Luanda - Angola has so far recovered more than seven billion US dollars, shareholdings, real estate and furniture, as part of the fight against corruption, the Secretary of State for Justice, Human Rights and Citizenship, Ana Celeste, said Friday in Banjul, Gambia.
Speaking at the presentation session of the Periodic Reports on the Implementation of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights in Banjul, the official reaffirmed the government's commitment to fight corruption and organized crime.
To this end, the Secretary of State said, legislation has been approved and state institutions strengthened, such as the National Strategy for the Prevention and Repression of Corruption (2024-2027) after the implementation of the Strategic Plan to Prevent and Combat Corruption 2018-2022 is finalized.
Ana Celeste pointed out that within the framework of the fight against corruption, 323 cases were opened in 2023 and, in the period from 2017 to September 2022, 2,511 were on trial at national level.
The Secretary of State added that at regional and international level, since the presentation of the last Report, Angola has ratified and signed important human rights conventions.
Ana Celeste stressed that Angola remains committed to permanent cooperation with the special procedures of the Commission and the Human Rights Council, participating in the ordinary sessions and ensuring a positive response to the rapporteurs' visits.
The official noted that Angola not only prohibits the death penalty, but has also expressed its firm position on the ratification of the Second Additional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, accompanied by campaigns at regional and international level to encourage ratification by other states.
“We support the draft Protocol to the African Charter on the Abolition of the Death Penalty, in accordance with the Cotonou Declaration,” she said.
The Secretary of State said Angola disapproves and prohibits all forms and acts of torture or cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, whether committed by the security forces or by any other state agent or citizen.
Prisons
On the occasion, Ana Celeste explained that the country has been improving the conditions of the prison population by expanding the network of prisons and ongoing staff training.
During this 81st Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, Angola will also present reports on the implementation of the Maputo Protocol and the African Union Convention on the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (Kampala Convention).
The Angolan delegation to the event is led by the Minister for Social Action, Family and Women's Promotion, Ana Paula do Sacramento Neto, and includes the Secretary of State for Human Rights and Citizenship, Ana Celeste, and the Secretary of State for Pre-school and Primary Education, Francisco Pacheco. FMA/ART/TED/AMP
