Bissau: o factor étnico

Ever since the national liberation struggle, the majority of armed forces personnel have been from the Balanta group. This was due to two main factors. Firstly, the Balanta represented the majority ethnic group in the country, that is approximately 30% of the total population. Secondly, with their non-hierarchical, horizontal power structure, and the fact that they were restricted to the lowest level of the colonial society, they had joined the liberation movement in large numbers, especially in rural areas. Today, some people in certain political circles deliberately take advantage of this phenomenon of an ethnic imbalance and military influence to wield political power. The police service is made up of several units. There are different police units in charge of public order, traffic and borders. The police service also includes a rapid intervention force. All these units are under the supervision of the ministry of interior, which also has responsibility for the state security services in charge of civilian intelligence, the secret service and fire fighters. The criminal investigations department is under the authority of the department of the public prosecutor. According to article 278 of the constitution, the mission of the police is to ‘defend democratic legality, and guarantee the internal security and rights of citizens and stateless persons’. There are about 1,500 men in the police service. In the transitional government, the head of the national police department was an army officer, the minister of interior was a reserve army general, and several other positions were held by active officers, reserve officers and former combatants. Members of the police service are mainly former soldiers or young recruits who receive training in the service. Many women now form part of the police service. The limited means available to the police to carry out operations in the field, coupled with the low salaries, tend to encourage the bribery of police officers, thus jeopardising the interests of the state and its citizens. Since 1998 there has not been any form of budget control. Former combatants and other reservists are under the responsibility of the state secretariat in charge of national freedom fighters, which is in charge of identifying, controlling and monitoring payments of pensions and various benefits. There are three categories of former combatants: those who fought in the national liberation movement, former soldiers who served in the Portuguese colonial army, and those who fought in the 1998-1999 civil war, who are currently being demobilised. The different disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) programmes have been hampered by the mismanagement of this complex exercise. This has led to many demands and even in some instances to people taking up arms again, or to former combatants being reintegrated into the armed forces. The crisis in the security sector, as well as the various armed conflicts that have affected the country since independence, can also be attributed to the high number of veterans who remain a part of the active forces, and to the precarious living Guinea-Bissau 155 conditions of many retired veterans. In spite of the advanced age of the majority of them, former combatants still constitute a reserve of experienced fighters that can be easily mobilised. They are convinced that, as liberators of their country, they are justified in taking up arms to settle their differences with the state. ADELINO HANDEM