'It is not enough to rely on will power alone'

Interview / Luis Vaz Martins

A small country, with low human development indices, Guinea-Bissau has nevertheless made headlines for its role in the drug route from South America to Europe, to the point that the United Nations has described it as a Narco State. Such influences are not without consequences.

Comunidad Segura interviewed Luis Vaz Martins, president of the Guinea Bissau Human Rights League. The league denounces the torture and persecution of civilians and also offers support for victims of gender violence and social exclusion.

The presence of the Colombian drug cartel over the past few years, allied to political instability has put Guinea-Bissau on the verge of “erupting into new conflict, at any time” in the words of Luis Martins, a well known face in his home country, a man living under a number of death threats. The most pressing complaint of this human rights champion: “It is not enough to rely on will power alone. We need international support.”

How did you become involved with human rights in Guinea Bissau?

In 1994 I was detained by General João Bernardo Vieira’s political police (this was when Vieira was the president of the republic, prior to his assassination on March). This experience led me to decide to join the Guinea Bissau Human Rights League. I worked in the Quinara region, where I took up a number of activities defending human rights. I was eventually elected regional president of the league the following year, and, 10 years later in 2006 I was elected League president.

With what segments of society do you interact with routinely?

I deal with practically all sectors of society, my work takes me to people who suffer from discrimination and social exclusion. Among the issues I am confronted with daily are early, and forced marriage, female genital mutilation (of women and children), and there are the issues of torture, peace and democracy, rule of law, etc…

How do people reach you?

People contact me in all sorts of ways. Guinea-Bissau is a relatively small country with a little over 36 thousand square kilometers, and people usually know each other, everyone has access to our organization’s phone number.

You mentioned that the League supports victims of gender violence. Are there organizations or groups providing these women or families with support?

Support is usually given through catholic or evangelical missions, but they cannot respond to over 90% of the cases, there is just not much support for lack of resources.
As for torture, we are part of an organization that is renowned nationally and internationally, and we are easily informed of situations involving torture through family members of victims of torture and citizens who come forward.

What causes human rights abuses in Guinea-Bissau?

The democratic institutions in the republic are fragile, there is a high level of anarchy, and the state is completely absent. These are, roughly, the factors that have lead to a high level of corruption and impunity.

How could human rights abuses be stopped?

To stop human rights abuses it is vital that we change the approach and the way the international community cooperates with us. In other words, Guinea-Bissau must become apriority in the eyes of the international community. And this has not happened yet.

About the public security forces: Is there a single police body in Guinea Bissau? How do political changes affect the police corps?

Yes we have a single police organization, but it is affected by party politics of the governing party, sometimes with a high degree of tribalizaton of its commanders.

What sorts of training is there with respect to human rights?

I must say that what human rights training there is, is quite insufficient. We still have untrained officers at all levels. To be precise, we still have officers without basic schooling, unable to read and write, a reform of the defense and security sector are indispensable for peace.
Are there armed groups in action in Guinea Bissau? Militias, Paramilitary groups?
I cannot say that armed groups are exactly in action, but there are militias that have apparently been dismantled. It an evident and well known fact however, that there are points of marked instability at all levels.

Do criminal organizations have a role in human rights violations in Guinea-Bissau?

There are criminal organizations acting in collusion with elements of the armed forces and with a few political leaders. When their respective interests are threatened, they will resort to violence against civilians, although this does not happen frequently. This group is responsible for violating human rights because they foster corruption and impunity, damaging the authority of the state, and they exercise their power with dirty money from organized crime.

How does the international drug trade affect human rights issues in Guinea-Bissau?

My country has recently become a hub for a great part of the drugs coming from Latin America and destined for Europe. This strengthens drug traffickers in a setting of great political instability that I believe may explode at any moment into all out civil war. This instability has been instigated and manipulated by politicians who use tribal discourse to obtain votes. All this is part of an acute social and economic crisis, and the scene of frequent strikes.

This is an objective portrait of my country, and with that I need say no more on how much the drug traffickers affect the problems that already in existence in my country, and how they related directly or indirectly to human rights issues. It is natural and obvious that, when the very state is in a crisis, large scale drug trade will only be a factor to contribute to its demise.

How does the League see the traffic and sales of firearms in the nation?

It is a very serious matter, any criminal can bear guns. Actually there must be as many unregistered guns as there are guns in storage, it has become increasingly difficult to control guns since the civil war.

How does the law cover gun possession by civilians?

Civilians with no criminal offenses may obtain a license to bear firearms, they have to make an official request to obtain the license.

Is there an estimate of the number of guns in circulation in Guinea-Bissau? What happened to the weapons used in the previous conflicts?

The estimates are not reliable. On the other hand, in my view the civil war 10 years ago put army issue firearms in the untrained and careless hands. Guns are also sold illegally, since the State is unable to control such transactions. We are living a state of anarchy.

What can civil society do to protect human rights?

Civil society is already doing its part, even if with limited resources, both in terms of material resources and financial means. Under our present conditions it will not be possible to make any progress, because it is not enough to rely on will power alone. We need international support, and that has been lacking.