Latest news with #Luanda
New York Times
5 hours ago
- Business
- New York Times
Dozens Killed During Protests Over Fuel Prices in Angola
The southern African nation of Angola was attempting to restore calm on Thursday after a hike in fuel prices led to violent street clashes between residents and security forces, leaving at least 29 dead and 250 injured, the government said. The upheaval started Monday when a taxi association launched a three-day strike to protest the government's decision in early July to increase gasoline prices by a third. The situation escalated over two days into vandalism and the burning of buildings and cars, with the police responding by firing on angry crowds, according to witnesses. This was the second time in two years that an increase in gas prices has led to deadly violence in Angola, the second-largest oil producer in sub-Saharan Africa. The abundance of the commodity and heavy government subsidies have long allowed Angolans to pay very low prices at the gas pump. But with the economy struggling, the government, straining under enormous debt, has rolled back the subsidies in recent years at the urging of the International Monetary Fund. 'Obviously, people were in the street about the prices,' said Romario Francisco, 18, who lives on the outskirts of the capital, Luanda. 'But it became something crazy since.' While order had been restored to Luanda and several other cities by Thursday, the mood remained tense in some places. Many police officers were still out patrolling roads. Charred vehicles sat on some streets. Shards of glass and goods were scattered on sidewalks and inside shops and other buildings that had been looted during the chaos. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
The Herald
14 hours ago
- Politics
- The Herald
Death toll from Angolan fuel hike protests rises to 22, says government
Angola's government said on Wednesday the death toll from violent protests against a fuel price hike has risen to 22 from the previous day's estimate of four. The unrest broke out on Monday when minibus taxi associations launched a three-day strike against a government decision to increase the price of diesel by one-third, part of efforts to curb costly subsidies and shore up public finances. Looting, vandalism and clashes with police started in the capital Luanda, then spread to other provinces. President Joao Lourenco's cabinet met on Wednesday and received an update on the security situation and police response. A presidency statement said there had been 22 deaths, 197 people injured and 1,214 arrests. Sixty-six shops and 25 vehicles had been vandalised, and some supermarkets and warehouses looted, the statement said.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Unrest over fuel price hike leaves at least 22 dead in Angola
The Angolan government on Wednesday said that at least 22 people died as an increase in fuel costs in the oil-rich southern African nation caused two days of violent unrest, leaving hundreds injured and over 1,200 people detained. Two days of unrest and looting in Angola during a protest against a fuel price hike claimed the lives of 22 people, the government said Wednesday, as a tense calm returned to the capital. Violence erupted on Monday, the first day of a strike called by taxi drivers to protest the July 1 increase in fuel costs in the oil-rich nation where millions live in poverty. It was some of the worst unrest in several years in the Portuguese-speaking southern African country, which has been governed by the MPLA party since 1975. Sporadic gunfire was heard across Luanda and several other cities on Monday and Tuesday as people looted shops and clashed with police. "We regret 22 deaths, including one police officer," Interior Minister Manuel Homem told reporters on the sidelines of a Council of Ministers meeting chaired by President Joao Lourenco. Read moreThousands take to streets of Angolan capital Luanda in anti-government protest Nearly 200 people were injured in the violence, he said, and more than 1,200 people had been arrested. People raided supermarkets and warehouses, making off with food and other supplies, and causing damage to 66 shops, Homem said. The streets of Luanda were tense and largely empty Wednesday, although there were some queues outside petrol stations and some shops, AFP reporters said. There was a heavy presence of security forces. Many shops remained closed, but public transport slowly resumed after a two-day standstill. With the protests having spread outside the capital, a statement after the ministers' meeting said vandalism and rioting had "triggered a climate of widespread insecurity". It said "elements with criminal intentions" had turned the demonstration into a "threat to security". Police in the southern city of Lubango confirmed separately that a police officer had shot and killed a 16-year-old on Tuesday. He was part of a group attempting to invade the local headquarters of the ruling MPLA party, a statement said. 'Deep insecurity' The strike was the latest in a series of protests this month after the price of fuel was hiked from 300 to 400 kwanzas ($0.33 to $0.43) a litre on July 1. The government's move to lower its heavy fuel subsidies reportedly followed International Monetary Fund calls for more public money to be spent on health and education. But it has angered many in the country of 36 million people, already under pressure from inflation of around 20 percent and an unemployment rate of nearly 30 percent. "The government seems to ignore its population," Luanda resident Daniel Pedro, 32, told AFP. "They say that youth is the future of tomorrow, yet today it is unemployed. I have a deep feeling of insecurity," the teacher said. Inflation and limited growth "are likely to keep poverty rates high, around 36 percent by 2026, underscoring the need for a stronger social safety net and more development spending", according to the World Bank. At a demonstration of around 2,000 people in Luanda on Saturday, protesters condemned the fuel price hike but also brandished signs denouncing MPLA "corruption" or discontent with Lourenco, who was re-elected for a second five-year term in 2022. There had been similar protests the two previous weekends. In a joint statement Wednesday, the opposition UNITA and Bloco Democratico parties said Angola was in a "severe economic and social crisis" that was a result of government policies "disconnected from the country's reality". Amnesty International and other rights groups have accused the police of using excessive force against protesters in Angola, which suffered through a 1975-2002 civil war and almost four decades of repression under former president Jose Eduardo dos Santos. (FRANCE 24 with AFP)
