FFROMROM SSOLDIERSOLDIERS TTOO CCITIZENSITIZENS THE SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL REINTEGRATION OF UNITA EX-COMBATANTS J GOMES PORTO, IMOGEN PARSONS AND CHRIS ALDEN ISS MONOGRAPH SERIES • No 130, MARCH 2007 CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii ABOUT THE AUTHORS v LIST OF ACRONYMS vi INTRODUCTION viii CHAPTER ONE 1 Angola’s Central Highlands: Provincial Characterisation and Fieldwork Review CHAPTER TWO 39 Unita’s Demobilised Soldiers: Portrait of the post-Luena target group CHAPTER THREE 53 The Economic, Social and Political Dimensions of Reintegration: Findings CHAPTER FOUR 79 Surveying for Trends: Correlation of Findings CHAPTER FIVE 109 From Soldiers to Citizens: Concluding Thoughts ENDNOTES 127 BIBLIOGRAPHY 139 ANNEX 145 Survey Questionnaire iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The research and publication of this monograph were made possible by the generous funding of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, and the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI), through the African Security Analysis Programme at the ISS. The project “From Soldiers to Citizens: A study of the social, economic and political reintegration of UNITA ex-combatants in post-war Angola” was developed jointly by the African Security Analysis Programme at ISS, the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), and the Norwegian Institute for International Affairs (NUPI). In addition, the project established a number of partnerships with Angolan non-governmental organisations (NGOs), including Development Workshop (DW), CARE Angola, and the Agency for Cooperation and Research in Development (ACORD). The participation of our Angolan partners was an essential component of the project’s development; their role throughout the project was invaluable. From active and enthusiastic collaboration in the project’s design and planning, to critical research and logistical support in situ; from the participation in the project’s interim workshop in Johannesburg to a review of findings during the project’s last visit to Luanda in July 2005, this project would not have been possible without their support. The authors would like to express their gratitude to Allan Cain, Carlos Figueiredo and Moisés Festo of Development Workshop; Guilherme Santos of ACORD and Douglas Steinberg and Felisberto Ngola of CARE Angola. The authors would like to express their sincere thanks and appreciation to the various organisations and Angolan government departments that participated in the project’s interim workshop in Johannesburg during September 2004. These included Dr José António Martins of the Ministry for Assistance and Social Reintegration (MINARS), Brigadier Domingos Costa and Eduardo Martins of the Institute for the Socio-Professional Reintegration of Former Combatants (IRSEM), Lisa Maier of the World Bank, Olaf Handloegten of GTZ Angola, and General Zacarias Mundombe of the iv From soldiers to citizens Centre for Strategic Studies of Angola (CEEA). The authors would also like to thank Ana Leão for her very useful comments and suggestions made during earlier drafts of this monograph. This monograph is dedicated to Mário Adauta, whose encouragement and insight formed part of our understanding of this complex country. v ABOUT THE AUTHORS Dr João Gomes Porto is a lecturer at the Department of Peace Studies, University of Bradford. In his previous capacity as head of the African Security Analysis Programme at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) he managed a multi-disciplinary team of researchers dedicated to the on- going analysis and provision of policy options on conflict situations in Africa. Prior to joining the ISS in 2002, Dr Porto was a sessional lecturer in Conflict Analysis and Resolution at the University of Reading’s Graduate School of European and International Studies, as well as a teaching assistant at the University of Kent at Canterbury. Dr Porto holds a PhD degree in International Conflict Analysis from the University of Kent at Canterbury. Imogen Parsons is a PhD student at the London School of Economics, in the Department of International Relations. She holds a Masters in Development Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and first class honours in Modern Languages from Cambridge University. She has previously worked in Madagascar and China for Voluntary Services Organisation (VSO) and has travelled extensively in Southern Africa. Dr Chris Alden is a Senior Lecturer at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). Dr Alden has written extensively on disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) issues in Southern Africa, especially with respect to Mozambique, and has conducted research consultancies on the topic for GTZ, as