Association
Activist released but proceedings remain
On 23rd July 2026, the Luanda Court of Appeal ordered the release of activist Serrote José de Oliveira, also known as General Nila, after it had ruled that the legal requirements for his detention were not met.
General Nila, an activist, bookseller and leader of Unidade Nacional para Total Revolução de Angola (UNTRA), a movement that advocates for political and civic rights, was first shot in the leg by an officer and then detained on 28th July 2025, during the July 2025 fuel price hike protests, when he was livestreaming on TikTok urging people to stay home. While in detention, the activist was denied access to medical treatment for the gunshot injuries sustained in his leg. He was never formally charged. According to Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Amnesty International, documents from the Prosecutor’s Office and a court decision rejecting the activist’s habaes corpus application, show he was suspected of disrupting public services under article 4 of the 2024 Law on Crimes of Vandalism of Public Goods and Services (Law 13/24), which criminalises destroying public property or disrupting or frustrating the provision of a public service.
While General Nila was released, proceedings against him remain. He is also subjected to restrictions such as the obligation to report to authorities every 15 days and is prohibited from leaving the country.
Imprisoned HRD’s appeal rejected
On 24th July 2026, the Luanda Court of Appeal rejected the appeal of activist Osvaldo Caholo, who was sentenced in April 2026 to a prison sentence of two years and six months for public instigation to commit a crime. On 29th July 2026, his lawyers submitted an extraordinary appeal of unconstitutionality to the Constitutional Court.
As reported previously on the Monitor, Kaholo was arbitrarily detained on 19th July 2025 and accused of rebellion, public instigation to commit a crime and public vindication of a crime, reportedly linked to live broadcasts he made on social media during the July 2025 fuel hike protests.
Three HRDs briefly detained
On 12th May 2026, police arrested three human rights defenders (HRDs) in Luanda. According to Amnesty International, Jaime Domingos Chimbamba Mussinda, Edgar Cláudio and João Luanda were documenting violations against women informal sellers, also known as zungueiras, in Benfica, a neighbourhood in Luanda, when an unidentified man seized Mussinda’s phone and assaulted Edgar Cláudio. Police officers, who were at the scene, arrested the three HRDs and brought them to ex-Controlo do Benfica police station, where they were detained for five hours. They were reportedly subjected to abusive questioning and psychological pressure. The HRDs were released the same day without charge. The videos and materials recorded that day were deleted from the HRDs’ phones.
The three HRDs work for human rights organisation Movimento Cívico Mudei, and were documenting violations against the women informal sellers after they received reports about abuses during official inspection operations, including seizure of the women’s goods without notices or documentation.
Burglary at offices of student association
On 29th June 2026, unidentified individuals robbed and vandalised the headquarters of the Movimento dos Estudantes Angolanos (MEA - Movement of Angolan students) in Cazenga, Luanda, causing significant damage. The perpetrators stole two computers, a printer, three official stamps and several documents from the organisation.
Activists attacked
According to CSO Friends of Angola, activists Francisco Teixeira, leader of Movimento Social para a Mudança (MSM - Social Movement for Change) and Tavares Gabriel were reportedly attacked on 20th June 2026 in Malanje province. Dozens of young people, armed with bottles, stones and sticks reportedly attacked the vehicle, injuring Gabriel and causing significant damage to their vehicle, including shattered windows. Teixeiro believes the attackers were linked to the ruling party MPLA.
The activists were in Malanje to participate in a public debate, which was ultimately cancelled, allegedly due to intimidation of the owner of the venue where the event was to take place.
Vikolôngwa Mbútwa community members convicted over resistance against land appropriation
According to a statement by Amnesty International, on 6th May 2026, the Lubango Court, in Huíla province, convicted five members of the Vikolôngwa Mbútwa community - Eduardo Bambi Lissimo Quessongo, Sapalo António Randy and Paulo Mbuta Capaia , Francisca Tuahuma and Cecília Dumbo - to prison sentences of over three years, in their absence and without their lawyer present. While all defendants were acquitted of criminal association, four of the five defendants were convicted of damage to public property, under the controversial 2024 Law on Crimes of Vandalism of Public Goods and Services and aggravated resistance.
