REINING IN POLICE EXCESSES

UNCLAS LUANDA 000023 SIPDIS SIPDIS SENSITIVE C O R R E C T E D C O P Y (ADDING CAPTION) E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM AO SUBJECT: REINING IN POLICE EXCESSES ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: The Angolan national police have responded quickly to a recent spate of high-profile police shootings of unarmed civilians. Officers involved were dismissed and face possible criminal charges, and two high-ranking commanders were transferred. Although this response will not be enough to restore public faith in a force that often acts with impunity, it is a step in the right direction. END SUMMARY ¶2. (SBU) Minister of Interior Robert Monteiro promised swift action was promised by after six civilians were gunned down by police in the Luanda metro area in the last two weeks of December 2007. The internal inquiry into the incidents laid blame on officer error, poor training, and lax supervision. As a result, two police commandants were relieved of their supervisory duties and transferred to another location, but remain with the police force. Police spokesmen confirmed that the officers involved in the most high-profile incident, the shooting death of two actors as they prepared to film a movie scene in a crime-ridden section of Luanda, were dismissed from the force, though they have the right to appeal their dismissal. In addition, the Attorney General's office is considering criminal charges against the officers. The police have pledged to make information on the cases public should criminal charges be filed. ¶3. (U) The December 17th shooting of two film actors garnered instant international media attention; the police reportedly mistook the actors for armed robbers, fired without warning until stopped by the frantic movie director, then left the scene without rendering medical aid. The director had notified local police of planned filming in the area, and the unloaded AK47s carried by the actors were on loan from the national police. ¶4. (SBU) Local pundits allege that the officers' "shoot first, ask questions later" attitude is a direct result of "Operation Tango," the police operation to reduce crime on Luanda's increasingly violent streets. Although Operation Tango was designed to prevent street crime and keep Luanda from "becoming like Johannesburg," many believe the police were given indirect orders to intimidate the public to generate fear and instant obedience to police orders. Other police-related killings last December involved unarmed civilians who were verbally resisting police authority. A female street vendor was killed when she refused to stop selling her goods in front of a closed public market; a neighborhood gym owner was killed when he argued with police while in a line for fuel; and two youths were killed in the open-air Roque Santiero market during a police raid on vendors of pirated DVDs. ¶5. (SBU) COMMENT: While the Ministry of Interior's quick inquiry and response are positive first steps, they do little to restore faith of the populace in a police force that often acts with impunity and fails to investigate acts of unlawful force. The Embassy will continue to partner with the UN Human Rights Office to encourage the transparent and open investigation of police excesses, including a trial and conviction should charges be filed. END COMMENT MOZENA