There are signs of President Joao Lourenco’s government attempts to restrict democratic rights, suppress the opposition and reshape the nation in its favor.
Angola was a socialist state battling US-backed rebels in the Cold War, but the southern African nation has transitioned into an oil-rich democracy and works increasingly closely with the United States.
According to human rights organizations, citizens who criticize Angolan government policy are subjected to discrimination, suppression and even persecution.
Thus, four young activists were imprisoned for allegedly insulting the president and have reportedly endured abuse during their incarceration.
Nine months ago, Adolfo Campos, Tanaice Neutro, Gildo das Ruas and Abraao Pensador were sentenced to prison terms of two years and five months for sedition and insulting the president after they participated in a demonstration to show solidarity with motorcycle taxi drivers who were protesting high fuel prices.
There have been concerns about arbitrary arrests in Angola since Lourenco began his second term in office, in September 2022. Two Angolan human rights organizations, FORDU and OMUNGA, have publicly repudiated the “arbitrary persecution and detention” by the national police against activists.
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Article 47 of Angola’s constitution allows citizens to protest without authorization, provided that they inform the authorities in advance. According to HRW, the government has repeatedly blocked and dispersed peaceful anti-government protests, often with excessive force and arbitrary arrests.
At the end of June, 10 young people were arrested on the sidelines of a demonstration for the release of political prisoners, according to Amnesty International.
It is becoming increasingly clear that the government is stepping up pressure on NGOs that document and denounce such or similar cases of political persecution.
The Angolan National Assembly in May 2023 approved a new statute for nongovernmental organizations.
Many NGOs feel threatened by this legislative proposal and have been protesting against it for months. There is a risk that uncomfortable voices from NGOs will be silenced.
According to the legislators, NGOs will be required to submit detailed reports on their financial sources. A government-controlled agency will be tasked to oversee NGO finances to “prevent money laundering and terrorism financing. Mere suspicions could lead to the suspension of the organizations’ activities.
The draft bill is currently under review in a specialty committee within the National Assembly. NGOs fear that it is only a matter of time before it receives approval and signed into law by the president.
It seems that the Angolan government acts all too often in the interests of the ruling party and not in the interests of the population.
Lourenco’s government is accused of trying to place all state institutions at the service of his ruling People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) — including the education system, the media and all state-owned enterprises.
The MPLA wants to reshape Angloa’s administrative units in their favor.
One notable change is the proposed division of certain provinces. According to recent legislation, Angola will have 20 provinces starting next year, which is two more than it currently has. The province of Luanda is among those prioritized for division.
This proposal as a strategy by the state party to influence the municipal elections that are to be held in 2025 in their favor. The division of Luanda is only to prevent UNITA from winning the next regional elections.
In the 2022 parliamentary elections, the MPLA clearly lost to the opposition in the Greater Luanda area. UNITA led in Luanda province with over 62% of the votes.
Most votes for the opposition came from the districts of Cacuaco and Viana, two suburbs of the capital.
According to the MPLA’s new plan, the two districts, along with the municipalities of Icolo, Bengo and Quicama, are to be separated from Luanda province to form the new province of Icolo-Bengo.
Thus, the UNITA strongholds — namely the districts of Cacuaco and Viana are to be separated from the important province of Luanda, which also includes the capital. This is intended to mitigate a possible MPLA defeat in the next municipal elections.
President Lourenco and his MPLA are trying to make life difficult for critics and opponents while simultaneously pushing their own interests within Angola.
In the beginning of 2024, the National Assembly gave preliminary (general) approval to a new national security law. The law was a proposal from the President. The new law would concentrate control over security services in the presidency. It also expands the powers of the security services to conduct searches without warrants and to set up surveillance equipment. The government would also be empowered to take action against online media that it construes as endangering national security, and to fully shut down the Internet in Angola. Angola’s National Security Bill will expose journalists to further harassment and intimidation by authorities and legalize telecommunications shutdowns at the whim of security agencies.
