In its annual report, entitled "Freedom on the Net 2022: Countering an authoritarian review of the Internet", the non-profit organization indicated that the "powerful ruling party in Angola", the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), maintains its effective control of regulatory bodies, with the Ministry of Telecommunications being responsible for overseeing the country's information and communication technology sector.
"While the government does not block or censor online content, violence against protesters and journalists has recently contributed to self-censorship, re-establishing an environment of fear that previously limited public discussion of governance issues," the report says.
MPLA members in power, according to the organization, own and tightly control most of the country's media outlets, including those that are the most widely publicized and accessed, which largely broadcast pro-government content.
"The government's perceived ability to monitor and intercept the data and communications of Angolan citizens is a major concern. Angola has been governed by the same party since independence and the authorities have systematically repressed political dissent," the report notes.
"The Angolan government's indirect control of the telecommunications infrastructure through state-owned Angola Telecom may allow the executive to partially control Internet connectivity, if desired", the document stresses.
Corruption, violations of due process and abuse by security forces continue to be common in the country, according to Freedom House, a Washington-based organization.
"An initial relaxation of some restrictions on the press and civil society, after the election of President João Lourenço in 2017, has receded and the challenges persist", the document emphasizes.
Despite the history of censorship in the print and television press, according to the report, between June 2021 and May 2022, there was no government blocking or filtering online content in Angola.
"Although some Angolan laws applicable to the digital sphere contain severe restrictions, in practice they have not been applied to 'sites' or users", he refers.
However, the report notes that Government efforts to manipulate 'online' content are still sporadically reported.
"Some independent 'online' media report receiving regular calls from government officials, directing them to tone down criticism or refrain from reporting on certain matters," the text says.
The report also indicates that the country's deficient infrastructure continues to hamper the ability of users to access the Internet consistently and without interruptions.
Poor infrastructure primarily affects rural residents, for whom voice and data services are of much lower quality and subject to frequent outages and extremely slow connection speeds.
Network problems at Unitel - the country's largest telecommunications provider - attributed to equipment failures, caused nearly three million people to lose access to voice and short messages (SMS) at least six times between February and March. of 2022.
In addition, Internet access in Angola remains prohibitively expensive for many people, especially in rural areas. The Government and some private companies have made efforts to establish free wireless network access points.
"Prices for mobile data, calling plans and broadband Internet access in Angola are high compared to neighboring countries – 10 times higher than those in South Africa, for example," the organization detailed.
The ongoing economic crisis, according to the organization, also affected the viability of some online media in Angola.
The report in question is one of the leading annual studies on human rights in the digital sphere, examining global trends, country-specific findings and best practices on how to protect human rights 'online'.
The document is the result of an analysis carried out between June 2021 and May 2022 and analyzes Internet freedom in 70 countries, representing 89 percent of the world's Internet users.
