Angolan police used excessive force and carried out arbitrary arrests while dispersing peaceful protesters in Luanda, the capital, on July 12, 2025, Human Rights Watch said today. Police unnecessarily fired tear gas and rubber bullets and assaulted protesters, injuring several people. They also detained 17 protesters, some of whom were released only after legal intervention.
The government should promptly and impartially investigate the use of force and the arrests, and appropriately discipline or prosecute those responsible, regardless of rank.
"Angolans should be able to peacefully protest government policies without being met with excessive force and other violations of their basic rights," said Ashwanee Budoo-Scholtz, deputy Africa director at Human Rights Watch. "The government needs to open an impartial investigation into these abuses, and hold those responsible accountable."
Hundreds of people participated in the protest, which began in the São Paulo neighborhood and was slated to end at Largo 1º de Maio, a symbolic space in downtown Luanda. Youth movements and civil society organizations called for the protest following the government's decision to raise fuel prices and eliminate subsidies for public transport without any public consultation.
"The protest … was a legitimate way to express dissatisfaction with the Angolan government's insistence on applying anti-social policies," said Simão Afonso, a lawyer who helped obtain authorization for the demonstration and provided legal assistance to detainees. "The repressive response by the national police is deeply regrettable. … The state does not fulfill its legal obligations concerning citizens' rights, freedoms, and fundamental guarantees."
The spokesperson for the Angolan Police General Command said on July 12 in a statement to the media that the police intervention in the march "aimed to maintain public order and tranquility, since the protesters did not follow the route."
Aidilson Manuel, an activist and spokesperson for the protest, said they organized the protest in line with government requirements: "On July 10, we submitted a letter to the Luanda provincial government notifying them about the protest. We also delivered the same letter to the Provincial Police Command, which called us to discuss the route. The police suggested a different route than the one we had proposed. Official approval arrived on July 11 around 4 p.m., and it was favorable."
Despite the official authorization, the police dispersed the protesters with tear gas and batons as soon as the group approached Largo 1º de Maio. "Without any prior warning, the crackdown began brutally," Manuel said.
Manuel said that four people were seriously injured: "One was hit directly in the face by a tear gas canister, causing a deep cut that required surgery. Another suffered a serious injury to the mouth and needed urgent medical treatment. Two other protesters suffered fractures and extensive injuries after being assaulted by police officers."
The police spokesperson said that two people were injured as a result of the protests. But the media reported that at least nine people were injured.
Angola is a party to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which obligate the government to respect and protect the rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression.
The United Nations Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials and the Guidelines for the Policing of Assemblies by Law Enforcement Officials in Africa provide that officers may only use force when strictly necessary. When using force, law enforcement officials should exercise restraint and act in proportion to the seriousness of the offense and to the legitimate objective to be achieved.
The 2020 UN Guidance on Less-Lethal Weapons in Law Enforcement provides that tear gas should only be employed when necessary to prevent further physical harm and should not be used to disperse nonviolent demonstrations.
Human Rights Watch has previously documented instances in which Angolan security forces have used excessive force against peaceful protesters and arbitrarily detained them. Calls by Human Rights Watch and other organizations for meaningful and concrete security force reforms have resulted in some attempts to meet international human rights standards. However, the continued use of excessive police force during protests shows that the measures taken thus far have been inadequate, Human Rights Watch said.
"The police use of excessive force against peaceful protesters is part of broader security force problems in Angola," Budoo-Scholtz said. "The government needs to adopt and enforce comprehensive reforms within the security forces to ensure that police officers uphold the law and are held accountable when they abuse protesters' rights."
