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GUINEA-BISSAU |
THE
EARLY HISTORY OF GUINEA-BISSAU
The
early history of Guinea-Bissau is obscure, but some of the major ethnic
groups of the country, such as the Balante and Pepel, were apparently
established there by the 12th century. The area was visited in 1446 by
Nuno Tristão, a Portuguese slave trader, and became an important slave
center. A Portuguese post was established at Bissau in 1687, but the
Portuguese claim was disputed by the French and the British, and in 1792
the latter briefly had a settlement at Bolama. In 1879 the region was
constituted a Portuguese colony, and border disputes with the French
were settled by treaty in 1886. Not until 1915, however, were the
Portuguese able to exercise effective control over the country.
The
status of Guinea-Bissau was changed from colony to overseas province in
1952; soon afterward an African nationalist movement arose, led by the
African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde (PAIGC).
After sporadic violence, the party launched a war of independence in the
early 1960s. By September 1973 the rebels proclaimed an independent
republic and sought international recognition. On September 10, 1974,
Portugal formally granted Guinea-Bissau independence.
Guinea-Bissau's
new government, under the presidency of PAIGC leader Luis de Almeida
Cabral, established a monopoly over foreign trade and moved toward a
socialist state by authorizing nationalization of all landholdings. In
1980 President Cabral was overthrown in a coup led by Prime Minister João
Bernardo Vieira. Elected to a five-year term in 1984, President Vieira
and his military-dominated government survived a coup attempt in 1985.
Vieira was reelected in 1989 and again in 1994.
In
mid-1998 an army rebellion erupted following Vieira's dismissal of the
army chief of staff, General Ansumane Mane. Fighting between rebel
troops and soldiers loyal to the government raged off and on through May
1999, when rebel forces, led by Mane, successfully overthrew Vieira.
Mane turned power over to PAIGC statesman Malan Bacai Sanha, the speaker
of the National People's Assembly, who was declared acting president.
Kumba Yalá of the Party of Social Renovation defeated Sanha in
presidential elections, held in two rounds, in November 1999 and January
2000.
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