Angola Urged to Look Ahead
Drawing upon the post-Civil War words of Abraham Lincoln, Secretary of State Colin L. Powell on Thursday urged Angola to maintain a cease-fire and make better use of its oil wealth so it can rebuild.
Powell visited the capital for an update on the April accord that ended 27 years of war. He met with President Jose Eduardo dos Santos at the presidential palace and then went to a United Nations joint commission of government ministers and former rebel fighters from UNITA, the Portuguese acronym for National Union for the Total Independence of Angola.
“Reconciliation will not be easy, but it must begin now,” Powell told the group. “The people of Angola have suffered enough.”
“President Lincoln did not discriminate between victors and vanquished; he just saw hurting people who needed to be healed,” Powell said. “This joint commission is not just about ending the war
In Powell’s meeting with Dos Santos, a senior Bush administration official said, the secretary made clear that the U.S. would provide short-term humanitarian assistance but that any long-term help would be only in the form of technical assistance so the country can manage its resources.
He urged Dos Santos to use oil revenue to assist displaced citizens and help former rebels return to society.
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