OAU urges Mane to respect constitution

OAU Secretary General Salim Ahmed Salim has urged General Ansumane Mane, leader of the former junta in Guinea-Bissau, “to show due respect for the constitution” of the country, PANA reported. In a press release issued on Thursday, Salim urged Mane to “work toward a negotiated solution by entering into dialogue with the government of President Kumba Yala, which has already expressed its readiness to open dialogue with him”. Salim said the current political tension in the country dismayed the OAU, and warned “that this new development, which evokes memories of the violence and chaos of 1998 and 1999, could lead to a crisis that may undermine the process of consolidating peace and democracy in Guinea Bissau.” Presidential elections in November 1999 and January 2000 ushered in a civilian government in Guinea-Bissau. The country had been ruled by a military-civilian regime following an 11-month civil war that ended with Mane overthrowing President Joao Bernardo Vieira in May of last year.