National Liberation Front of Angola
National Liberation Front of Angola Frente Nacional de Libertação de Angola | ||
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National Assembly 2 / 220 | ||
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The National Front for the Liberation of Angola (Portuguese: Frente Nacional de Libertação de Angola; abbreviated FNLA) is a political party and former militant organisation that fought for Angolan independence from Portugal in the war of independence, under the leadership of Holden Roberto.
Founded in 1954 as the União dos Povos do Norte de Angola guerrilla movement, it was known after 1959 as the União dos Povos de Angola (UPA) guerrilla movement, and from 1961 as the FNLA guerilla movement.
Ahead of the first multiparty elections in 1992, the FNLA was reorganized as a political party. The FNLA received 2.4% of the votes and had five Members of Parliament elected. In the
History
Origin
In 1954, the United People of Northern Angola (UPNA) was formed as a separatist movement for the Bakongo tribe who wished to re-establish its 16th-century feudal kingdom but was also a protest movement against forced labour.[4]: 4 [5]: 138 Holden Roberto was to be the king of that land.[4]: 4
By 1958, the organisation's name had been changed to the "União das Populações de Angola" (UPA) under Holden Roberto who came from São Salvador, Bakongo, Northern Angola with the newly named organisation described as an ethnic political movement.[6]: 224 In March 1961, the UPA began an uprising in the north massacring thousands of white settlers and servants, most of the Bailundo southern ethnicity, "assimilados", African Catholics and tribal members other than the Bakongo tribe, men, women and children.[4]: 4 [5]: 138 The Portuguese government respond by sending soldiers to Angola and more than 50,000 people would die in the violence by the end of 1961.[6]: 222 It was said more than a million refugees fled the north of Angola for Zaire.[5]: 138
In an attempt to become a national political movement, it merged with the "Partido Democratico de Angola" (PDA) to form the "Frente Nacional de Libertação de Angola" (FNLA).[6]: 224 By February 1962, the FNLA had merged into an organisation called the Angolan Revolutionary Government in Exile (GRAE) with Roberto as its President and Jonas Savimbi as its foreign minister, based in Kinshasa, Zaire. It was recognised by the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) as Angola's only freedom movement until 1971.[6]: 224 [5]: 138 Its core membership were Angolan refugees and expatriates in Zaire.[6]: 224
Foreign aid
The United States government began aiding the FNLA in 1961 during the
Break up of GRAE
By July 1964, GRAE's right as the only liberation movement was challenged with the resignation of the Congolese Prime Minister Cyrille Adoula, their backer, and the departure of Jonas Savimbi, who would go on to form his own liberation movement UNITA because of Roberto's dictatorial leadership, unwillingness to accept non-western support and a lack of a political program.[6]: 225–6 [5]: 138 Roberto would see off a "coup d'état" in June 1965 by his defence minister and in November of the same year, his brother-in-law, Mobutu Sese Seko, took control of the Congo (later Zaire) in a coup.[6]: 226 But by 1968, GRAE's unity had begun to disintegrate.
Nixon's policy to Angola
On President Richard Nixon, assuming office in 1969, he ordered a review of the United States policy towards Angola as well as South Africa and Rhodesia. In January 1970, National Security Council Study Memorandum 39 was adopted, which acknowledged that the white regimes in those countries should not be politically and economically isolated and that engaging them was the best means of achieving changes in their systems.[13]: 773 This meant a reduction in aid to the FNLA.[13]: 773
Coup in Portugal
In late 1972, the FNLA concluded a ceasefire with the MPLA, which was being attacked by the former in northwest Angola and by the Portuguese in the northeast.[4]: 7 [additional citation(s) needed] A condition of the ceasefire was it needed more arms as it had no US aid apart from Roberto's CIA retainer, and Neto spoke to the Tanzanians who interceded with the Chinese government.[4]: 8 After all groups met the Chinese, the FNLA received military aid and training from early 1973 until the fall of 1974, and then only diplomatic aid thereafter.[4]: 8 In April 1974, a military coup occurred in Portugal with a later announcement of future independence for its colonies which began the process by the FNLA, MPLA and UNITA in attempting to strengthen their reach throughout Angola and resulted in conflict amongst each other.[4]: 8 The Romanian government delivered arms to the FNLA in August 1974.[14] In August 1974, the Portuguese Angolan government had proposed a two-year plan for independence with the three groups and white settlers forming a coalition government but this was rejected outright.[6]: 227 In order to end the conflict amongst the groups, individual ceasefires were arranged between the groups and the Portuguese Angolan Military Council, with the FNLA signing on 15 October 1974 that allowed it and the other three liberation parties to set up political offices in Luanda.[6]: 226–7 By 25 November 1974, a ceasefire was concluded between the FNLA and UNITA and with the MPLA on 18 December.[6]: 229
Ford's policy to Angola
When
Africa's attempt to mediate
The increasing violence would result in the gathering of the FNLA and the other two parties in
Transitional government's failure
Within 24 hours of the Alvor Agreement, fighting broke out in Luanda amongst the FNLA and MPLA with further violence on 23 March when the MPLAs Lopo do Nascimento was subject to an assassination attempt by the FNLA.[15]: 59 The transitional government's failure to work was also said to be the result of a lack of interest by the Portuguese government in Angola as it tackled a failed counter-coup in Lisbon by General Spinola and the lack of will of the Portuguese troops to serve in Angola and end the violence between the MPLA and FNLA.[15]: 59 The final straw was the dismissal in August of the Portuguese High Commissioner Antonio da Silva Cardoso whose attempt to reign in the MPLA had the support of the FNLA.[15]: 59 The FNLA saw its only alternative as a military one after having been expelled from Luanda.[15]: 59 On 29 August 1975, the Alvor Agreement was suspended by Portugal except for independence in November, and withdrawal of its troops that signal an escalation of violence for the control of Angola prior to that date.[15]: 60
US covert aid to the FNLA increases
The US government did not believe the Portuguese plan would work and that the MPLA would seize power and install a Soviet-backed regime in power.
