This is an e-mail I wrote, detailing a phone conversation I had with a friend in Bissau February 6, 1999.
Dear Friends of Guinea-Bissau,
The phone lines in Bissau, at least numbers starting with 20 and 21, seem to be working again.
I just spoke with a friend in Bissau - a very reliable Guinean historian.
He has remained in downtown Bissau throughout the war. He described the latest round of fighting in Bissau as by far the worst.
I asked him if the latest figures from the Red Cross - 100 civilian dead - sounded accurate. His voice trembling, he said the actual figure was definitely higher, more like 400, maybe more.
So many civilians had returned to Bissau since the peace accord was signed. When fighting began suddenly, they were trapped. The front lines were extremely dangerous to cross during the fighting as small arms battles raged all along the front, in addition to the heavy artillery. Currently there are no shots being fired, but many are still scared to cross due to landmines. Many people were killed by heavy artillery and collapsing buildings. The building from which my friend was speaking had one corner blown away. Fortunately no one in his building was injured in the incident.
From what he hears, many Junta and government-allied troops also died. Accurate figures are hard to come by, as moving around the city, especially to the front line area, is so dangerous. The Junta did advance during the latest round. Frontline is now Hotti Hotel, Bairro Ajuda, and Pefine.
In general he describes the situation as horrible.
There is no food, no medicine. He says people are dying from their wounds because medical supplies are not available. Some rice and baby cereal is being distributed currently by the Red Cross, but it is not nearly enough. People are terrified that fighting will resume.
I asked why more people were not leaving Bissau. There are many reasons:
The above mentioned danger in crossing the front-line.
The lack of money. Most people have absolutely no money. Taking a canoe to Bubaque is expensive. A car trip to Bafata is 5-6,000 CFA ($10) once one crosses the front line. Many people have already fled once or twice. They know that food and other resources have been depleted in those places of refuge. [The interior has been blockaded from much aid and commerce for months by Senegal.] Food and medicine are in such short supply, people fear they will die of starvation and sickness if they flee to the interior once again. At least in central Bissau, there is some distribution of rice by humanitarian organizations. People are weighing the risks of hiding out the fighting in makeshift bunkers with the hope of some food assistance, or undertaking a perilous and difficult journey to the safer interior where they and their children risk death from disease and starvation. Some people are staying - others are fleeing.
I asked my friend if it seemed that troops were preventing people from fleeing as some MISNA reports have suggested. He was unable to confirm or deny those reports.
He did confirm what we have been reading in the press - that the government has made it illegal for militants of political parties to cross the front lines. He says there are many opposition politicians trapped in central Bissau. Even non-politicians are afraid to move around much. He says the government is acting as if there is a siege.
So why did the latest round of fighting begin?
According to my friend, the reasons are clear. Nino was afraid to lose protection of the Senegalese. He refused to sign the 25 page agreement detailing the positioning of ECOMOG troops and the withdrawal of Senegalese and GC troops. My friend was concerned about saying too much about the politico-military situation. He worried that perhaps the government could listen in on our phone conversation.
The Junta claims the fighting began when Senegalese and French troops attempted to take the Junta position at Cumura. My friend says fighting did begin around Cumura, and the Junta allegations are correct as far as he knows.
Which brings us to the topic of French troops.
Yes, they are definitely in Bissau. My friend has seen scores of French troops in downtown Bissau. He does not know if they were also on the front lines as reported because he has not gone to the front lines lately due to the danger. I forgot to ask specifically about bombardments from French ships, but my friend was emphatic in indicating that French support of Senegalese troops and Nino has gone beyond the mere logistical.
He also says that more and more military supplies seemed to be arriving from Senegal. He was not surprised at all when I related that I had just read that Senegal was sending more troops to Bissau.
The people of Bissau feel hopeless. He says he and his colleagues feel civil society has done all it can to bring about peace. They no longer trust anybody, but especially Nino, the Senegalese, the French, and ECOWAS (CEDEAO). It is difficult right now for anyone to believe in the possibility of a lasting peace. There is much too much distrust for negotiations to work. He feels a resumption of fighting is inevitable.
Yes, there was a Junta ultimatum about the withdrawal of Senegalese troops within 48 hours. My friend isn't sure if fighting will resume that quickly. His prediction is more like sometime between now and February 14th.
Our conversation was short, the details few. My friend kept saying that after all of this was over, there would be so much more to tell.
His voice was sad and tired. These last few days had shaken him more than the nearly two months of heavy shelling in Bissau he had endured in June and July. As he spoke I could here the voices of men, women, and children in the background. 60 - 70 people were crowded into the relatively stable building in which my friend lives.
My friend, a historian who stuck it out in Bissau partly to experience history and be able to really know what happened during this war, has decided to leave. My friend's decision to leave Bissau made clear to me how terrible the situation has become.
Can we do anything to help? I asked my friend.
His answer was a bit reluctant - as if he wasn't sure it would make any difference. Pressure all sides to comply with the peace accord they signed in Abuja and the other agreements they have signed since then on how to implement the peace accord. Pressure the Senegalese and French to leave.
And then he asked, perplexed, why had the UN remained silent on this issue? I informed him that they had just released a statement urging all sides to comply with the peace accord.
What kind of pressure will make a difference? I ask. It seems easier for many official folks to accept French denials, at least publicly. Why are the voices of Guineans ignored? Why does Guinea-Bissau drop from the news as soon as a fragile (farcical by MISNA standards) cease-fire is signed?
What can we do?
After that phone conversation, I feel discouraged and drained.
Maybe later I will be angry and hopeful and ready to do something. Any ideas on what we can do to add some hope to the situation?
No Djunta Mon!
Corona
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