The NGO comes to "deplore once again the State seriously violating the human rights of peaceful citizens. What happened in Huambo is the result of less correct policies, of hasty decision-making", said this Tuesday the president of Mãos Livres, Guilherme Neves, speaking to Lusa.
For the head of this non-governmental organization, the protests by taxi drivers and motorcycle taxi drivers, which took place on Monday in Huambo province, are also "the result of the executive's inadequacies and inability to organize itself in solving the problems that affect the population".
"All this also boils down to the administrative inability of the executive who should rather create the conditions for taxi drivers and motorcycle taxi drivers to effectively benefit from the aforementioned cards for access to gasoline at the previous price", he said.
Since last Friday, a liter of gasoline has cost 300 kwanzas against the previous 160 kwanzas.
The Government announced the gradual withdrawal of gasoline subsidies, maintaining the subsidy to the agricultural sector and fishing.
According to the Minister of State for Economic Coordination, Manuel Nunes Júnior, the rates of taxi drivers and motorcycle taxi drivers will be subsidized, with them continuing to pay 160 kwanzas per liter of gasoline, with the State covering the difference.
Taxi drivers, motorcycle taxi drivers and operators in the agricultural and fishing sector must benefit from a personalized and subsidized card, which they must present at fuel filling stations spread across the country's 18 provinces.
These protested this Monday, in the province of Huambo, for allegedly not having access to said cards, protests, which according to the Provincial Command of Huambo of the National Police, resulted in five deaths, eight injuries and the destruction of public and private property.
"In this specific case, we understand that the executive should be held accountable, because he was the one who created all the conditions for citizens, particularly taxi drivers, to revolt", stated Guilherme Neves.
"Socioeconomic policies are to provide the best living conditions and not to take the lives of citizens, it is another bad picture of the executive who sometimes is not able to dialogue with the citizen", he pointed out.
In the opinion of the leader of Mãos Livres, an organization that defends and promotes human rights in Angola, the decision to increase the price of fuel aimed to "stifle" the problem of the proposed Law on the Statute of Non-Governmental Organizations.
The aforementioned law proposal, recently approved in general by parliament, "is an unconstitutional norm and that violates the fundamental rights of associations, increasingly squeezing the space for the exercise of citizenship", shot Guilherme Neves.
The Government will liberalize fuel prices, in a phased manner, until 2025, starting with the partial removal of gasoline subsidies, the price of which will be "free and floating" as early as next year, the authorities announced.
