| Russia: international scientific
and practical conference marks the 3d Anniversary of Peace and
national reconciliation in Angola
Yesterday (on Wednesday) Moscow hosted the
International scientific and practical conference devoted to
the 4th of April - the Day of Peace and National Reconciliation
in Angola and to the 60th Anniversary of the victory of soviet
people over Nazi fascism in the Second World War.
Arranged by the Embassy of Angola in Russia, the forum debated
reports came out by speakers representing different countries,
among them, as outstanding, speeches of Angolan generals Geraldo
Abreu Muhengo “Kamorteiro”, deputy Chief of General Staff on
Administration, Antonio Francisco de Andrade, General Director
of the Institute of social and professional reintegration of
ex-military servicemen (IRSEM) and Jeronimo Jorge Ukuma “Regresso”,
National Director of Defense Policy of the Ministry of Defense.
Along his speech the general Kamorteiro, one of signatories
of the Memorandum about Additional Agreement to the Protocol
of Lusaka, stated that the end of war is victory of all Angolans
and that Motherland is ahead of private or party interests.
He highlighted the engagement of the President of the Republic
of Angola Jose Eduardo dos Santos "who did everything to
keep tongues hold, to make souls' dialog louder and to bring
patriotic military men, morally supported by the entire nation,
to sign on the 4th of April of 2002 the Protocol of Definitive
Peace, unprecedented in Africa".
On his turn, general Antonio Andrade made a detailed overview
of the policy of Angolan government aimed to the integration
of former military servicemen in the social life.
He clarified that the General Program of Demobilization and
Reintegration (PGDR) is a basic instrument to carry out three
huge political actions tending the release of about 105 thousand
soldiers of ex-military force of UNITA and 33 thousand of the
Angolan Armed Forces (FAA) servicemen, the support to the social
and economic re-integration of all demobilized personnel, as
well as relocation of Angolan government expenses from military
to social and economic sectors.
Relating the topic "Long Steps-Road to the National Reconstruction"
general Jeronimo Ukuma "Regresso" stated that the
success of the desire passes also through the choice of deserved
and balanced international partners, open for mutually advantageous
institutional and business cooperation with Angola, turned to
its economic recovery for the benefit of sustained development
of the country.
During the conference other relevant topics were debated, such
as "Cuba and its Contribution to the Guarantee of Sovereignty
and Independence of Angola", by the Ambassador Jorge Marti
Martinez, and "Russian-Angolan Cooperation in Mining",
by Evgueni Romanko, expert of "Zarubezhgeologia" -
enterprise linked to the ministry of natural resources of Russia.
One of issues entitled "The Decisive Role of Progressive
Forces in the Struggle for Liberation of Angola and the Influence
of the USSR/Russia on the Defense of Angolan People's Gains
in the International Scene" pronounced by the Assistant
Director of the Institute of Africa of the Russian Academy of
Science Vladimir Shubin was followed by audience with particular
interest.
Shubin revealed little known events which marked the history
of relations between Angola and ex-USSR having recalled as well
the part played by the former socialist power to bring the United
Nations to approve in 60-s of the XX century the Declaration
about Independence of colonized countries and peoples.
Summarizing the balance of three years of peace in Angola the
Ambassador Roberto Leal Monteiro “Ngongo” found it positive,
emphasizing the fact that more than 3 million of migrants had
returned to their native lands, the same way as more than 200
thousand refugees settled before in neighbor countries.
Referring the statistic data the diplomat focused the attention
on the inflation, still relatively high at the moment, however
showing the tendency to decrease, having diminished for the
first time to 2-digits' index, 76,57% in 2003, falling to 31,01%
in 2004, while further drop to 12,2% due to actual economic
growth, is expected.
"What we do observe is that peace brought to Angola not
only hopes, rather certainty of its incentive impact on the
development of the whole society, and although its value cannot
be expressed in common measures, without peace technical and
economic wealth-creating process cannot go ahead", the
head of Angolan diplomatic mission in Russia stressed.
The celebration of the Day of Peace and National Reconciliation
involved also a variety of political and cultural activities
hold among the Angolan community in Russian cities of Moscow,
Voronezh and Rostov-on-Don, as well as in Kiev, the capital
of Ukraine.
Press-center of Angola Embassy in Russia
27.05.2005
Embassy of Republic of Angola, 2005
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