DW News published this video item, entitled “Coup attempt in Guinea-Bissau: What role did the drug trade play? | DW News” – below is their description.
Earlier this week, there was an attempted coup in Guinea-Bissau – a coastal state in West Africa. It’s one of the continent’s smallest countries but it’s become a giant in the drugs trade. The cocaine comes from Latin America to Guinea-Bissau and is then moved onwards to Europe.
Partly because of the narcotics trade, the country suffers from endemic corruption and is highly unstable.
There have been four military coups and a number of attempted coups since its independence from Portugal in 1974. This week’s attempt to overthrow President Umaro Sissoco Embalo is just the latest.
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A coup d’état or just coup is the removal and seizure of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal, unconstitutional seizure of power by a political faction, the military, or a dictator.
Guinea is a country in West Africa, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Formerly known as French Guinea (French: Guinée française), the modern country is sometimes referred to as Guinea-Conakry to distinguish it from other countries with “Guinea” in the name.
It’s known for the Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve, in the southeast. The reserve protects a forested mountain range rich in native plants and animals, including chimpanzees and the viviparous toad. On the coast, the capital city, Conakry, is home to the modern Grand Mosque and the National Museum.
Guinea-Bissau is a tropical country on West Africa’s Atlantic coast that’s known for national parks and wildlife. The forested, sparsely populated Bijagós archipelago is a protected biosphere reserve. Its main island, Bubaque, forms part of the Orango Islands National Park, a habitat for saltwater hippos. On the mainland, the capital, Bissau, is a port with Portuguese colonial buildings in its old city center.
Only about 2% of the population speaks Portuguese, the official language, as a first language, and 33% speak it as a second language. Creole is the national language.
Portugal is a southern European country on the Iberian Peninsula, bordering Spain. Its location on the Atlantic Ocean has influenced many aspects of its culture: salt cod and grilled sardines are national dishes, the Algarve’s beaches are a major destination and much of the nation’s architecture dates to the 1500s–1800s, when Portugal had a powerful maritime empire.