The organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) accused the Angolan authorities on Thursday of forced evictions and demolitions in southern Luanda, demanding an end to this practice and that the government guarantee compensation to the owners of hundreds of demolished houses.
The human rights non-governmental organization (NGO) revealed that Angolan security forces invaded areas of the capital, in the municipality of Viana, on February 27, demolishing “more than 300 houses, leaving hundreds homeless.” “.
“Neighbors said that those who refused to leave the houses or gathered to demonstrate peacefully against the actions of the security forces were beaten and arrested. Local authorities claimed that the houses had been built illegally,” HRW said in a statement. a statement.
The reports were also confirmed by two journalists trying to cover the forced evictions and accused police of beating four men trying to protect their property and detaining dozens of people.
“The Angolan authorities must immediately stop all eviction and demolition operations in Luanda that violate international legal standards,” said Ashwanee Budoo-Scholtz, deputy director for Africa at HRW.
The journalists alleged that police and soldiers denied media access to the area.
“Officials responsible for illegal evictions and excessive use of force against residents must be held accountable,” Ashwanee Budoo-Scholtz demanded, adding that the owners of demolished houses must be immediately compensated and relocated.
The human rights NGO asked the Angolan police for an explanation, but a spokesman said he was not aware of any eviction and demolition operations in Viana.
The Viana Municipal Administration office issued, on the same day, a press release confirming the operation in which it alleges that the residents illegally built, and “against the warnings of the authorities”, houses in an area reserved for the construction of a power plant for the Zango area.
Forced evictions have been a persistent problem in urban Luanda since the end of the civil war in 2002.
“The Angolan government must stop the scandalous and long-standing practice of forced evictions,” stressed the deputy director for Africa at HRW, who called for “all future eviction operations to be planned and carried out in a legal and orderly manner and to respect people’s rights to housing, livelihoods and security”.
Source: TSF
