Gabon lifts border restrictions three days after a military coup

On Saturday, the Gabonese military junta declared the borders would be reopened after having shut them down during the military coup on Wednesday that removed President Ali Bongo from power.

This event in Gabon adds to a growing list of coups across Africa, including Guinea, Chad, Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso, since 2020. These developments have raised concerns among international powers with strategic interests in the region.

On Wednesday, General Brice Oligui Nguema and a group of military officers took control, placing Bongo under house arrest and appointing Nguema as the new Head of State, marking the end of the Bongo family’s 56-year rule.

This coup, the eighth in West and Central Africa in three years, has sparked worries about a potential spread of military takeovers in the region, which have undone the democratic advancements of the past two decades.

While international pressure mounts on the coup leaders to reinstate civilian governance, they stated last night that they would not hastily proceed with holding elections.

Coup organizers are facing global calls to reinstate a civilian administration but stated last evening that they wouldn’t hasten the electoral process.

The decision to reopen land, sea, and air borders was explained by the junta as their concern for upholding the rule of law, maintaining positive relations with neighboring nations and the international community, as expressed by the army spokesperson on national television.

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Bongo assumed office in 2009, succeeding his late father Omar, who had ruled since 1967. Critics argue that the Bongo family made minimal efforts to distribute Gabon’s wealth derived from oil and mining.