Jeannette Seppen spoke after a meeting with the Minister of Justice and Human Rights in Luanda, which aimed to evaluate the National Human Rights Strategy and the follow-up of the recommendations of the Periodic and Universal Evaluation of the III Cycle.
At the annual meeting of the European Union (EU) delegation with the government, several aspects of human rights were addressed in a dialogue that Jeannette Seppen considered "very rich".
Among the subjects addressed was the impact of covid-19 in Angola, namely on health, economy and freedom of expression and assembly, but also the plan to combat human trafficking.
"It was a very open exchange, very rich," said Seppen, noting that there is a guarantee from the Angolan side that commitments regarding human rights will continue to be respected.
"We expressed our concerns and stressed once again the importance of respecting human rights, even in a very difficult phase that we too are going through in Europe. There are more challenges than before", commented the EU ambassador.
Jeannette Seppen stressed that certain freedoms, such as freedom of expression and assembly, cannot escape international standards and "must be respected".
"We expressed very clearly our concerns about the events of October 24 and November 11, and the Minister [of Justice] responded very positively, saying that these freedoms do not disappear when there are challenges, they must continue to be respected," she said.
The European official also stressed that the police "must be a service", adding that the European Union is available to support the training of police forces.
On 24 October and 11 November, two demonstrations in Luanda that had been banned by the authorities, invoking the measures in force in the public calamity situation, were strongly repressed by the police, using tear gas.
A 26-year-old student died following clashes between police and youth groups who wanted to demonstrate for the improvement of living conditions and local elections in 2021 last Wednesday.
The police assured they used only non-lethal means and denied responsibility for the young man's death, but witnesses on the scene assured that Inocêncio de Matos was shot.
The medical report produced at the Américo Boavida hospital states that the student died due to an assault with an unspecified blunt object, but the family rejects these explanations and their lawyer has announced that he will prosecute the state and the police.
