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Landmines of democracy: civil society and the legacy of authoritarian rules in Angola

dc.contributor.authorVidal, Nuno
dc.date.accessioned2014-03-27T17:18:19Z
dc.date.available2014-03-27T17:18:19Z
dc.date.issued2006
dc.description.abstractAngola has largely been under authoritarian rule from the colonial era to the present. The nationalist war against the Portuguese (1961-1975) promised freedom, but independence in 1975 marked the beginning of a civil war with major foreign involvement right from the start. With few interruptions, the war lasted for almost 27 years - to February 2002, when the rebel leader of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), Jonas Savimbi, was killed in action. From 1975 to 1977, there was a period of relative freedom in Angola. However, in 1977 an aborted coup resulted in a major purge with massive killings all over the country. An authoritarian and repressive one-party socialist regime was put in place by the People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA). A feared apparatus of State security was placed in charge of political repression. Non-state media were closed and the right to association was limited to mass organisations of the MPLA. The judicial system became 'militarised', juxtaposing civilian and military courts with the ability to impose heavy penalties, including the death penalty (mainly for political and security crimes). The judiciary was politically dependent and operated under the direct influence of the party and ultimately of the President. A culture of fear, intimidation and repression became entrenched. The regime in place and the priority given to defence and internal security did not allow any room for civil society to emerge and impeded the development of any kind of 'democratic institutions' or any sense of transparency and accountability . Violations of human rights by both sides of the conflict became regular as well as impunity for perpetrators of these crimes.por
dc.description.sponsorshipOSISA, MIZA, NIZA, Hivospor
dc.identifier.isbn9916-62-13-8
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10400.2/3022
dc.language.isoengpor
dc.peerreviewedyespor
dc.publisherMedia Institute of Southern Africa (MISA)por
dc.subjectAngolapor
dc.subjectDemocratisationpor
dc.titleLandmines of democracy: civil society and the legacy of authoritarian rules in Angolapor
dc.typebook part
dspace.entity.typePublication
oaire.citation.conferencePlaceJohannesburgpor
oaire.citation.titleOutside the ballot box:: preconditions for elections in Southern Africa 2004/5por
person.familyNameVidal
person.givenNameNuno
person.identifier.ciencia-id6C13-E8D5-976B
person.identifier.orcid0000-0002-5921-6311
rcaap.rightsrestrictedAccesspor
rcaap.typebookPartpor
relation.isAuthorOfPublicationca4ebbf5-36d1-4737-8eff-6d970b5185fb
relation.isAuthorOfPublication.latestForDiscoveryca4ebbf5-36d1-4737-8eff-6d970b5185fb

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