Gambiaj.com – (BISSAU, Guinea-Bissau) – Guinea-Bissau’s military junta has given political parties ‘operating within 500 meters of state sovereignty institutions‘ seven working days to relocate their headquarters, according to a resolution published on Tuesday, 15 September 2026.
The directive, contained in Resolution No. 01/ACM/2026, compels all legally constituted political parties whose offices fall within the restricted radius to find new premises. The Command said the measure was necessary to enforce a provision of the country’s Political Parties Framework Law that has, until now, gone largely unheeded.
The Legal Basis
According to the resolution, Article 10(4) of Law No. 07/2026 of 24 February, the Political Parties Framework Law, prohibits party headquarters from operating within 500 meters of the seats of sovereign institutions, hospitals, diplomatic missions, and military installations.
The Military Command said enforcing this rule was essential “to preserve the climate of peace and security” currently prevailing in the country.
The resolution was adopted during an extraordinary session of the High Military Command for the Restoration of Security and Public Order on 14 September 2026. The Command describes itself in the document as the country’s “supreme body for political orientation” during the ongoing transition period.
Framed Within the Transition Process
The Command situated the decision within its broader mandate under the Political Transition Charter, which commits it to steering Guinea-Bissau’s transition in strict respect of constitutional and legal principles, restoring national security and the rule of law, and protecting citizens’ fundamental rights.
It also linked the timing to preparations for a return to constitutional normality, to be marked by general elections called under Presidential Decree No. 02/PRT/2026 of 21 January 2026, issued by the President of the Transition.
Guinea-Bissau has been under a transitional political arrangement following the upheaval that unseated the previous constitutional order, and the Command’s resolution frames the relocation order as part of the run-up to those polls.
What the junta Orders
The three-point resolution instructs all political parties whose headquarters fall within the prohibited zone to relocate within seven working days of being notified. It also tasks the Minister of Interior with carrying out all measures necessary to enforce the decision and orders that it take immediate effect from the date of signing.
The resolution was signed in Bissau on 15 September 2026 by the High Military Command.
The 500-meter exclusion rule is not new to Guinea-Bissau’s party law, but Tuesday’s resolution marks the first formal enforcement deadline attached to it since the law’s adoption in February.
Several of the country’s political parties have traditionally maintained offices in central Bissau, close to government buildings, military barracks, and diplomatic missions, a proximity the Military Command argues has become incompatible with the security posture it says is required during the transition.
It remains to be seen how the directive will affect party operations in the capital, and whether parties will be granted alternative sites or left to secure new premises independently, as the Minister of Interior begins implementation of the order.
Leave a Reply