Botswana’s former President Ian Khama was among those denied entry
Angola faces backlash after denying entry to senior African political figures set to attend a conference hosted by the country’s main opposition party.
Unita, the opposition party, revealed it had invited several prominent politicians, including Tanzanian opposition leader Tundu Lissu, Mozambique’s Venancio Mondlane, and Botswana’s former President Ian Khama, to a summit focused on democracy. Lissu, commenting on the incident on X, called the Angolan government’s actions “inexplicable and unacceptable.”
The BBC reached out to the Angolan government for comment.
A source from the Migration and Aliens Service (SME) claimed that the expulsion occurred due to “irregularities in the visa process,” which reportedly prevented Mondlane and 13 members of his entourage from entering Angola.
Mondlane, who has called for nationwide protests over alleged electoral fraud in Angola’s recent elections, was recently subjected to travel restrictions within Mozambique.
Lissu confirmed that at least 20 political leaders from various African nations were denied entry. He accused the Angolan government of ruling as a dictatorship while claiming to be a democracy.
Lissu, the head of Tanzania’s Chadema party, is a vocal critic of his government and survived an assassination attempt in 2017. He has been living in exile for several years.
Kenyan Senator Edwin Sifuna, from the opposition Orange Democratic Movement, also confirmed being among those denied entry into Angola.
The Platform for African Democrats (Pad), a coalition of opposition parties, stated that delegates from countries including Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, Tanzania, Mozambique, and South Sudan—many of whom had valid visas or were eligible for visas on arrival—were deported. Khama, former Colombian President Andres Pastrana, Zanzibar’s first Vice-President Othman Masoud Othman, and 24 others were detained at the airport for over nine hours without explanation. Although they were eventually released, they missed their connecting flights. Pad noted that the Angolan government had promised to arrange alternative flights, but this never materialized.
In response to the situation, Zanzibar’s main opposition party, ACT Wazalendo, urged the Tanzanian government to immediately summon the Angolan ambassador for a formal explanation as to why the party’s vice president was denied entry.
Mozambican political analyst Tomas Viera Mario described the situation as “strange,” considering Angola’s President Joao Lourenco’s role as the chair of the African Union (AU), and his involvement in hosting peace talks regarding the DR Congo conflict. He added that barring these figures reflected “total contempt” for the AU’s pan-African spirit.
All the deported leaders were part of a delegation invited by Unita to attend the party’s 59th anniversary celebrations in Benguela province. Unita lawmaker Nelito da Costa Ekwiki also condemned the Angolan government’s refusal to allow the opposition leaders to enter.
The Angolan government has long been accused of suppressing dissent to maintain its grip on power.
Additional reporting by Jorge Nsimba in Luanda.