Key facts
- Guinea-Bissau military leaders will block former President Umaro Sissoco Embalo from returning to the country.
- Embalo was ousted in a military coup last November and has been in exile since.
- A December presidential election is scheduled.
- A government statement cited national security concerns and the need to preserve public order for blocking Embalo's return.
- A new constitution approved in August expanded presidential powers and changed electoral rules.
Military leaders in Guinea-Bissau have decided to block the return of former President Umaro Sissoco Embalo, citing national security concerns and the need to preserve public order. Embalo, who was ousted in a military coup last November, had planned to return to the West African nation for a presidential election scheduled for December.
The coup last year occurred shortly before the announcement of results from presidential and legislative elections. The senior army officers who carried out the coup suspended the electoral process and installed Major-General Horta Inta-a as transitional president. Embalo has been in exile since then.
A government statement published on Thursday indicated that the necessary security conditions were not yet in place to guarantee Embalo's return to national territory. In August, Guinea-Bissau approved a new constitution via referendum, which expanded presidential powers and altered electoral rules. One provision requires presidential candidates to have lived continuously in the country for the preceding five years, though it was unclear how this might affect Embalo's candidacy.