Countries of the World/COUNTRYS.BIN/dp/0012/00128.txt

Text File | 1991-06-24 | 27KB | 427 lines

$Unique_ID{COW00128}
$Pretitle{259}
$Title{Angola
Chapter 4A.   National Security}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Eugene K. Keefe}
$Affiliation{HQ, Department of the Army}
$Subject{military
portuguese
angola
forces
defense
government
army
national
fapla
african}
$Date{1978}
$Log{Traditional Mask*0012801.scf
}
Country:     Angola
Book:        Angola, A Country Study
Author:      Eugene K. Keefe
Affiliation: HQ, Department of the Army
Date:        1978

Chapter 4A.   National Security

[See Traditional Mask: Traditional mask in the Chokwe style]

     National security in the People's Republic of Angola has been a daily
concern of the regime established by the Popular Movement for the Liberation
of Angola (Movimento Popular de Libertacao de Angola-MPLA) since early 1976
when it defeated its opponents in a civil war (see Independence and Civil War,
ch. 3). Angola, a single-party state under the presidency of Agostinho Neto,
had evolved from the former Portuguese colony that became independent on
November 11, 1975. Supported by Soviet materiel and Cuban manpower, MPLA had
defeated two rival movements: the National Front for the Liberation of Angola
(Frente Nacional de Libertacao de Angola-FNLA) and the National Union for the
Total Independence of Angola (Uniao Nacional para a Independencia Total de
Angola-UNITA). The leaders of the defeated groups, Holden Roberto and Jonas
Savimbi respectively, vowed to carry on guerrilla warfare. Roberto and the
remnants of his forces fell back to sanctuaries in Zaire from which they had
operated for several years while Savimbi and his remaining followers
disappeared into the remote interior of the country. Both groups recuperated,
rebuilt their forces, and as of late 1978 had harassed the government in
traditional guerrilla fashion for more than two years (see Increased Warfare,
ch. 3).

     The Neto government has at its disposal the usual means of maintaining
national security-that is, an army, a navy, and an air force, a militia, and
national police forces-but the major factor in the defense of the country
against external or internal threat has been the continuing presence of
approximately 20,000 Cuban troops. The mission of the armed forces is to
protect national integrity and to maintain internal security; in fulfilling
their obligations the forces have been continually engaged in guerrilla
warfare and have been continually supported and sometimes led by Cubans;
often, Cuban units have carried out combat tasks on their own rather than in
support of the Angolans. Many Western observers credit the Cuban military with
keeping the Neto government in power.

     Collectively the army, the navy, and the air force were known as the
People's Armed Forces for the Liberation of Angola (Forcas Armadas Populares
de Libertacao de Angola-FAPLA), a name adopted by the MPLA guerrilla army
more than a year before independence. During the civil war FAPLA became a
conventional army and acquired a navy and an air force, both of which
remained very small in 1978. In late 1977 the International Institute of
Strategic Studies estimated FAPLA strength at 31,500 of which the army with a
strength of 30,000 was by far the largest branch. The navy had a force of 700
and the air force of 800 men. The army and the air force have been well
equipped by the Soviet Union (the seagoing navy consists mostly of
ex-Portuguese patrol craft), but problems have arisen because the servicemen
recruited from a largely illiterate society have difficulties in learning how
to operate and maintain intricate modern weapons and equipment.

     According to the Constitution the commander in chief of the armed forces
was the president of the republic. In that capacity the president was advised
and assisted by the minister of defense. President Neto, who has been the
leader of the MPLA since 1962, was not an active commander of the forces and
left actual military affairs to his military experts. The minister of defense,
Henrique Teles Carreira, had been a commander of guerrilla forces during the
anticolonial war, commander of forces during the civil war, and military
adviser to Neto since the early days of the movement. In 1978 Carreira
appeared to be the overall commander of forces in addition to his position as
minister of defense although he was not publicly designated as such.

     The military situation in Angola in 1978 in many ways could be a replay
of history taken from almost any period during the past 500 years except that
the actors were different. The MPLA-Labor Party controlled the central
government in Luanda, the coastal area, and certain urban centers in the
interior as the Portuguese colonialists did for many centuries. The
present-day government also lays claim to the entire country as the Portuguese
colonial authorities always did, but its control over much of the country
appears to be tenuous as it often was for the Portuguese.

     Threats to internal security in Angola came from the dissident movements
that opposed the government on political, ethnic, and ideological grounds.
Ordinary crime (nonpolitical) did not seem to constitute a major problem to
the country's police although it was difficult for Western observers to learn
much about the situation. From the little that was known, it seemed that
criminal activities were within acceptable bounds, and under Neto's government
news reports of corruption seemed to be low compared to many other emerging
states. Police forces are national organizations under the supervision of the
Ministry of Defense except for a special security force under the office of
the president. The national police force is the People's Police Corps of
Angola (Corpo de Policia Popular de Angola-CPPA). Its strength in 1978 was
unknown.

Armed Forces

     The Constitutional Law of the People's Republic of Angola (Constitution),
which was promulgated by the MPLA on the day that Angola gained its
independence from Portugal, established the military arm of the MPLA as the
country's armed forces. At that time the MPLA was one of three factions
contending for power, and at independence the two opposing groups formed a
rival republic within the borders of Angola. In the civil war that followed
the MPLA was the ultimate victor, and its constitution eventually became the
law of the land. The military arm of the MPLA, which has been known since
August 1974 as FAPLA, consisted primarily of a guerrilla force at
independence; nevertheless it was institutionalized by the Constitution and
became the national army.

     The mission assigned to the FAPLA by the Constitution is the preservation
of Angola's territorial integrity. The designated commander in chief is the
country's president who, by the terms of the Constitution, is also the
president of the MPLA-Labor Party. The constitutionally stipulated
responsibilities of the commander in chief are limited to the appointment and
dismissal of the officers of the military hierarchy, but his responsibilities
as president include the declaration of war or the making of peace "with
prior authorization from the Council of the Revolution" (see The Governmental
System, ch. 3). The president is also enjoined to "exercise superior
leadership in national defense and security, as commander in chief of the
People's Armed Forces for the Liberation of Angola and chairman of the
National Security Commission." The president's chief aide in national security
affairs is the minister of defense.

     Under the Angolan scheme of government, the People's Assembly "will be
the supreme organ of State Government," and as such it will presumably play an
important role in the making of national defense policy, but until enabling
legislation establishes the composition of the assembly and creates an
electoral system, the Council of the Revolution is the major legislative body
and has among its responsibilities the drawing up of the necessary laws
relating to national defense and internal security. Authorization by the
council is required for the declaration of war o