Angolan Interior Minister Admits to Forceful Expulsions of Foreign Traffickers

Angola's Interior Minister Osvaldo Serra Van-Dunem has admitted to “excesses” by the army and police in expelling foreign diamond traffickers, particularly Congolese, following a meeting with Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) Interior Minister Theophile Mbemba Mfundu.

“We recognize there were excesses committed by our soldiers and our police during the expulsion of 'garimpeiros' (illegal diamond traffickers) from Angola,” Serra Van-Dunem was quoted as saying in media reports.

“These excesses provoked harmful (foreign) repercussions, which we regret and for which we offer a public apology,” Serra Van-Dunem said.

DRC human rights organization Voice of the Voiceless last month denounced what it called “barbaric acts” committed against Congolese accused of illegal diamond trafficking in Angola's central Bie province.

The expulsions were carried out by the Angolan armed forces and the police “with the support of a mob of furious civilians who can no longer stand the presence of Congolese in their country”, the rights group said.

However, the director of international co-operation in Angola's Interior Ministry, Eduardo Sambo, denied the reports of violent expulsions. “There were no acts of barbarism against anybody. The operation by the police and military against the garimpeiros sparked a panic which caused them to flee back to their countries,” he said.

About 700 diamond traffickers, including 334 foreigners, have been arrested in Bie in a huge sweep the army has been carrying out since December, according to official figures. The government says that of about 290,000 diamond traffickers in the country, 90,000 are foreigners, mostly from the DRC, Mali, Senegal and Sierra Leone.