Guinea-Bissau junta urges guard to disarm

Guinea-Bissau junta leader General Horta N'Tam has urged members of the presidential guard loyal to exiled former president Umaro Sissoco Embalo to hand over their weapons voluntarily.

Speaking at a ceremony in Bissau on Wednesday, N'Tam said authorities had created a commission to recover weapons and military equipment issued to members of the guard. He warned that anyone still keeping weapons should return them immediately or face consequences if they refused.

The army seized power days after a presidential vote last November, overthrowing Embalo and suspending the electoral process. The junta led by N'Tam has set December 6 for presidential and legislative elections intended to restore civilian rule.

Embalo told AFP in late September that he planned to return and stand in the elections. The junta said last week that security conditions were not in place for his return, an announcement that fuelled reports of discontent within the presidential guard.

Several guard members were later disarmed and placed under supervision at military headquarters. N'Tam said the unit had been poorly organised under the previous administration but said none of its members had been expelled from the armed forces.

Many observers suspected Embalo of orchestrating the November 26 coup to halt an election process he appeared to be losing. A diplomat based in Bissau said N'Tam appeared determined to remain a central political figure while creating distance from Embalo, and questioned whether the December elections would take place as scheduled.

Guinea-Bissau has experienced five coups and numerous attempted coups since independence from Portugal in 1974.