Angola
Death of rebel leader Savimbi confirmed

afrol News, 23 February  - UNITA, the Angolan rebel movement, today confirmed that its leader Jonas Malheiro Savimbi was killed, fighting government troops on Friday. Savimbi, 67, had led the rebels for over 30 years, first fighting the Portuguese and after 1975, the Angolan government.

Pictures of the corpse were shown on Angolan and Portuguese television today. According to the Portuguese television reporter, Alves Fernandes, Savimbi's body "sustained 15 bullet wounds, two in his head and the rest spread through his upper body and legs." 

The news of the UNITA leader's death was first announced by the Angolan government yesterday and confirmed by UNITA this evening. The news led to celebrations in the Angolan capital, Luanda.

The government of Angola, in a statement issued yesterday, used the opportunity to appeal to the remaining UNITA rebels, or "those who voluntarily or involuntarily had associated themselves with these terrorist actions," to cease hostilities. 

The government was to issue a "program to ensure the final cessation of all hostilities in Angola," the statement said. All remaining UNITA rebels should "reconsider their options and reintegrate themselves into Angolan society so as to contribute to the consolidation of democracy and national reconciliation." An amnesty programme for rebels laying down their arms already exists. 

Also during the last two months, the Angolan Armed Forces reportedly have advanced against UNITA rebels in several parts of the country, following mayor gains last year. In a series of battles the government forces have gained territory, captured high-ranking UNITA officers and liberated civilians, according to the government 'O Pensador Newsletter'. "During this period hundreds of UNITA supporters took advantage of the government amnesty and surrendered." 

Although UNITA has been thoroughly hurt by large-scale military losses, dissertations and now the death of Savimbi, observers still don't believe this means hostilities will cease. As Savimbi was killed together with two senior UNITA brigadiers in Lucusse, a town in Moxico province, eastern Angola, some of his closest aides had managed to flee, according to Angolan reporters. 

UNITA - the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola - was founded by Savimbi as one of the two movements fighting the late Portuguese decolonisation of Angola. The other movement, leftist MPLA, gained power when the Portuguese finally withdrew in 1975. UNITA continued its fighting against the MPLA government with the support of the USA and apartheid South Africa. 

As a result of the new global situation following the end of the Cold War and the fall of apartheid, MPLA and UNITA reached an agreement. National elections were held during a 1992 ceasefire, but UNITA did not accept the results and returned to war. UNITA was thus internationally isolated and since 2000, the rebels/terrorists have been loosing ground on the battlefield. 

The long conflict in Angola has killed more than 500,000 people, and displaced hundreds of thousands of others. The celebrating Luanda citizens hope Savimbi's death might contribute to peace in one of the potentially richest countries on the African continent.

Sources: Angolan govt, UNITA, press reports and afrol archives

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