The five, along with two others, were detained on 23rd November 2024 during a violent police intervention in a land appropriation case by a local land owner. The land in question contains properties and dwellings belonging to the community and used by the community members for herding and farming. That day, community members attempted to resist illegal excavation work by a local landowner around the disputed area, including by attempting to peacefully protest the work by occupying land to prevent excavation. The community members reportedly notified police of this activity. However, when police forces arrived, they protected the excavator, and reportedly used tear gas, rubber bullets and physical violence to disperse the protesting community members and arrested the seven community members.
The five community members remained free pending the appeal of their conviction. The two other community members, Kapamba Tchahima Kapamba and Muetuiapula Francisco, were acquitted or had the proceedings against them suspended respectively.
Em 2025, o jornalista angolano Daniel Frederico fugiu do seu país natal por receio de ser preso por difamação devido a um artigo que não escreveu. Os receios de Frederico concretizaram-se quando lhe foi aplicada uma pena de 14 meses, a 2 de outubro de 2026. A Comissão Africana dos Direitos Humanos e dos Povos @achpr_cadhp apelou aos Estados para que ponham fim à difamação criminal, optando por sanções civis. Mas o jornalista Teixeira Cândido afirmou que as autoridades angolanas não estão interessadas em reformas: “Querem manter o poder de intimidar a imprensa.” Leia mais em: https://t.co/nQczOGJw6n
— CPJ Africa (@CPJAfrica) October 8, 2026
Expression
Use of criminal defamation to intimidate journalists
On 2nd October 2026, the Luanda District Court sentenced editor for the Reporter Angola news site, Daniel Frederico, also known as Jonas Pensador, in absentia to a prison sentence of 14 months for slander and defamation and mandated the journalist to pay compensation of 7 million kwanzas (approximately 7,580 USD) and 120,000 kwanzas (approximately 130 USD) in court fees. The case goes back to 2022, when Frederico met with prosecutor Fernando Pedro Machado to hear his side on corruption allegations made by another media outlet, Angola Online, against the prosecutor.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Frederico went into exile for fear of being convicted in this case, for an article he did not author. Additionally, the journalist and his website administrator were made aware they are under investigation for defamation over an article dating back to October 2021, criticising Transport Minister Ricardo Abreu.
CPJ further said that Frederico is one of 38 Angolan journalists they have interviewed who have been investigated for defamation since 2015, most of them over reporting on alleged misconduct by police or government officials. Collectively, they have faced more than 200 different criminal defamation investigations. Of those, one served a prison sentence, six were acquitted or had their cases thrown out in court, and 31 have ongoing cases, often taking years.
Journalist and former head of the Angolan Journalists Syndicate, Texeira Cândido, commented to CPJ:
This is a tool used by those in power or in high-level positions to ensure their names are off limits. [It can] be used any time that is convenient for authorities to call in journalists and intimidate and harass them.
- Journalist and former head of the Angolan Journalists Syndicate, Texeira Cândido
In a recent case documented by CPJ, on 18th December 2025, José Costa, also known as José Samakaka, editor of Radio Cuquema, was charged with defamation over his reports on the lack of electricity and sanitation in Cuito, following a complaint by the municipal administrator of Cuito.
Journalists detained, intimidated
On 25th September 2026, officers of the Criminal Investigation Service (SIC) detained journalist and director of Factos Diários online outlet, Isidro Kangandjo and his camera operator Victor Capeio. According to CPJ, the two were on their way to interview the deputy administrator Joelson Joaquim da Costa Gomes about allegations made in a Factos Diários video, published on 24th September, alleging the deputy administrator had illegally acquired land. The journalist told CPJ that he had asked Gomes multiple times for comments prior to the publication, to no avail, and that they were contacted the following day with an invitation to interview Gomes. According to local media outlets, Kangandjo was released after 24 hours.
Other cases of intimidation against journalists documented by CPJ in the past months include:
- On 23rd July 2026, founder of Chela Press newspaper, Francisco Rasgado, was questioned by the General Prosecutor’s office in Benguela, reportedly over an article the media outlet published alleging mismanagement of donations for people hit by floods in the southern region.
