Angola: Stones of death

The Angolan government should put an immediate end to the climate of impunity and terror that exists in the diamond rich Lundas provinces in north-eastern Angola and restore human dignity and the socio-economic integration of local people. For their part, diamond mining companies should respect human rights and prevent acts that violate people's rights and freedoms on the part of the security companies which are contracted to them.

These are some of the recommendations contained in a report 'Lundas – The stones of death: Angola's deadly diamonds', which details human rights abuses in the Lunda provinces of Angola. The report says the entire area constitutes diamond bearing reserve zones, of which tens of thousands of hectares have been granted in mining concessions. It shows how the concessions limit the free circulation of people.

“In practice, villages located in the diamond concession zones are forbidden. Populations of villages that fall within a concession zone are uprooted and forced to relocate to other areas, without any support from the authorities or from the concessionaires, and the land that the people traditionally worked and which belongs them is stolen without any compensation."

The report was conducted by Rafael Marques, freelance journalist , and Rui Falcão de Campos, a lawyer.

* Compiled from the report by Pambazuka News.