Dictator Dos Santos Going, Going… But Not Just Yet
It is rare for an African dictator to give up power voluntarily. Thus, on March 11, when Angola’s President announced that he would retire from public life in 2018, the news reverberated across the world. If he holds true to his word (and that is a big “if”) by the time José Eduardo dos Santos steps down he will have held power for a staggering 39 years. If he is preparing to go, why then is the President employing tactics straight out of the despot’s rulebook? Why is he casting himself as the ‘victim’ of an imaginary coup plot to justify purges that further embed a culture of fear in Angola? Why would a politician on his way out, bring global ridicule upon himself and his regime with trumped-up charges and a show trial? Seventeen young dissidents are currently standing trial on bogus charges of plotting a rebellion and attempting […]
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