well as having received a US Institute for Peace grant and a MacArthur Post-Doctoral Fellowship at Cambridge University. He is also the author of, amongst others, “Lessons from the Reintegration of Demobilised Soldiers in Mozambique”, Security Dialogue, 33 (30), 2002, and “The Issue of the Military: UN demobilisation, disarmament and reintegration in Southern Africa”, International Peacekeeping, 3 (2), 1996. Dr Alden lectured on conflict and Africa at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, from 1990 to 2000. vi LIST OF ACRONYMS ACORD Agency for Cooperation and Research in Development ADRA Agency for Rural Development and the Environment ADRP Angola Demobilisation and Reintegration Programme CEEA Centre for Strategic Studies of Angola DD&R Demobilisation, Disarmament and Reintegration DW Development Workshop FAA Angolan Armed Forces FAEM National Entrepreneur Support Fund FAS Social Support Fund FDES Economic and Social Support Fund FMU UNITA’s Military Forces FNLA National Front for the Liberation of Angola IDP Internally Displaced Person INEFOP National Institute for Employment and Training IRSEM Institute for the Socio-professional Reintegration of Former Combatants JMC Joint Military Commission MDRP Multi-country Demobilisation and Reintegration Programme J Gomes Porto, Imogen Parsons and Chris Alden vii MINARS Ministry for Assistance and Social Reintegration MPLA Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola MSF Médicins sans Frontières (Doctors without Borders) OCHA Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN) PAR Rehabilitation Support Programme PIP Public Investment Programme SSR Security Sector Reform UNITA National Union for the Total Independence of Angola viii INTRODUCTION Demilitarisation in the Angolan Context We need to disarm in our minds first. We need agreement on what kind of life we want to live, what kind of society we want, what kind of nation we want to be. We believe that the war as such is an expression of the frustration and other motives that are in people’s minds. That physical confrontation only takes place when the confrontation within the mind no longer has space. So it is important that [after] silencing the guns, we get to the stage where we can talk about the real issue[s] that brought conflict between us. Many Angolans, especially those younger ones who were born in the 70s and 80s, know nothing else except the war. So the only mentality they have is how to eliminate others to keep [themselves] alive and how to survive the troubles that the war brings. So, we have to make sure that people don’t think that’s the normal way of life, that there is a proper way of living without conflict.1 Demilitarisation of conflict and society is crucial to building sustainable peace in countries emerging from the scourge of civil war. As longstanding conflicts come to an end, a variety of approaches are adopted by national governments and international agencies aimed at supporting processes that facilitate this potentially volatile transition from formal peace to social peace. At the heart of the exercise is the necessity of transforming the culture and the instruments of war – in particular, demobilising, disarming and reintegrating former combatants into society as well as ridding the wider society of arms. The experiences of controlled processes of demobilisation, disarmament and reintegration (DD&R) in the past two decades have demonstrated that DD&R must per force be regarded as a tool of development aid. This is particularly true as regards programmes for the reintegration of former combatants into society, “no longer merely seen as a humanitarian issue but…recognised as a vital element of conflict prevention and a critical precondition of any security sector reform”.2 J Gomes Porto, Imogen Parsons and Chris Alden ix While the process of societal demilitarisation must stem from a commitment by all to an end to using violent means in the resolution of disputes (most importantly by the leadership of armed movements), if it is to lead to sustainable peace, a deeper commitment at a socio-political level amongst those individuals (perpetrators of conflict) and communities (supporters or victims of conflict) to move beyond the identities and emblems which serve to perpetuate violence is critical. Moreover, the emergence of a new social contract in post-war societies is a vital step towards re-legitimising (in many instances, creating) the institutions and culture of good governance, of which democratic elections are a critical threshold. These can serve as a litmus test of the degree of reconciliation in a post-conflict situation. In addition, genuine demilitarisation is only possible when all constituent elements of society are able to function fully as citizens. Former combatants,