Freedom in the World 2004 - Angola

Political Rights: 6
Civil Liberties: 5
Status: Not Free
Population: 1,310,000
GNI/Capita: $500
Life Expectancy: 45
Religious Groups: Indigenous beliefs (47 percent), Roman Catholic (38 percent), Protestant (15 percent)
Ethnic Groups: Ovimbundu (37 percent), Kimbundu (25 percent), Bakongo (13 percent), Mestico (2 percent), European (1 percent), other (22 percent)
Capital: Luanda

Overview

Angola continued to sustain peace in 2003, one year after the death of rebel leader Jonas Savimbi ended three decades of civil war. Demobilization of former combatants is going well overall, and a 2002 ceasefire has held between Savimbi's National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) and the ruling Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA). With peace, the government can no longer use the war as an excuse for lack of delivery on collapsed social services. Political debate shows signs of rejuvenation, and civic groups are increasingly urging the government to become more accountable for violations of human rights, slow political reform, and nontransparency in oil transactions. The government in 2003 signaled a desire to hold a dialogue with separatists in the oil enclave of Cabinda, the scene of low-scale guerrilla activity for decades.

Angola was at war continually since independence from Portugal in 1975. During the Cold War, the United States and South Africa backed UNITA, while the former Soviet Union and Cuba supported the Marxist MPLA government. A 1991 peace accord that led to presidential and legislative elections in 1992 disintegrated when Savimbi lost the presidency and fighting resumed. A subsequent peace agreement in 1994 also fell apart. The UN Security Council voted in February 1999 to end the UN peacekeeping mission in Angola following the collapse of the peace process and the shooting down of two UN planes.

The United Nations is playing a leading role in the current humanitarian effort and is shifting its focus from emergency relief to sustainable development. Nonetheless, some two million Angolans depend on humanitarian assistance for survival. UNITA appears committed to ending hostilities for good; about 80,000 former rebel soldiers have been demobilized, with 5,000 of them integrated into the armed forces and the police. However, the MPLA and UNITA disagree about how rapidly political and economic reforms can occur, and both sides will need to demonstrate a commitment to rebuilding the country rather than simply dividing up Angola's diamond and oil riches. The peace process would have a better chance if the economic and political elite included groups other than the two main parties.

The conflict claimed 500,000 to 2 million lives, and sent another estimated 500,000 Angolans to seek refuge in neighboring countries. About half of the 4.1 million internally displaced people and one-fourth of refugees have returned to their places of origin, mostly spontaneously. However, about 1 million of the remaining internally displaced live outside former transit centers and thus lack official assistance from the government or United Nations. These displaced people require shelter, food, clothes, health care, education, and often identification documents. Others, especially those who prefer to live in the capital Luanda, have been coerced into resettling outside the place of their choice. Women are vulnerable to sexual abuse by former combatants and do not generally receive demobilization benefits. Former child soldiers – estimates vary from 7,000 to 11,000 – also remain outside the demobilization process. The United Nations expects the return and resettlement process to continue until 2006.

The process has been slowed, too, by untold millions of land mines and by a war-ruined infrastructure, which make large tracts of the country inaccessible to humanitarian aid. At least 70,000 people have lost limbs to mines over the years. It will take years to rebuild roads, bridges, and communications networks.

Angola is Africa's second largest oil producer. Petroleum accounts for up to 90 percent of government revenues, but corruption and war have prevented the average Angolan from benefiting from the wealth. An estimated $1 billion in oil revenue goes missing every year.The country's rich diamond areas have been carved up between MPLA and UNITA elites. Subsistence agriculture supports 85 percent of the population. The government has failed to make significant progress in reforms recommended by the IMF.

Prospects for an eventual negotiated settlement in Cabinda were enhanced by a July meeting between a Angolan authorities and Ranque Franque, a leader of the separatist Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda (FLEC).

Political Rights and Civil Liberties

Angolans freely elected their own representatives for the only time in the September 1992 UN-supervised presidential and legislative elections. International observers pronounced the vote generally free and fair despite some irregularities. However, Savimbi rejected his defeat to President Jose Eduardo dos Santos in the first round of presidential voting and resumed the guerrilla war.

The two factions of the former rebel group UNITA merged into one political party in 2002. Eighty-seven other opposition groups have formed a coalition but have negligible weight. The National Assembly has little real power, but members engage in heated debates, and legislation proposed by the opposition is sometimes passed. The MPLA dominates the 220-member National Assembly; UNITA holds 70 seats. Presidential elections planned for 1997 have been put off until at least 2005. Dos Santos said in October that a new constitution must be drawn up as a first step. No date has been set for parliamentary or local elections.

Although political debate is lively, UNITA claims that MPLA supporters have harassed or attacked its members and offices in the provinces. The ruling party denies this is an official policy. The MPLA has not fostered the participation of civil society in reconstruction. Corruption and patronage are endemic in the government.

Despite constitutional guarantees of freedom of expression, journalists are often subjected to self-censorship or intimidation by the government. However, severe repression of the media by UNITA and the MPLA eased following the 2002 ceasefire. There are several independent weeklies and radio stations. The only television station is state-owned, although the government announced plans in 2003 to open up the sector to privately owned broadcasters. Defamation of the president or his representatives is a criminal offense, punishable by imprisonment or fines. There is no truth defense to defamation charges. Internet access is limited to a small elite, as most citizens lack computers or even electricity.

Religious freedom is widely respected. The educational system barely functions, although plans are under way to build new schools and train teachers. More than 50 percent of rural children do not attend school. Only 3 out of 10 rural women older than 15 years of age can read and write.

The constitution guarantees freedom of assembly, but in practice authorities do not always grant opposition groups the right to hold demonstrations. Several dozen civic organizations form a small but increasingly vocal group that is demanding greater government accountability in human rights and faster economic and political reform. Churches especially have grown more outspoken with peace. However, civil society organizations require greater coherence to be effective.

The right to strike and form unions is provided by the constitution, but the MPLA dominates the labor movement and only a few independent unions exist. The lack of a viable economy has hindered labor activity.

The government has yet to establish a Constitutional Court, as mandated by the constitution. Local courts rule on civil matters and petty crime in some areas, but an overall lack of training and infrastructure inhibit judicial proceedings, which are also heavily influenced by the government. Only 23 of the 168 municipal courts were operational in mid-2003. Prisoners are commonly detained for long periods in lifethreatening conditions while awaiting trial, and overcrowding and unsanitary conditions prevail. Often prisoners have to rely on relatives or outsiders for food.

Severe human rights abuses, including torture, abduction, rape, sexual slavery, and extrajudicial execution, were perpetrated during the war by government and UNITA security forces. Such actions have subsided somewhat across the country, although nongovernmental organizations report human rights violations are continuing in Cabinda. Moreover, the New York-based Human Rights Watch has warned that the government is not doing enough to ensure the safety of displaced Angolans returning home. The rights group said Angolans faced harassment and restriction of movement, and were being forced to relocate where they might risk political persecution and human rights abuses. Police and security forces are rarely held accountable for shakedowns, muggings, rapes, or beatings.

Angolans have the right to own property. However, the government still dominates the economy and the war discouraged the development of a private sector. Prospects look better with peace, and the government in February passed legislation aimed at facilitating private investment.

Women occupy cabinet positions and National Assembly seats. Nevertheless, despite legal protections, de facto discrimination against women remains strong, particularly in rural areas. Spousal abuse is common, and the war contributed to rape and sexual slavery. Women are often the victims of land mines as they forage for food and firewood.