The following is based on a communication written by the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders and other UN experts to the Government of Angola on 10 July 2023. The communication remained confidential for 60 days before being made public, giving the Government time to reply. The Government replied on 8 September 2023.
This is a shorter version of the original communication.
BACKGROUND
Topic: allegations of intimidation and harassment of human rights defender and trade union leader Mr. Eduardo Peres Alberto and his family, as well as the alarming attack on his daughter.
Mr. Eduardo Peres Alberto is a human rights defender, university professor and political scientist, with an education in politics and a Masters in African History. Mr. Peres Alberto is the leader of the Union of Higher Education Teachers (SINPES), a role which has seen him take a leadership stance in the industrial action of recent months, in Angola. Under his watch, educators across the country have rallied to protest the allegedly poor working conditions faced by teachers.
ALLEGATIONS
Since 2022, teachers and higher education professors have been on strike in Angola, in protest against the allegedly unsatisfactory state of education in the country. Among the reasons for the teachers’ strike were the precarity and financial instability of jobs in this sector, as well as the insufficient and ill-equipped facilities afforded to institutions by the state. Reportedly, due to lack of resources, teachers often have to teach large classes of over 90 pupils. Teachers have also protested against the low wages that employees earn. SINPES has been one of the organizations driving this industrial action.
On 1 November 2022, the second phase of the strike was lifted at the request of the Bishops of the Catholic Church. This temporary agreement was reached on the basis that, should the government not adhere to the teachers’ demands, the strikes would resume in February of 2023.
On 27 February 2023, SINPES resumed their strike, as they considered the response to teachers’ demand was insufficient. Although a 6% salary increase was proposed to the teachers by the President of Angola, in accordance with SINPES’ wishes, this was subsequently rejected by the government, where a salary proposal of only 2.6 million kwanzas for full-time professors and 1.5 million kwanzas for trainee assistant professors was approved. This proposed salary increase did not meet the organization’s demands.
On 5 April, the strike action was again postponed for 30 days.
However, on 9 May 2023, strikes resumed, reportedly due to lack of political will on behalf of the government to engage with the trade unions.
The case of Mr. Eduardo Peres Alberto & his daughter:
Since 28 March 2023, Mr. Eduardo Peres Alberto has been allegedly subjected to threats, received from unknown perpetrators via his mobile phone. These threats were allegedly in connection to his work in defence of human rights and as the leader of the trade union SINPES. One of the text messages allegedly stated, “You better stop the strike, otherwise what will happen to you, you will see”. Text messages of similar threatening nature have also been delivered to the mobile phone of his eldest daughter.
On 10 April 2023, between 10 am and 11am, the residence of Mr. Eduardo Peres Alberto and his family in Luanda was vandalized by unknown assailants. The perpetrators trespassed on the property of Mr. Eduardo Peres Alberto and his family and forcibly gained entry to the house by breaking a glass door.
On the same day, following the incident, the human rights defender filed a complaint against the perpetrators at his local police station in Zango. In relation to this complaint, case number 3500/023-02 was opened. In addition to this, Mr. Peres Alberto contacted the KUTAKESA, a non-governmental organisation, in Luanda, to monitor the case in question.
One week later, Mr. Eduardo Peres Alberto discovered an edited photograph of his daughter which had been deposited under the door of his house. The photo was inscribed with words to the effect of “we’ll be back” and “next time we will come back to kill”, inferring an intention to do harm to the daughter of Mr. Peres Alberto.
On 25 April 2023, the daughter of the union leader was walking along a public road in Luanda, when she was approached by two men on a motorcycle who assaulted her by spraying tear gas into her face at close range. She was subsequently taken to a private hospital in Luanda due to her critical condition where she remained under close supervision for 17 days.
On 15 May 2023, at around 8 pm, unknown perpetrators again broke into the family home of Mr. Eduardo Peres Alberto. The unidentified individuals broke in through the windows, reportedly filled the house with an unknown smoke and attempted to access the room where his wife was at the time. As soon as he realized that the windows were being broken by the perpetrators, the union leader and his family evacuated the house through the back door and immediately fled in search of safety.
CONCERNS
In the communication, we express our deep concern at the serious threats and intimidation perpetrated against the Union leader Mr. Eduardo Peres Alberto, which appear to be in connection with this work in defence of human rights and the expression of his right to freedom of assembly and association, exercised in his capacity as leader of SINPES.
We are also deeply concerned for the wellbeing and safety of Mr. Eduardo Peres Alberto’s daughter who, as a result of the tear gas attack against her, sustains physical and psychological harm.
