Returning home to normal life? The plight of displaced Angolans

One of the most tragic consequences of the 27 year long civil conflict in Angola was that over 4 million civilians were forced to leave their homeland

Amongst all the atrocities of war, one of the most tragic consequences of the 27 year long civil conflict in Angola was that over 4 million of civilians were forced to leave their homelands searching for safe havens elsewhere in the country and becoming internally displaced persons (IDPs). The 4th of April 2002, date of the ceasefire signed by the Angolan Army (Forças Armadas de Angola) and the UNITA military forces (Forças Militares da União National para Independência Total de Angola UNITA–FMU) represented the most evident sign of hope for those people to return home and rebuild a normal life.

The paper analyses what happened in those 18 months including governmental policies, the contribution of the international community and the difficulties encountered by the returning populations. It finally identifies the most urgent priorities to be met by the competent actors involved, in light of the ultimate goal of securing a lasting peace.

About the author

Andrea Lari graduated in Human Rights Protection of Guatemalan Refugees in Southern Mexico at the Faculty of Political Science at the University of Bologna, Italy. Lari worked in Angola with the Jesuit Refugees Service, being Country Director from 1998 until 2000. He was the Angola researcher for Human Rights Watch until May 2003 focusing primarily on protection concerns affecting Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and is currently working as an Advocate with Refugees International.