Since its independence from Portugal in 1975, Angola has had three constitutions. The first came into force in 1975 as an "interim" measure; the second was approved in a 1992 referendum, and the third one was instituted in 2010.
Angola was a colony of Portugal for more than 400 years, beginning the 15th century. Three principal parties, MPLA, National Front for the Liberation of Angola the FNLA and the National Union for Total Independence of Angola the UNITA, fought for independence. After many years of conflict that weakened all of the insurgent parties, Angola gained independence on 11 November 1975, after the Carnation Revolution overthrew the Marcelo Caetano regime in Portugal. A fight for dominance broke out immediately between the three nationalist movements, resulting in a civil war soon after independence. The civil war continued with UNITA fighting against the ruling MPLA. Both parties received support and backing from other countries.
Constitutional revisions in 1976 and 1980 more clearly established a revolutionary socialist, one-party state as a national goal.
In 1992, the 1975 constitution was completely rewritten to allow a multiparty democratic republic, in the form of a presidential system, starting with multiparty elections and direct election of the president.
The 2010 amendment of the Constitution named the president of Angola as head of state, head of the executive branch and commander-in-chief of the Angolan armed forces. The new constitution abolished direct election of the president; under its provisions, the person heading the list of candidates of the majority party in the assembly automatically becomes president, and the second person on the list, vice-president. This constitution, still in effect, limits the president to two five-year terms.
Background
Jonas Savimbi, the leader of UNITA, the major opposition party
Angola was a colony of Portugal for more than 400 years from the 15th century. Demands for independence picked up momentum during the early 1950s. The principal protagonists included the MPLA, founded in 1956, the National Front for the Liberation of Angola (FNLA), which appeared in 1961, and the UNITA, founded in 1966. After many years of conflict that weakened all of the insurgent parties, Angola gained independence on 11 November 1975, after the Carnation Revolution in Portugal overthrew the Portuguese regime headed by Marcelo Caetano.[1]
A fight for dominance broke out immediately between the three nationalist movements. The events prompted a mass exodus of Portuguese citizens, creating up to 300,000 destitute Portuguese refugees—the retornados.[1] The new Portuguese government attempted to mediate an understanding between the three competing movements. They initially agreed to terms, but the agreement dissolved mere days later. This failure to agree, which resulted in a devastating civil war that lasted several decades, claimed millions of lives and producing many refugees before it ended in 2002.[2]
During the civil war, the MPLA gained control of Luanda—the capital—and much of the rest of the country. With the support of the United States, Zaire and South Africa intervened militarily in favour of the FNLA and UNITA, with the intention of taking Luanda before the declaration of independence.[3] In response, Cuba intervened in favour of the MPLA, and the country became a flash point for the Cold War. With Cuban support, the MPLA held Luanda and declared independence on 11 November 1975, with Agostinho Neto becoming the first president, although the civil war continued.[4]
1975 constitution
Independent Angola's first constitution dedicated the new republic to eliminating the vestiges of Portuguese colonialism. The Constitution provided numerous guarantees of individual freedom and prohibited discrimination based on color, race, ethnic identity, sex, place of birth, religion, level of education, and economic or social status. The Constitution also promised freedom of expression and assembly.[5]
Constitutional revisions in 1976 and 1980 more clearly established a revolutionary socialist, one-party state the national goal. As revised, the Constitution vested sovereignty in the Angolan people, guaranteed through the representation of the party, and promised to implement "people's power." It also emphasized the preeminence of the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) as a policy-making body and made the government subordinate to it, responsible for implementing party policy. Economic development was to be founded on socialist models of cooperative ownership.[5]
Other constitutional guarantees included health care, access to education, and state assistance in childhood, motherhood, disability, and old age. In return for these sweeping guarantees, each individual was responsible for participating in the nation's military defense, voting in official elections, serving in public office if appointed or elected, working—considered a duty—and generally aiding in the socialist transformation.[5]
Despite its strong socialist tone, the Constitution guaranteed the protection of private property and private business activity within limits set by the state. National economic goals were to develop agriculture and industry, establish just social relations in all sectors of production, foster the growth of the public sector and cooperatives, and implement a system of graduated direct taxation. Social goals included combating illiteracy, promoting the development of education and a national culture, and enforcing strict separation of church and state, with official respect for all religions.[5]
The Constitution also outlined Angola's defense policy, which explicitly prohibited foreign military bases on Angolan soil or affiliation with any foreign military organization. It institutionalized the People's Armed Forces for the Liberation of Angola (FAPLA) as the nation's army and assigned it responsibility for defense and national reconstruction. Military conscription applied to both men and women over the age of eighteen.[5]
1992 constitution
