January 16, Bissau - The Council of Ministers of the Republic of Guinea Bissau today approved the citizenship of nine Afro Descendants, all of them Balanta descendants and members of the Balanta B’urassa History and Genealogy Society In America (BBHAGSIA). The President of BBHAGSIA, Siphiwe Baleka, initiated the citizenship process as part of the Decade of Return Initiative that was launched on February 23, 2021 in partnership with The Secretary of Tourism of Guinea Bissau. This sets a precedent for other members of the African Diaspora who, through African Ancestry DNA testing, can show that they are deescendants of people from Guinea Bissau.
The decision of the Council of Ministers comes after President Baleka raised the issue at the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights 83rd Ordinary Session in October. “It took three years, but Guinea Bissau has finally taken this important step in receiving her long lost children who were taken as prisoner of war and enslaved in the Americas,” said President Baleka. “Guinea Bissau has now made a concrete contribution at the start of the African Union’s themed year 2025, ‘Justice for African people and people of African Descent through reparations.’ This is the internal reparations, the healing, that African governments are responsible for.’”
The naturalization process was launched back in April of 2021. BBHAGSIA, in partnership with the Guinea Bissau State Secretary of Tourism and Arts, established a procedure that required the submission of a letter of application and copies of one’s passport, birth certificate, and African Ancestry test results. Said President Baleka, “We processed all the applications, translated them, provided copies, and had countless meetings with officials to reach this moment.” President Baleka had himself received citizenship on June 10, 2021, the first to do so as part of the Decade of Return, after which he met with President Umaro Mokhtar Sissoco Embaló and told him “more are coming.” Several groups then began returning in organized Decade of Return Tours that were organized by BBHAGSIA and Decade of Return partner Repat Bissau. About thirty people applied for citizenship.
According to Repat Bissau founder Daiana Taborda Gomes, “the reason why all didn't get the citizenship today it's because there is a ‘Numerus closus’ of 12 new citizens per Council to avoid confusing the people with ‘giving citizenship to too many people / selling citizenship/passports’. The rest of the 2nd batch will be given citizenship on next Councils but with no certainty of exactly when.”
Siphiwe Baleka and Robert Bumpers with President President Umaro Mokhtar Sissoco Embaló
In a letter to the former US Secretary of State Anthony J. Blinken, President Baleka reminded authorities that, “As a signatore to the Geneva convention, both the United States and Guinea Bissau have a legal obligation to negotiate the final release and voluntary repatriation of our members to our ancestral homeland. Of course, adequate resources for our return and integration must be included as reparations in any such negotiations.” President Baleka is now helping all members of the African Diaspora obtain citizenship as a chief advocate of their Right to Return and organizing the African Diaspora Assembly’s election for Provisional 6th Region representatives who will bring this issue to the African Union’s Economic, Social and Cultural Council (ECOSOCC) at a Rountable being organized by the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR).
“A lot of time, energy, money and work went into this. It could not have been possible without Decde of Return Coordinator Daiana Taborda Gomes who managed everything,” added Baleka.
BBHAGSIA President Siphiwe Baleka and Decade of Return Coordinator Daiana Taborda Gomes with Guine Bissau Minister of Foreign Affairs H.E. Carlos Pinto Pereira, during a meeting in December 2023 discussing the details of the proposed citizenship ceremony.
GOVERNMENT OF GUINEA BISSAU; MINISTRY OF TOURISM AND CRAFTS
MINISTER'S OFFICE AND GOVERNMENT SPEECH
Your Excellency
Eng Nuno Gomes Nabian
Prime Minister
BISSAU:
Bissau, June 25, 2021
Subject: Request of Acquisition of Nationality to African American Descendants of Guinea Bissau
No. Ref 2/ GMTA/2021
Excellency,
The Minister of Tourism and Crafts presents His best and respectful greetings to your Excellency, with the best wishes of success in the performance of your noble role for the development of Guinea-Bissau. We inform you that within the framework of our partnership, the members of the "Balanta Burassa History and Genealogy Society in the United States” began to return to their origins through an initiative called “Decade of Return” in which we have already received two groups of this audience. According to DNA tests, they discovered that they originate from Guinea-Bissau. As an initiative of capital importance for the tourist sector in Guinea Bissau, associated with the aforementioned factors, we hereby request the good offices of Your Excellency, in order to authorize the start of the process for the acquisition of nationality to these people, according to the attached documents. It should be noted that an inter-ministerial commission was created for this purpose, in which an element of the Ministry of Justice has guided this entire nationality application process. No more subject for the moment. Accept my distinct consideration.
Fernando Vaz, Minister of Tourism