Rafael Morais
Africa-Press – Angola. In a country where the Constitution is read but not applied, where rights are proclaimed but not respected, demonstrating peacefully in Angola is like playing Russian roulette with the police.
The most tragic and at the same time ironic thing is that the same soldiers who carry batons and weapons against the people are experiencing the same dramas that the protesters denounce.
The last peaceful protest, on Saturday, July 12th, had a very clear target: the rise in fuel prices, taxi fares, and, by extension, the ever-increasing cost of the basic food basket, which, for many, has become a luxury item. Ordinary citizens protest because they can’t take it anymore. And who will stifle this legitimate outcry? The police officer who also lives in the outskirts, who takes the infamous cupapata to get to work. Yes, that makeshift and dangerous tricycle that became public transportation due to the lack of public transportation. The same one that, under Angolan law, is prohibited from carrying passengers. A true walking paradox. Kk is a scoundrel, as the humorist journalist from MFM radio says.
Isn’t it laughable enough to keep from crying? The soldiers, who also go hungry, who also feel the burden of the cost of living, are there to keep the people quiet. And all this because someone sitting in an upholstered chair, with air conditioning and a family well-established abroad, ordered it. This “superior order” has diplomatic passports, houses abroad, and even dogs that eat better than many Angolans. And the people? Well, let the people fight—or rather, let them keep quiet.
The most frightening thing is the silence of the institutions that should act. The Attorney General’s Office, silent. The Constitutional Court, mute. The National Assembly, absolute silence, as if everyone were on permanent vacation on Mars. With this level of institutional apathy, people begin to doubt the real existence of these entities. Are they merely holograms of power?
It’s time for everyone to reconsider. It’s not just a matter of solidarity, it’s a matter of collective survival. Because, in the end, when the cupapata capsizes, it takes everyone with it: protesters, police, the hope of the country and the family.
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