José Eduardo dos Santos won the 1980 and 1986 elections and became the first elected president of the country. The civil war continued, with UNITA still fighting the MPLA, and both parties still receiving international support. There was a ceasefire agreement in 1989 with the leader of UNITA, Jonas Savimbi, but it collapsed soon afterwards. As a part of its peace efforts, the MPLA amended its platform of Marxism-Leninism and shifted its policies to a more socialist than communist worldview. In May 1991, dos Santos and UNITA's Savimbi signed a multiparty democracy agreement in Lisbon.[6]
In 1992 the 1975 constitution was completely rewritten, and amended on March 6, 1991, and August 26, 1992, to allow a multi-party democratic republic, in the form of a presidential system, to start with multiparty elections and direct election of the president.[7][8]
On 21 January 2010 the National Assembly of Angola approved a new constitution to replace the interim constitution that had been in effect since independence in 1975.[9][10] The Assembly approved this constitution in its entirety, by a 186–0 vote. Two assembly members abstained.[9] The new constitution was drafted by a committee of 60 parliamentarians, advised by 19 experts and a public consultation, and contained 244 articles.[9]
The vote in the national assembly was boycotted by the opposition (UNITA) party, which claimed that the constitutional process had been flawed and undermined democracy.[10] The ruling party, MPLA, had an 81% majority on the constitution committee, equal to their parliamentary majority.[11] The constitution needed the approval of President José Eduardo dos Santos and of the Constitutional Court but both steps were seen as formalities.[10]
"The ruling MPLA says the constitution will increase democracy, but by abolishing the presidential ballot and concentrating all the power on the president it will do exactly the opposite," Fernando Macedo, a political analyst in Luanda, said after the vote.[12]
The new constitution established a government similar to those currently operating in South Africa and Botswana.[citation needed] It named the president of Angola as head of state, head of the executive branch and commander-in-chief of the Angolan armed forces.[9] The new constitution abolished direct election of the president; the person heading the list of candidates of the majority party in the assembly automatically becomes president, and the second in the list, vice-president.[10] The constitution limits the president to two five-year terms, but the 30-year term already served by dos Santos does not count and under the constitution his term would start from the next parliamentary elections in 2012, and allow him to remain president until 2022.[13] The post of Prime Minister would be abolished, whose role would be taken over by the vice-president.[10] The Assembly retains the right to remove the president from office but such an action must be approved by the Supreme Court.[10] The vice president and the members of the Supreme Court are presidential nominees under the Constitution.
The constitution clarified the ambiguous land rights that existed in Angola, stating that all land is owned by the state, which can decide who is entitled to use it,[10] and that the state must only provide land rights to Angolan nationals or to companies registered in Angola.[14]
The constitution gives the president the power to appoint judges to the Constitutional and Supreme courts and also to appoint the head of the Court of Audits, which is the body responsible for reviewing public expenditure.[14] The document also maintains the present status of Cabinda, an exclave of Angola surrounded by the Democratic Republic of Congo, as a part of Angola. Oil-rich Cabinda has been claimed by Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda (FLEC) separatists.[14] The new constitution retains the current national flag (which is similar to the flag used by the MPLA during the Angolan Civil War). The constitution guarantees freedom of religion and of the press. The death penalty remains banned.[14]
Reception
The new constitution of 2010 was hailed as "a day of victory and happiness for the people of Angola" by Fernando da Piedade Dias dos Santos, then president of the National Assembly, and Bornito de Sousa, who chaired the constitutional commission, said that the charter was "a reflection of equality, of good sense, and true representation of the electorate".[10] However, UNITA member Raul Danda stated that the constitution was "a complete fraud" and that his party was wearing black "because it's like going to the graveyard to bury democracy".[10] UNITA's parliamentary leader, Alda Juliana Paulo Sachiambo, also spoke out against the new constitution saying that it gave "excessive executive power" to dos Santos.[15] The head of Katiava Bwila University, political scientist Paulo de Carvalho, spoke out against UNITA's concerns in defense of the Constitution. He said that the party-list system is used in democracies in Europe, Asia and South Africa, and that the new document contains many clauses that were in the old constitution.[16]
The original vote on the constitution had been expected in March but was then moved to January.[13] There was speculation that this delay was intended to avoid public debate on the matter by holding the vote at the same time that Angola hosts the 2010 African Cup of Nations.[13] Dos Santos had said that as soon as the constitution was passed he would reduce the size of the government and reduce the opportunities for officials to engage in corrupt activities. Angola currently ranks in the top 18 most corrupt countries, according to Transparency International.[17]
Related Research Articles
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country located on the west-central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Lusophone (Portuguese-speaking) country in both total area and population, and is the seventh-largest country in Africa. It is bordered by Namibia to the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Zambia to the east, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Angola has an exclave province, the province of Cabinda, that borders the Republic of the Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The capital and most populous city is Luanda.
