Hermenegildo de Brito, a spokesman for the Luanda Provincial Command of the National Police, told Lusa that "a dozen individuals who were trying to demonstrate [at the National Assembly] and were not authorized to do so," violating the country's legislation.
Besides a strong police apparatus at the National Assembly, where Manuel Pereira da Silva's inauguration will take place and the protest was expected to take place, the Luanda police deployed officers near the Samba 2 viaduct, where the activists were concentrated.
According to Hermenegildo de Brito, there were about 50 to 60 young people on the site who were dispersed by the police to contain a possible unauthorized "demonstration" and to maintain public order.
About ten activists were "collected in order to be heard and catalogued and later dismissed", said the same responsible, claiming that these were not arrests.
Hermenegildo de Brito said that demonstrations on weekdays are only allowed after 7pm and must be made known to the Provincial Government of Luanda and the Provincial Command of Luanda, which did not happen in this case.
The protest was called by the Revolutionary United Youth of Angola (JURA), the youth arm of UNITA and the Youth for Social Renewal (JURS), affiliated to the Party of Social Renewal.
The newly elected president of the CNE, Manuel Pereira da Silva, takes office this Wednesday under protest, including from UNITA, the largest opposition party, as well as civil society organizations.
