Responding to TikToker Neth Nahara’s release along with four other arbitrarily detained government critics in Angola after more than a year behind bars, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for East and Southern Africa, Sarah Jackson, said:
“At last, Neth Nahara, Adolfo Campos, Gildo das Ruas, Tanaice Neutro and Pensador are free. We are overjoyed that they are home with their loved ones.
Angola’s government must respect everyone’s rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly and end arbitrary detention and torture in the country.
Sarah Jackson, Deputy Regional Director for East & Southern Africa, Amnesty International
“Though we celebrate their release, these five people should never have been locked up. Authorities arrested them solely for exercising their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. We look forward to them receiving the medical care that authorities deliberately denied them in prison.
“Angola’s government must respect everyone’s rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly and end arbitrary detention and torture in the country. They must urgently hold accountable anyone suspected of responsibility for violating the rights of these five activists.”
Related News
- Angola: Release unjustly detained activists
- Angola: TikToker jailed for criticizing the president
- Angola: Four activists sentenced for solidarity protest
Background
On December 25, 2024, Angola’s President Joao Lourenço announced pardons for social media influencer Ana da Silva Miguel (known as Neth Nahara) and activists Adolfo Campos, Hermenegildo Victor José (known as Gildo das Ruas), Gilson Moreira (known as Tanaice Neutro) and Abraão Pedro Santos (known as Pensador).
Authorities released Neth Nahara on January 1, 2025, and the other four on January 6, 2025.
Authorities arrested Neth Nahara on August 13, 2023, in her home in Angola’s capital, Luanda, after she broadcast a live TikTok video criticizing President Lourenço. Police arrested the other four activists on September 16, 2023, in Luanda before a planned protest in solidarity with motorcycle taxi drivers.
Authorities deliberately denied healthcare in detention for some of the five, including urgent surgery and daily HIV medication.
Amnesty International campaigned extensively to release the five through petitions, public statements, events, and more. It also supported them through their families and legal representatives during their imprisonment. Neth Nahara is featured in this year’s Write for Rights, Amnesty International’s largest human rights campaign.
TOP GRAPHIC: Features jailed government critics Ana da Silva Miguel (known as Neth Nahara), Gilson Moreira (known as Tanaice Neutro), and Abraão Pedro Santos (known as Pensador).
