Angola threatens to jail 51 over separatist march

Luanda – Angola has threatened to jail 51 people for up to six weeks over a protest by campaigners seeking independence for an eastern region of the oil-rich country, activists said on Wednesday.

Police fired on the thousand-strong march staged by the Lunda Chokwe Protectorate (LCP) movement on Saturday in the town of Cuango, 600km east of the capital Luanda, killing one and injuring 13 others.

Cuango is in the north of the vast region that separatists want to see independent which, according to some claims, comprises Angola’s entire eastern half.

The jail time can be avoided if those detained pay a fine.