France 24
a day ago
- Politics
- France 24
Unrest over fuel price hike leaves at least 22 dead in Angola
Two days of unrest and looting in Angola during a protest against a fuel price hike claimed the lives of 22 people, the government said Wednesday, as a tense calm returned to the capital. Violence erupted on Monday, the first day of a strike called by taxi drivers to protest the July 1 increase in fuel costs in the oil-rich nation where millions live in poverty. It was some of the worst unrest in several years in the Portuguese -speaking southern African country, which has been governed by the MPLA party since 1975. Sporadic gunfire was heard across Luanda and several other cities on Monday and Tuesday as people looted shops and clashed with police. "We regret 22 deaths, including one police officer," Interior Minister Manuel Homem told reporters on the sidelines of a Council of Ministers meeting chaired by President Joao Lourenco. Nearly 200 people were injured in the violence, he said, and more than 1,200 people had been arrested. People raided supermarkets and warehouses, making off with food and other supplies, and causing damage to 66 shops, Homem said. The streets of Luanda were tense and largely empty Wednesday, although there were some queues outside petrol stations and some shops, AFP reporters said. There was a heavy presence of security forces. Many shops remained closed, but public transport slowly resumed after a two-day standstill. With the protests having spread outside the capital, a statement after the ministers' meeting said vandalism and rioting had "triggered a climate of widespread insecurity". It said "elements with criminal intentions" had turned the demonstration into a "threat to security". Police in the southern city of Lubango confirmed separately that a police officer had shot and killed a 16-year-old on Tuesday. He was part of a group attempting to invade the local headquarters of the ruling MPLA party, a statement said. 'Deep insecurity' The strike was the latest in a series of protests this month after the price of fuel was hiked from 300 to 400 kwanzas ($0.33 to $0.43) a litre on July 1. The government's move to lower its heavy fuel subsidies reportedly followed International Monetary Fund calls for more public money to be spent on health and education. But it has angered many in the country of 36 million people, already under pressure from inflation of around 20 percent and an unemployment rate of nearly 30 percent. "The government seems to ignore its population," Luanda resident Daniel Pedro, 32, told AFP. "They say that youth is the future of tomorrow, yet today it is unemployed. I have a deep feeling of insecurity," the teacher said. Inflation and limited growth "are likely to keep poverty rates high, around 36 percent by 2026, underscoring the need for a stronger social safety net and more development spending", according to the World Bank. At a demonstration of around 2,000 people in Luanda on Saturday, protesters condemned the fuel price hike but also brandished signs denouncing MPLA "corruption" or discontent with Lourenco, who was re-elected for a second five-year term in 2022. There had been similar protests the two previous weekends. In a joint statement Wednesday, the opposition UNITA and Bloco Democratico parties said Angola was in a "severe economic and social crisis" that was a result of government policies "disconnected from the country's reality". Amnesty International and other rights groups have accused the police of using excessive force against protesters in Angola, which suffered through a 1975-2002 civil war and almost four decades of repression under former president Jose Eduardo dos Santos.
Al Jazeera
a day ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
At least 22 killed at Angola fuel price hike protests, authorities say
At least 22 people were killed and 197 others were injured in violence that erupted during protests against a fuel price hike this week, Angola's government has said. The unrest broke out on Monday when minibus taxi associations launched a three-day strike against a government decision to increase the price of diesel by one-third, part of efforts to curb costly subsidies and shore up public finances. Looting, vandalism and clashes with police started in the capital, Luanda, and then spread to six other provinces. Sporadic gunfire was heard across Luanda and several other cities on Monday and Tuesday as people looted shops and clashed with police. President Joao Lourenco's cabinet met on Wednesday and received an update on the security situation and police response. A presidency statement said there had been 22 deaths, 197 people injured and 1,214 arrests. Sixty-six shops and 25 vehicles had been vandalised, and some supermarkets and warehouses looted, the statement said. The statement added that the army was deployed to restore order as the riots 'triggered a climate of widespread insecurity'. Interior Minister Manuel Homem told reporters that a police officer was among the 22 people killed. The streets of Luanda were tense and largely empty on Wednesday, although there were some queues outside petrol stations and some shops. There was a heavy presence of security forces. Many shops remained closed, but public transport slowly resumed after a two-day standstill. When the latest wave of protests began two weeks ago, Human Rights Watch accused the police of excessive force against what was a largely peaceful demonstration. Police unnecessarily fired tear gas and rubber bullets and assaulted protesters in those demonstrations, the US-based rights group said. Angola has been gradually removing fuel subsidies since 2023, when a petrol price hike also triggered deadly protests, encouraged by the International Monetary Fund among others. Authorities have often been accused of clamping down harshly on protests to silence dissent in Angola, an oil-rich nation on Africa's Atlantic coast where the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola party has been in power for 50 years – since independence from Portugal in 1975. In a joint statement Wednesday, the opposition UNITA and Bloco Democratico parties said Angola was in a 'severe economic and social crisis' that was a result of government policies 'disconnected from the country's reality'. Subsidies amounted to as much as 4 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) last year, according to the country's finance minister.
