Human rights in Angola

Human rights in Angola are poor with widespread documentation of arbitrary arrest and detention and torture. In order to improve Angolas image, they hired Samuels International Associates Inc to improve Angolas image for 2.5$ million.

Constitutional Rights

The national Constitution, ratified in 1992, does guarantee most of the legal, social and political rights that are outlined in many other developed democratic nations, such as;

• Fundamental Principles Article 4 - Mandates a multiparty parliamentary democracy with the right of citizens to vote, hold office and create political organizations [1].

• Fundamental Principles Article 8 - Freedom of religion, including a separation between Church and State [2].

• Fundamental Rights and Duties Article 18 - Equal rights under the law; irrespective of a citizen's race, color, ethnic or national group, sex, religion, political opinion, level of education or social status [3].

• Fundamental Rights and Duties Article 20 - The government shall respect human rights and human dignity and the right of citizens to develop their own personality and to have their good name and reputation protected by the law.

• Fundamental Rights and Duties Article 22 - Prohibits capital punishment.

• Fundamental Rights and Duties Article 23 - Prohibits torture, cruel or inhumane treatment.

• Fundamental Rights and Duties Article 24 - Environmental protection, clear air and conservation.

• Fundamental Rights and Duties Article 25 - Freedom of movement.

• Fundamental Rights and Duties Article 32 - Freedom of expression and assembly.

• Fundamental Rights and Duties Article 33 - Right to form trade unions.

• Fundamental Rights and Duties Article 35 - Freedom of the press.

• Fundamental Rights and Duties Articles 37 - 44 Stipulate the procedural due process rights of citizens.

• Fundamental Rights and Duties Article 45 - Freedom of religion.

The Constitution also spells out the rules and regulations for a mixed economic system that respects private property, free trade and free enterprise while also addressing concerns of social justice.

Constitutional rights and limited by laws designed to protect national security, public order, safety or health. Children and the family are also given special Constitutional protection.

Courts

Enforcement of Constitutional rights falls to the Constitutional Courts [4].

Women and Children

The Constitutional stipulate equal rights for women and special protections for children. The Government's Family and Promotion of Women is charged with improving the lives of women and children in Angola [5].

Juveniles convicted of even petty crimes are often placed in the same facilities as adults, with the special detention centers for juveniles overcrowded [6].

United Nations Reports

Leila Zerrougui, an Algerian lawyer, and a United Nations working group interviewed more than 400 detainees for ten days. Zerrougui met detainees who "showed visible signs of torture," a tactic used to obtain confessions from suspects at two prisons in Luanda; Cacuaco Prison and Viana Prison. The working group concluded the Angolan government has imprisoned civilians in Cabinda military prison and Viana Immigration Detention Centre in Cabinda province, denying them access to a judge or legal representation, although the government denied the working group access to such facilities.

See also

• LGBT rights in Angola
• Human trafficking in Angola

External links

• Amnesty International's 2011 Annual Report on Angola