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Ansumane Mané (1940 – 30 November 2000) was a Guinea-Bissau soldier who led a 1998 uprising against the government of President João Bernardo Vieira, which caused a brief, but bloody Civil War.
Mané fought in the war of independence from Portugal alongside Vieira, and he backed Vieira when the latter seized power in a 1980 coup. In early 1998, he was suspended as Chief of Staff of the armed forces for allegedly smuggling arms to Casamance separatist rebels in Senegal. In a letter published in early April 1998, he in turn made the same accusation against the Minister of Defense, Samba Lamine Mané, and other officers; he also alleged that Vieira had permitted the arms smuggling and claimed that he was suspended as Chief of Staff in connection with "shady plan to mount a coup d'etat".
Mané subsequently led a rebellion against Vieira beginning in June 1998. A peace agreement in November 1998 provided for a national unity government and new elections.
After Vieira was deposed on 7 May 1999 in a renewed outbreak of fighting, Mané became temporary head of state (official title: Chairman of the Supreme Command of the Military Junta) until 14 May when National People's Assembly speaker Malam Bacai Sanhá was installed as acting President.
In November 2000, elected president Kumba Ialá attempted to promote a number of senior military officers; Mané objected to the promotions and declared himself head of the armed forces. Fighting subsequently broke out, and Mané was killed during a shootout with government forces a week later, on 30 November 2000.
He was an ally of Mohamed Lamine Sanha.
References
- Andrea E. Ostheimer, "The Structural Crisis in Guinea-Bissau's Political System", African Security Review, Vol. 10, No. 4, 2001.
- "GUINEA-BISSAU: Minister accused of arming Senegalese rebels", IRIN-West Africa Daily Update 181, 6 April 1998.
- "GUINEA-BISSAU: Focus on new source of instability", IRIN, 23 November 2000.
- "GUINEA-BISSAU: Former military strongman shot dead, reports say", IRIN, 1 December 2000.
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