Human Lives Human Rights: Amnesty International has called for the immediate release of Angolan TikToker Ana da Silva Miguel, aka Neth Nahara, who has spent one year in prison for criticizing President João Lourenço in a TikTok video. The organization’s Deputy Regional Director for East and Southern Africa, Vongai Chikwanda, condemned the arbitrary detention and the Angolan authorities’ abuse of the penal code to silence peaceful dissent.
“Neth Nahara’s conviction of committing an ‘outrage against the state’ is absurd, while her sentence was extended from six months to two years after a flawed appeals process,” Chikwanda said. “The Angolan authorities are abusing the penal code to try to silence peaceful dissent. Indeed, Angola’s constitution explicitly protects free expression, which includes voicing political views on social media.”
The 26-year-old Neth Nahara was arrested on August 13, 2023, after posting a live video on TikTok criticizing President Lourenço. She was initially sentenced to six months in prison and fined approximately 1,200 USD. The sentence was later extended to two years after a flawed appeal process. During her imprisonment, authorities denied her daily HIV medication for eight months.
Amnesty International is also calling for the release of four other individuals who have been arbitrarily detained for more than ten months solely for the peaceful exercise of their human rights to protest and expression. The four activists—Adolfo Campos, Hermenegildo Victor José AKA Gildo das Ruas, Abraão Pedro Santos AKA Pensador, and Gilson Moreira AKA Tanaice Neutro—have been in prison since September 16, 2023, after attempting to join a demonstration in Luanda.
The organization demands that the Angolan authorities respect the right to freedom of expression and release all individuals who have been detained for exercising their fundamental rights.
