"The decision of the investigating judge number 11 of Barcelona to hand over the body of former Angolan president José Eduardo dos Santos to his former wife will be subject to appeal by Tchizé dos Santos", lawyer Carmen Varela told Lusa, explaining that the argument has to do with the jurisdiction of the court.
"We are going to file an appeal because we understand that the criminal jurisdiction is not competent to deliberate on this matter, which should be the civil jurisdiction to rule on it", argues the jurist, recalling that "there is currently an ongoing process in the civil court on this question".
José Eduardo dos Santos, who ruled Angola from 1979 to 2017, died on July 8, aged 79, in Barcelona, Spain, where he has spent most of his time for the past five years.
Two factions of the dos Santos family dispute, in the Family Court of the Civil Court of Catalonia, who will have custody of the body of José Eduardo dos Santos.
On the one hand, there are Tchizé dos Santos and his older brothers, who oppose the delivery of the remains to the former first lady and are against holding a state funeral before the August 24 elections to avoid political exploitation.
On the other, is the widow Ana Paula dos Santos and their three children in common with José Eduardo dos Santos, who also claim the body and want it to be buried in Angola in the near future.