"We understand, first, that this was a crime against humanity, a genocide against the Lunda people and, by the way, the MPLA [Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola] is a party that never knew how to dialogue, never knew how to negotiate and the case of the Lundas is no exception", said this Wednesday the activist Geraldo Dala, in declarations to the Lusa.
For the activist, a member of the so-called Contentious Civil Society, the "MPLA took advantage" of incidents in the region of Cafunfo, Lunda Norte province, eastern Angola, "to spread terror and instill fear in that population in the sense that they cannot claim their rights.
According to the police, some 300 people linked to the Portuguese Protectorate Movement Lunda Tchokwe (MPPLT), which for years has defended the autonomy of that region rich in mineral resources, tried to invade a police station on Saturday and in defense the forces of order and security mortally struck six people.
The police version is contradicted by MPPLT leaders, political parties in the opposition and local civil society that speak of more than a dozen deaths.
Geraldo Dala, who was speaking this Wednesday during a press conference announcing a demonstration, scheduled for Thursday in Luanda, "against the 45 years of governance of the MPLA", defended "political and administrative autonomy as a solution for the Lunda people.
"It does not necessarily mean breaking up the Angolan territory, but that would be (political and administrative autonomy) one of the ways to solve this situation and also for the case of Cabinda," he stressed.
For his part, the activist Solomon Mpanzu also "repudiated the police action" against the demonstrators in Cafunfo, stating that the Constitution "prohibits the death penalty and at no time allows any citizen to take the life of another.
According to the activist, who spoke on the sidelines of the press conference, the events in Cafunfo translate into an "aggression against the Angolan Constitution and is an act that demonstrates that we do not yet live in a country with national unity.
"In a country where we must express our ideas, we are still living here principles that demonstrate that the MPLA's communist socialism is not over yet, because the one who thinks differently in Angola is seen as an animal and an enemy of peace", he said.
Solomon Mpanzu also said that the demonstration scheduled for this Thursday, February 4, a national holiday in the country, "will also reserve a moment to honor the brothers killed in Lunda Norte".
"That is why tomorrow [Thursday] we will all wear black in honor of those who were killed in the name of freedom and social justice. We condemn the act and ask the President of the Republic, João Lourenço, to pronounce himself on it," he concluded.
