and  if  possible  remedy  it.  The  main 
aim  of  these  consultations  will  be  to  discuss  a  list  of  undertakings  on  human  rights  and  the 
rule of law with the authorities, including: 

–  an end to the illegal detention of Vice Admiral Zamora Induta and others arrested during 

the events of 1 April; 

–  the  opening  and  conclusion  of  fully  independent  investigations  into  the  events  that  took 

place between 1 March 2009 and 1 April 2010; 

–  the  appointment  of  persons  of  integrity  not  involved  in  acts  of  violence  and 

unconstitutional conduct to lead Guinea-Bissau's armed forces; 

–  the acceptance by the authorities of any experts' mission and civil and military support that 
may  be  proposed  by  ECOWAS/the  CPLP  and/or  other  partners  to  supervise  and  support 
the reform of the security sector and protect political staff; 

–  the adoption, enactment and publication of the SSR legislative package; 

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–  the  adoption  by  the  government  of  an  operational  programme  to  implement  the 

SSR package; 

–  any  other  undertaking  likely  to  improve  the  country's  democratic  governance  and 

security-sector reform. 

These  discussions  should  enable  Guinea-Bissau  to  take  appropriate  measures  to  remedy  the 
present situation. We suggest that these consultations take place within 30 days of receipt of 
this  letter  at  the  premises  of  the  Council  of  the  European  Union  in  Brussels.  As  these 
consultations should embrace various aspects of governance, including legislative and judicial 
issues,  it  would  be  desirable  if  senior  members  of  the  government  attended.  The  African 
Union, ECOWAS and the CPLP will be invited to attend these consultations. 

Pending  the  outcome  of  these  consultations,  the  Commission  will  adopt  precautionary 
measures in respect of development cooperation operations under way in Guinea-Bissau, with 
the  exception  of  payments  for  contracts  already  under  way,  humanitarian  measures  or 
measures  that  directly  benefit  the  local  population,  regional  projects  and  projects  to  combat 
transnational  crime,  and  preparatory  measures  for  the  implementation  of  future  projects,  as 
long  as  the  specific  conditions  of  the  relevant  instruments  and  financing  agreements  are 
adhered to. 

We have the honour to be, Sirs, yours faithfully, 

For the Commission 

Andris Piebalgs 

Copies: 

Ambassador of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau 
President of the ACP-EU Council of Ministers 
Chairman of the Committee of ACP Ambassadors   
General Secretariat of the ACP Group 

For the Council

Catherine Ashton

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