Statement at the 59th Session of the UN Human Rights Council
Item 6: Adoption of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) report of Angola
Joint oral statement on behalf of CIVICUS and Amnesty International
Mr. President,
Amnesty International and CIVICUS welcome the Angolan government’s acceptance of the recommendation to take additional measures to ensure the respect and protection of the rights to freedom of expression, freedom of association and of peaceful assembly, and to investigate and prosecute the cases of unlawful use of force and other human rights violations during protests.1
This is, indeed, in line with article 47 of the Angolan Constitution2 and article 1 of the country’s 1991 law on the right of assembly and demonstrations.3 However, Angola’s support for these recommendations, including committing to address unnecessary or excessive use of force by law enforcement officers and to carry out prompt, thorough, impartial and independent investigations into cases of arbitrary arrests and detention, stands at odds with the reality on the ground.
Crackdowns on protests, excessive force against protesters, in some cases resulting in killings or severe injuries, and arbitrary arrests and detention of protesters, and bystanders to protests, remain unabated.4
We urge the government to immediately end the unlawful use of force by law enforcement officers, especially in the context of protests, end arbitrary dispersal of peaceful assemblies, stop detaining individuals before protests to thwart demonstrations, and fully respect and facilitate the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly, expression and association.
In line with its acceptance of the recommendation 150.92,5 the Angolan government should effectively carry out prompt, impartial and independent investigations into all allegations of use of unnecessary or excessive use of force and human rights violations committed by law enforcement officers, especially between November 2020 and December 2023,6 and to end impunity for these violations. As of November 2024, Amnesty has not heard of any investigations into allegations of torture and other ill-treatment inflicted on protesters during this period.
Finally, we encourage Angola to implement supported recommendations as soon as possible and to submit a mid-term report on progress towards their implementation under an Item 6 General Debate.
Thank you.
1 Constitution of the Republic of Angola, 2010
2 A/HRC/59/11/Add.1, Recommendations 150.75, 150. 76, 150.90 and 150.92.
3 Diário da República, Lei sobre o direito de reunião e das manifestações, 11 May 1991.
4 Amnesty International, Angola: Broken promises: protesters caught between tear gas, bullet, and batons in Angola, (Index: AFR 12/8756/2024), 27 November 2024, https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/afr12/8756/2024/en/
5 A/HRC/59/11/Add.1, Recommendation 150.92.
6 Amnesty International, Angola: Broken promises: protesters caught between tear gas, bullet, and batons in Angola, (Index: AFR 12/8756/2024), 27 November 2024, https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/afr12/8756/2024/en/
