Africa-Press – Angola. The UNITA leader made a statement this Monday, the 28th, about the taxi drivers’ strike and the chaos that has taken place in Luanda, especially in the outskirts, with cars set on fire, supermarkets looted and the uncontrolled crowd being contained by the National Police who have been dispersing the people with bullets.
Adalberto Costa Júnior calls for accountability from the protesters, but also from the police forces and the government, which, he says, “loses its moral authority when it ignores the calls of its people and responds with arrogance and repression.”
The right to demonstrate, ACJ reminds us, “is a constitutional principle that must be respected and protected”, but “involves mutual responsibility”.
“On the one hand, citizens who demonstrate must do so within the limits of the law, on the other, those who have the duty to guarantee order cannot act in defense of partisan interests, but rather act as impartial guarantors of public order and the rights of all,” says the president of UNITA.
“The police cannot, under any circumstances, use live ammunition against protesters, especially when there are various non-lethal means of crowd control. Violent repression is not the answer in a state that claims to be democratic,” he emphasizes.
The ACJ considers it “critical that protest organizers be vigilant and well-organized to prevent instrumentalized groups from undermining the legitimacy of their actions.” He cites the example of supermarket invasions, which, he argues, “do not reflect the essence of the peaceful and conscious protests that have been taking place in Angola, but rather indicate possible sabotage attempts by these instrumentalized groups.”
“We are experiencing a serious social and economic crisis. But the deeper problem is the lack of dialogue, consultation, and listening. A government that ignores the demands of its people and responds with arrogance and repression loses its moral authority,” declares the leader of the largest opposition party, calling for accountability from all involved.
“But the government, above all, must assume its responsibilities. Peace and democracy are not built with forced silence, much less with repression; but with justice, dialogue, and mutual respect,” he emphasizes.
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