The African Union, AU, has placed Guinea-Bissau under immediate suspension in response to the recent coup that unfolded in the West African nation.
The announcement was made on Friday by AU Commission chair Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, who confirmed that the organisation had reached a swift decision to suspend Guinea-Bissau from its bodies with immediate effect.
Regional and continental election observer groups, including missions from the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, and the West African Elders Forum, strongly criticised the stoppage of election announcements and the subsequent military intervention that disrupted the political process.
In a joint communiqué released on Wednesday, November 26, the observer bodies condemned the developments, calling them a blatant attempt to disrupt the democratic process in Guinea-Bissau.
The statement carried the signatures of Filipe Nyusi, Head of the African Union Election Observation Mission; Issifu Kamara, leading the ECOWAS Election Observation Mission; and Goodluck Jonathan, Head of the West African Elders Forum.
The observer groups urged both the AU and ECOWAS to take firm measures to reinstate democratic governance. They also declared that Guinea-Bissau would remain suspended from all ECOWAS decision-making structures until lawful constitutional order is fully restored.
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