- Editor of online site Na Lente do Crime, Matias Miguel, was summoned for a hearing by the Criminal Investigation Service (SIC), reportedly over a 2025 publication alleging that SIC officers were involved in the killing of a motorcycle taxi driver.
Law on False Information on the Internet adopted
On 21st May 2026, Angola’s National Assembly adopted the Law against False Information on the Internet, which entered into force after it was published in the Official Gazette on 4th August 2026 (Law 6/26). The law, heavily criticised by civil society, opposition and rights advocates for its restrictions on freedom of expression, establishes the legal framework for preventive measures and accountability for the production and dissemination of false information on the internet and prescribes transparency obligations for social media platforms, including monthly reports to the Electronic Communications Regulatory Authority. The legislation explicitly prohibits fake accounts, undisclosed automated actors, coordinated artificial dissemination networks, and unidentified sponsored content.
The law introduces administrative and criminal penalties for producing or disseminating content deemed false. Administrative fines are set for minor, serious and “very serious” infractions, with maximum fines of 20 to 200 minimum wages for individuals and 40 to 400 minimum wages for legal entities. Criminal sanctions are foreseen in article 29, for anyone who intentionally produces or disseminates false information on the internet, referring to the Penal Code (articles 211 defamation; 214 slander; 234 state secrets violations). According to media reports, penalties range from one to three years for spreading false information, from three to eight years when content incites hatred or harms the reputation of individuals or institutions, and up to ten years if the information threatens electoral processes or state security.
Peaceful Assembly
Constitutional Court rules certain provisions of Vandalism Law unconstitutional
On 4th December 2025, the Constitutional Court issued Decision 1056/2025, declaring certain provisions of the 2024 Law on Crimes of Vandalism of Public Property (Law 13/24) unconstitutional. In its ruling, the judges found that several provisions of the law violate constitutional principles, especially those of proportionality, criminal legality, human dignity, and equality of sanctions in addition to violating fundamental rights such as the right to strike and to protest. The contested provisions criminalise certain acts of disruption of public services, with sanctions, including long prison sentences, considered excessive, vague and disproportionate.
As reported previously on the Monitor, the law was adopted by the National Assembly on 18th July 2024 and provides for a prison term up to 25 years for people who participate in protests resulting in vandalism and service disruption.
On 21st May 2026, the National Assembly adopted, in general terms, a new anti-vandalism law to replace the 2024 law. According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), concerns remain that the sanctions in the proposed bill remain disproportionate.
Police use force to prevent opposition rally in Uíge
On 8th August 2026, in Uíge, police officers blocked members and supporters of main opposition party National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) from gathering in a political rally and used force to disperse participants. National Police reportedly surrounded the provincial UNITA headquarters and dispersed participants to prevent a political event to mark the 92nd anniversary of the party’s founder, Jonas Savimbi. Police claims it intervened as UNITA did not comply with the instructions of local authorities to change the location of its political rally. However, UNITA reportedly only received the letter the day before the political rally was to take place, and the location proposed by local authorities was deemed unsanitary.
According to the Secretary General of UNITA’s youth organisation JURA, Nelito Ekuikui, 31 people were injured as a result of the police intervention.
Teachers, justice operators, airline maintenance technicians strike
On 21st September 2026, the National Union of Teachers (Sinprof) embarked on a national strike over the alleged failure by authorities to comply with an agreement signed in January 2026. The first phase of the strike was intended to run until 15th October 2026. In response to the strike, considered by Sinprof as a measure of intimidation, Minister of Education, Erika Aires, issued a circular instructing public schools directors to record the absence of teachers during the strike, with a view to administrative control and processing salaries.
The National Union of Teachers suspended the strike on 25th September 2026, following an agreement between the union and the Ministry of Education on a few demands, in particular on career progression for teachers and alignment of career grades.
Several other strikes took place in Angola in September and October 2026, including by court officials, maintenance technicians at the national airline TAAG and a looming public sector strike planned for 2nd November 2026.