The current political regime in Angola is presidentialism, in which the President of the Republic is also head of state and government; it is advised by a Council of Ministers, which together with the President form the national executive power. Legislative power rests with the 220 parliamentarians elected to the National Assembly. The President of the Republic, together with the parliament, appoints the majority of the members of the two highest bodies of the judiciary, that is, the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court. The judiciary is still made up of the Court of Auditors and the Supreme Military Court.
Angola was first settled by San hunter-gatherer societies before the northern domains came under the rule of Bantu states such as Kongo and Ndongo. In the 15th century, Portuguese colonists began trading, and a settlement was established at Luanda during the 16th century. Portugal annexed territories in the region which were ruled as a colony from 1655, and Angola was incorporated as an overseas province of Portugal in 1951. After the Angolan War of Independence, which ended in 1974 with an army mutiny and leftist coup in Lisbon, Angola achieved independence in 1975 through the Alvor Agreement. After independence, Angola entered a long period of civil war that lasted until 2002.
The People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola, for some years called the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola – Labour Party, is an Angolan social democratic political party. The MPLA fought against the Portuguese Army in the Angolan War of Independence from 1961 to 1974, and defeated the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) and the National Liberation Front of Angola (FNLA) in the Angolan Civil War. The party has ruled Angola since the country's independence from Portugal in 1975, being the de facto government throughout the civil war and continuing to rule afterwards.
The president of Angola is both head of state and head of government in Angola. According to the constitution adopted in 2010, the post of prime minister is abolished; executive authority belongs to the president who has also a degree of legislative power, as he can govern by decree.
José Eduardo dos Santos was the president of Angola from 1979 to 2017. As president, dos Santos was also the commander-in-chief of the Angolan Armed Forces (FAA) and president of the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), the party that has ruled Angola since it won independence in 1975. He was the second-longest-serving president in Africa, surpassed only by Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea.
The National Front for the Liberation of Angola is a political party and former militant organisation that fought for Angolan independence from Portugal in the war of independence, under the leadership of Holden Roberto.
Elections in Angola take place within the framework of a multi-party democracy. The National Assembly is directly elected by voters, while the leader of the party or coalition with the most seats in the National Assembly automatically becomes President.
The Angolan Civil War was a civil war in Angola, beginning in 1975 and continuing, with interludes, until 2002. The war began immediately after Angola became independent from Portugal in November 1975. It was a power struggle between two former anti-colonial guerrilla movements, the communist People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) and the anti-communist National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA).
The National Assembly is the legislative branch of the government of Angola. Angola is a unicameral country so the National Assembly is the only legislative chamber at the national level.
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The Alvor Agreement, signed on 15 January 1975 in Alvor, Portugal, granted Angola independence from Portugal on 11 November and formally ended the 13-year-long Angolan War of Independence.
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Parliamentary elections were held in Angola on 9 December 1986. They had been scheduled for 1983, but were postponed due to the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola's (UNITA) military gains in the civil war. The elections were the second elections conducted in the nation after in got independence from Portugal in 1975 and after the 1980 elections. During the period of 1975 to 1980, a civil war was fought between three parties, namely, People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), National Front for the Liberation of Angola (FNLA), and the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) and the disturbance continued to the 90s.
The Republican Party of Angola - Conservative Party is an anti-corruption political party in Angola that strongly opposes the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), which has ruled the country since 1975.
General elections were held in Angola on 31 August 2012 to elect the President and National Assembly. During campaigning, the opposition UNITA and its offshoot CASA-CE accused and criticised the government of corruption and called for greater transparency; this also led to protests and arrests the day before the election. These were the first elections after the new 2010 constitution was instituted.
General elections were held in Angola on 23 August 2017 to elect the President and National Assembly, although voting was delayed until 26 August at 15 polling stations due to bad weather on election day. The top candidate of the winning party is elected president. The ruling party MPLA headed by João Lourenço was widely expected to win. Preliminary results show that MPLA won with a clear margin. The final results were released on 6 September 2017.
General elections were held in Angola on 24 August 2022 to elect the President and National Assembly. Incumbent president João Lourenço was eligible for one more term. The MPLA was re-elected with a reduced majority, winning 124 seats with 51% of the vote. The main opposition party, UNITA won 90 seats with 44% of the vote. The Social Renewal Party (PRS), the National Liberation Front of Angola (FNLA) and the Humanist Party of Angola (PHA) each won two seats. The elections were the closest in Angolan history between the MPLA and UNITA.
↑ Stuart A. Notholt (1998). "The Decolonization of Portuguese Africa: Metropolitan Revolution and the Dissolution of Empire by Norrie MacQueen – Mozambique since Independence: Confronting Leviathan by Margaret Hall & Tom Young". African Affairs. 97 (387): 276–278. doi:10.1093/oxfordjournals.afraf.a007936. JSTOR723274.
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Constitution of Angola at Wikisource 
