Angola set to ban rights group

2008-09-17 21:48

Luanda - Angolan authorities have launched a court bid to ban a vocal rights group, claiming its statutes violate the country's laws, state media reported on Wednesday.

"The attorney general invited Association for Justice, Peace and Democracy (AJPD) to rectify its clauses to conform with the principles of law, but they did not," said a statement published by state news agency Angop.

According to Amnesty International, AJPD has played an important role in exposing human rights violations in Angola.

AJPD president Fernando Macedo told AFP the group planned to raise attention over the issue among the international community.

Authorities say the group's statutes should not include references to denouncing "scandalous" human rights violations, among other items.

Threats

Macedo claimed the attorney general's action followed threats against the group from state officials and members of the ruling Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA).

The moves to ban AJPD come after September 5 parliamentary elections in Angola, the first since the end of the country's 27-year-long civil war in 2002.

The ruling MPLA was on Tuesday declared the winner of the poll, with the party garnering 81.64% of the vote.

The MPLA has been in power for the past 33 years.

In April, the United Nations announced it would close its human rights office in Angola after authorities withdrew co-operation.

- AFP