November 9, 2007:
The government is still dealing
with the political after-effects of its long-running civil war with the
National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) and the National
Front for the Liberation of Angola (FNLA). That was a complex struggle. For
example, the US and South Africa backed UNITA, while Communist China backed the
FNLA. The Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola, (MPLA), the faction
which won the civil war, had Russian and East German support. The Cold War
sputtered to a close but Angola's civil war didn't end until 2002. Oil income
has helped ease the transition to peace, at least somewhat. Angola is now
America's sixth largest supplier of oil. From January through April 2007 Angola
exported over 68 million barrels of oil to the US. However, former UNITA
supporters claim that their tribes are not getting a fair cut of the oil
revenues. That may well be.
What is certain is that Angola's Cabinda Province
isn't getting its fair share. Cabinda is Angola's biggest strategic asset and
its biggest strategic problem. For starters, Cabinda is cut-off from the rest
of Angola by a strip of Congolese territory. Cabinda's population also differs
ethnically and linguistically from the rest of Angola. Historically, Cabinda
wasn't tacked on to Portugal's Angolan colony until 1885. A majority of
Cabindans speak French, not Portuguese (the lingua franca of Angola). By one
estimate, Cabinda pumped (literally) over four billion dollars worth of oil
royalties into the Angolan government's bank accounts. Cabindans claim they
definitely don't get a fair share of the sales of their own natural resources.
The Front for the Liberation of the Cabinda Enclave FLEC) is still active in
the province, though the province is heavily "occupied" by Angolan military
forces. The FLEC is militarily weak but is still a nasty political thorn. In
1977 the FLEC declared an independent Republic of Cabinda. The FLEC also
appears to have the allegiance of a large number of native Cabindans.