Gorée Island, Dakar — We are happy to announce that an important meeting of political and social actors from Guinea-Bissau is taking place at the Gorée Institute from 18 to 20 December.

Among the participants are 20 representatives of the Transitional National Council, its vice-president, Mr. Lancuba Ndiaye, the Minister of Justice Mr. Carlos Vaiman, the chairman of the National Electoral Commission Mr. Higino Cardoso, Monseigneur José Câmnate the archbishop of Bissau, representatives of the UN office in Bissau, some military officers, and representatives of various civil society organisations in that country. We have also invited representatives of civil society groupings from the sub-region - Mali, Ghana, Nigeria, Guinea, Burkina Faso...

The three-day workshop, convened jointly by Gorée Institute and RADDHO (a collective of human rights organisations based in Dakar), is intended to help Guinea-Bissau escape the trap of fraternal conflicts afflicting too many countries in the region, by advocating and planning for the totally transparent political and economic management of the transitional period.

An original meeting grouping 16 of the 17 recognised political formations active in the country, civil society representatives and members of the central administration was scheduled to take place from 15 to 17 September this year. On the morning of September 14th a bloodless military coup brought down the regime of President Kumba Yala. We sensed that the coup was the expression of a real malaise in the country. We did not give up hope however; we believed that we should continue helping those who'd like to prevent Guinea-Bissau going down the spiral of violence and destruction against a backdrop of increasing poverty and distress. We have every reason to believe that the present encounter will go some way towards meeting those aims.

The groundwork was carefully prepared. Waly Ndiaye, the Programs Director at Gorée Institute, and Alioune Tine, Executive Secretary of RADDHO went on several missions to Bissau, consulting very broadly and putting together the shared objectives of a sustainable agenda. For us at Gorée Institute, the project conforms with the stated aims of our African Peace Academy program. APA is led by Professor Babacar Kanté, one of our Trustees.

The present workshop was made possible through financial support from the Ford Foundation. The Dutch Embassy in Dakar gave additional financial assistance. We are sincerely grateful to both of these agencies. The best support comes from instances who have no ulterior motives, but who would sincerely like to help prevent conflicts and move towards resolving some of the underlying causes.

More specifically, the project aims to bring about an alliance of civil society organisations throughout West Africa (which is why representatives from other countries in the region are present) that may advocate the economic and political assistance required by Guinea-Bissau to successfully complete the transitional phase, and thus lay the foundations for a viable democratic dispensation following upon the presidential election planned for about 16 months from now. In order to achieve these goals, we believe that civil society organisations need to engage with the political authorities of Guinea-Bissau. We believe this process ought also to strengthen civil society participation and interaction in the sub-region, and increase the democratic capacities of both non-governmental organisations and political formations. It is our hope and reasonable expectation that a plan of action based upon a wide collaboration will emerge from this workshop.

The next 18 months are going to be crucial for Guinea-Bissau. The stabilisation of the situation there, and a confirmation of transparent democratic processes, will be of tremendous benefit to the entire region. We need to show that it is possible to stop the regional contagion of war and civil war. We need to bring, from within African societies, the hope of solutions to our problems that are still too easily fuelled and exploited by rapacious and cynical forces.

We wish this workshop all success, and we want to assure the participants of our continuing concern, support, and solidarity in their quest for peace, dignity and development.

Breyten Breytenbach, Executive Director