ANGOLA: UNITA BELIEVES SHOTS FIRED WERE AN ATTEMPT

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 LUANDA 000235

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR AF/S

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/13/2017
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PDEM AO
SUBJECT: ANGOLA: UNITA BELIEVES SHOTS FIRED WERE AN ATTEMPT
ON SAMAKUVA,S LIFE

REF: 06 LUANDA 1297

Classified By: Amb. Cynthia Efird for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) Summary: On March 2, shots were fired at the UNITA
party headquarters in Camabatela, Kwanza Norte province while
UNITA president Isaias Samakuva was in the building. UNITA
representatives publicly announced to the media and privately
to emboff that the shots fired were a direct threat to
Samakuva's life, while the government insisted they were only
a random weapon discharge on a Friday night. Using the
attention generated by the incident, Samakuva has increased
his criticism of the government, focusing on the lack of
independence in the judiciary and the widespread insider
business dealings of high ranking officials. Other UNITA
leaders allege that the incident was a government attempt to
intimidate UNITA in the lead-up to elections. Although
investigations continue, it is likely that this event will
remain an unsolved incident in Angolan pre-election lore,
with each side interpreting it to its best political
advantage. End summary.


2. (SBU) P/E Chief met with UNITA spokesperson Adalberto da
Costa Junior on March 7, 2007 for UNITA,s readout of the
events surrounding the shots fired in Camabatela, in Kwanza
Norte province during the March 2 visit of UNITA president
Isaias Samakuva.

UNITA,s View of Events:
--------------

3. (SBU) UNITA,s version of the events is as follows: As
part of a tour of municipalities in Kwanza Norte province,
Samakuva planned a March 2 visit to the small town of
Camabatela, including an overnight stop. A UNITA advance
team had arranged hotel reservations several days ahead of
the trip, and had traveled to Camabatela in advance of
Samakuva,s party. The hotel manager on March 2 told the
advance team that he had been visited by the Police
Investigations Division who told him not to allow UNITA to
stay at the hotel, or hold any meetings there. The police
returned on the afternoon of March 2 and reiterated the
message, ordering the hotel manager to close the hotel which
he then did, evicting the UNITA advance team from the
premises.


4. (SBU) Earlier on March 2, da Costa said that Samakuva held
a &positive meeting8 with the governor of Kwanza Norte in
provincial capital of N,dalatando and then proceeded north
for the 150 kilometer drive to Camabatela. In addition to
the UNITA members in the traveling party, Samakuva was
escorted by his standard detail from the Protocol Protection
Unit (UPIP) which provides protection to Angolan VIPs and
foreign dignitaries, as well as an additional detail of the
provincial police. Arriving in Camabatela in the evening,
Samakuva proceeded directly to the UNITA party headquarters
where he was briefed on the circumstances surrounding the
change in venue. Some of the police detail were also present
inside the building. About this time there was a power
failure. Shortly thereafter, approximately ten shots were
fired at the UNITA headquarters, with at least three entering
the building through the windows; other shots lodged in the
building exterior. Samakuva was not hurt although two
bullets were imbedded in the wall close to where he had been
standing. One bullet hit a local youth in the foot.


5. (SBU) Members of the police detail inside the building
identified the direction from which the shots were fired and
grabbing flashlights, went out across the street in search of
the assailants. They found three armed men in front of/near
the MPLA headquarters, which is located directly across the
street from the UNITA headquarters, with guns they believed
showed evidence of being recently fired. Shortly thereafter,
a fourth man on motorcycle stopped in front of the UNITA
headquarters and drew his weapon but was disarmed and
apprehended by the police details and UNITA members. This
man was identified by the Camabatela national police as a
policeman who had been suspended 15 days prior to the
incident for disciplinary reasons. End UNITA version of
events.


6. (SBU) UNITA said that it was only able to make the details
of the event public on Sunday, March 4, because those
directly involved were out of satellite and telephone
communication until Saturday evening. When asked why UNITA
had not pressed charges, Da Costa questioned why the police
would need to receive a formal complaint to investigate shots
fired against any Angolan citizen. Note: Bullets were dug
from the interior walls of the building although Angolan
police have little capacity for forensic investigation. End
note.

