Pretoria - The South African government says it deplores the military intervention in Guinea-Bissau and has called for the country to return to democracy.
The junta seized power in a coup last week, just before the second round of presidential elections was due to be held in the country on 29 April.
In a statement, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation said it was concerned that the Bissauan military was seeking to entrench the military dominance of the country through the imposition of a Transitional Government.
In this regards, it said would support all ECOWAS, AU and UN mandated efforts to reverse the coup d',tat.
"South Africa urges the Bissauan military to allow the civilian population to continue with the electoral process of electing a new President in accordance with the ruling of the Bissauan Supreme Court.
"South Africa also reminds the military authorities that the safety and security of the imprisoned civilian politicians remains their responsibility and that they will be held accountable for any human rights violations," said the department.