South Africans enter the civil war
On the pretext of attacks around the Calueque hydroelectric facility, the South Africans army would enter Angola to defend its interests in the facility and would develop into Operation Savannah to assist the FNLA and UNITA to gain as much control of southern and central Angola prior to independence day in November.[15]: 70 The US appeared to give the green light for the South Africans covert invasion but this would soon change as their involvement became public knowledge, the US would distance themselves.[15]: 70 The South Africans would advance close to Luanda from the south while a small force of South African artillery and advisors would support the FNLA in the north.
FNLA attacks Luanda
Without the control of Luanda on independence day, Roberto saw that the FNLA's international legitimacy would be in doubt.[15]: 86 The only 'suitable' attack on Luanda was from the north through Quifangondo.[15]: 88 Attacks were carried out by the FNLA on 5 and 8 November 1975 but were repulsed each time by the MPLA.[15]: 88 With independence day looming on 11 November 1975, Roberto gave the final order to attack Quifangondo on 10 November unaware that the Cubans had reinforced the positions with troops and new Soviet equipment.[15]: 88 Roberto would claim the South African were sending men to help him while the South Africans claimed they warned against a frontal assault but whatever the real story was, the FNLA's final assault on what became known as the Battle of Quifangondo failed disastrously.[15]: 89–90 The MPLA retained Luanda, and Angola gained independence from the Portuguese High Commissioner with Neto declaring the People's Republic of Angola.[15]: 91 The FNLA would continue its fight inside Angola for another four months.[15]: 91
US aid ceases
On 6 November 1975, CIA Director
FNLA retreats from Angola
The MPLA and Cubans would maintain the initiative in Northern Angola after the defeat of the FNLA at Quifangondo with the advances on
Military demise of the FNLA
On 29 February 1976, the Angolan President Agostinho Neto and Zairian President Mobuto Sese Seko met in Brazzaville to sign a non-aggression pact which was meant to see the end of Angola's support for Katangese rebels in their country while the Zairians promised to expel both the FNLA and UNITA from bases in Zaire but the deal did not hold and the Shaba I invasion would occur in March 1977.[15]: 117–8 The Shaba II invasion of the Zairian Shaba Province in May 1978, by separatists based in eastern Angola, was the beginning of the end for the FNLA based in Zaire.[15]: 136 The Angolan President Neto and Zairian President Mobuto Sese Seko would meet again in Brazzaville during June 1978 where a reconciliation pact was signed between the two countries.[17]: 13 The result of this pact saw Holden Roberto exiled to Gabon by the Zairian President in November 1979 while he was in France for medical treatment.[15]: 138 [17]: 13 Elements of the FNLA would continue the fight after Roberto left, now called the FNLA-COMIRA (Angolan Military Resistance Committee) but ceased to exist by 1983.[15]: 138
Electoral history
Presidential elections
Election | Party candidate | Votes | % | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1992 | Holden Roberto | 83,135 | 2.11% | Lost |
2012 | Ngola Kabangu | 65,163 | 1.13% | Lost |
2017 | 63,658 | 0.93% | Lost | |
2022 | 66,337 | 1.06% | Lost |
National Assembly elections
Election | Party leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | Position | Outcome |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1992 | Holden Roberto | 94,742 | 2.40% | 5 / 220
|
New | 4th | Opposition |
2008
|
Ngola Kabangu | 71,416 | 1.11% | 3 / 220
|
2 | 4th | Opposition |
2012
|
65,163 | 1.13% | 2 / 220
|
1 | 5th | Opposition | |
2017
|
63,658 | 0.93% | 1 / 220
|
1 | 5th | Opposition | |
2022
|
66,337 | 1.06% | 2 / 220
|
1 | 4th | Opposition |
See also
- Revolutionary Government of Angola in Exile
- African independence movements
- Luanda Trial
- "Colonel" Callan
- James George Butler "major" Angolan War mercenary
- Charlie Christodoulou, Angolan War mercenary
- Peter McAleese, Angolan War mercenary
- Angolan Civil War
- Lucas Ngonda
References
- ^ a b Projet de Societé Archived 2010-08-05 at the Wayback Machine, official FNLA website (French and Portuguese)
- ^ Consulado Geral de Angola Archived 2013-11-03 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ National Electoral Commission website (in Portuguese).
- ^ S2CID 147031567.
- ^ JSTOR 721234.
- ^ JSTOR 24349794.
- ^ a b AlʻAmin Mazrui, Ali (1977). The Warrior Tradition in Modern Africa. pp. 226–228.
- ^ Wright, George (1997). The Destruction of a Nation: United States Policy Towards Angola Since 1945. p. 9.
- ^ Liberia and Independent Africa, 1940s To 2012: A Brief Political Profile, 2013. p. 7.
- ISBN 9780802140685.
- ISBN 9780394559223.
- ^ B. MacDonald, Scott (1993). European Destiny, Atlantic Transformations: Portuguese Foreign Policy Under the Second Republic: 1974–1992. p. 56.
- ^ JSTOR 27551153.
- ^ Wright (1997). The Destruction of a Nation. p. 57.
- ^ ISBN 978-0415350150.
- ^ JSTOR 42759853.
- ^ JSTOR 42760744.
Further reading
- Chris Dempster, Fire Power (first-hand account of foreign mercenaries fighting on the side of the FNLA) [1]
- Peter McAleese, No Mean Soldier
External links
- (in Portuguese and French) National Liberation Front of Angola
- National Front for the Liberation of Angola profile at the START terrorism database