LUANDA 00000235 002 OF 003



But Still Actively Participating in the Government
-------------- --------------

7. (SBU) UNITA called a press conference on Tuesday, March 6,
to present its version of facts to the public. Flanked by
nearly all the top party insiders, including Abel
Chivukuvuku, Samakuva reiterated his commitment to continue
institution strengthening in Angola, especially in light of
the approaching elections. This speech was similar in
vehemence to his December speech in which he compared the dos
Santos regime to that of former Portuguese dictator Salazar
(reftel). Samakuva criticized the lack of impartiality in
the judicial branch and in the electoral process. He alleged
that &almost all high level government officials, with few
exceptions, use the government to do business with their own
private enterprises. This turns into current practice,
institutionalizing corruption, while the common citizen is
walking in the mud, with no potable water and without even
the dream of electricity.8 Note: Chivukuvuku is expected to
be Samakuva,s main competitor for the UNITA presidency in
the upcoming party elections. End note.

Angolan Police Account
--------------

8. (SBU) According to press accounts in the government-owned
Jornal de Angola, the National Police division of Kwanza
Norte province reported that it was investigating a report of
seven shots fired by a Kalashnikov in Camabatela during a
time at which the UNITA president happened to be visiting the
town. The Police spokesperson confirmed that local police
forces reacted quickly, going to the area where the shots
were presumed to have originated. However, one of those sent
to investigate the shots, sub-inspector Francisco Carioca,
was attacked by UNITA provincial authorities and because of
the injuries sustained in the attack was hospitalized in
N,dalatando. Despite the electricity outage, Carioca was
able to identify the perpetrators by name and the police have
issued arrest warrants for those who attacked him. The
police said it believes the shots fired were an incident of
random shooting (of which there are many in Angola),and are
investigating it as such. According to the police, since
UNITA did not file a complaint, it does not believe that this
incident was an attempt on the life of Samakuva, but rather
an incident of random gunshots and UNITA officials attempt to
justify beating the sub-inspector.


9. MPLA spokesperson, Norberto dos Santos, &Kwata Kanawa,8
in a statement to the Press, denied that the incident
represented an attempt on Samakuva,s life and demanded that
UNITA back up its allegations with proof during the next
Bilateral Commission meeting between the government and UNITA.

Reactions from Inside and Outside Angola
--------------

10. (C) Da Costa told us that many representatives of
Embassies in Luanda, leaders of the other opposition parties,
politicians and officials from Africa and Europe have called
personally to talk to Samakuva and see how he is doing. Da
Costa said that Samakuva received no calls from any MPLA or
government officials, not even from colleagues with whom he
serves in the Parliament or on the Bilateral Commission. He
said Samakuva was not going to let the incident change his
behavior and planned to continue to meet with the public,
especially as the country geared up for the elections. Da
Costa said that even though many of the UNITA inner circle
had experienced close calls, during the war, the incident
reminded them that they could take a bullet, at any point.
Note: Samakuva attended a large non-denominational church
service in honor of the visit of the Archbishop of Canterbury
to Angola on Sunday, March 11 seemingly accompanied by only
one bodyguard. The crowd cheered loudly for him when he was
introduced. End note.

UNITA Sees Shots as a Serious Incident
--------------

11. (C) Da Costa said UNITA saw the incident as a threat to
Samakuva, in particular given the proximity to Samakuva with
which several bullets had landed. While he acceded to the
possibility that the shots: 1) originated with a lone
individual with no connection to the government or MPLA; 2)
were intended only as a sign not meant to be a threat; 3)
originated within UNITA in a bid to create more chaos within
in the party, he returned to the UNITA position that the
government/MPLA (used interchangeably) had a hand in the
incident. While presenting no evidence of government
involvement, Da Costa criticized the MPLA/Government reaction
to the incident as extremely weak.


12. (C) UNITA was widely quoted in the opposition press on
March 10-11 characterizing this incident as another example

LUANDA 00000235 003 OF 003


of the government,s &intolerance8 and intimidation.
Spokesman da Costa also used the expression &intolerance8
to emboff, citing the February detention and arrest (later
released) of eight PADEPA members for distributing pamphlets
on the street and the arrest and detention of Global Witness
activist Dr. Sarah Wykes as recent examples of government
actions to warn off political parties or individuals from
questioning its commitment to transparency and
democratization.


13. (C) Comment: While investigations continue, it is likely
that this will remain an unsolved incident in Angolan
pre-election lore, with each side interpreting it to its best
political advantage. However it is clear that UNITA has
taken the incident seriously. The display of solidarity with
Samakuva by those party leaders, including Chivukuvuku and
others who have criticized Samakuva in the past, is UNITA,s
way of sending the message that when threatened by the
outside, UNITA will put aside its internal disagreements and
stand together as a party. End Comment.
EFIRD