114-583: Jonas Malheiro Savimbi ( Portuguese: [ˈʒɔnɐʃ ˈsavĩbi] ; 3 August 1934 – 22 February 2002) was an Angolan revolutionary, politician, and rebel military leader who founded and led the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola ( UNITA ). UNITA was one of several groups which waged a guerrilla war against Portuguese colonial rule from 1966 to 1974. Once independence was achieved, it then became an anti-communist group which confronted
228-673: A Marxist–Leninist one-party state . It embarked on an ambitious programme of nationalisation , and the domestic private sector was essentially abolished. Privately owned enterprises were nationalised and incorporated into a single umbrella of state-owned enterprises known as Unidades Economicas Estatais (UEE). Under the MPLA, Angola experienced a significant degree of modern industrialisation . However, corruption and graft also increased and public resources were either allocated inefficiently or simply embezzled by officials for personal enrichment. The ruling party survived an attempted coup d'état by
342-473: A camp in Damba , where 26% died. Under colonial law, black Angolans were forbidden from forming political parties or labour unions. The first nationalist movements did not take root until after World War II , spearheaded by a largely Westernised and Portuguese-speaking urban class, which included many mestiços . During the early 1960s they were joined by other associations stemming from ad hoc labour activism in
456-583: A devastating civil war the same year, between the ruling People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), backed by the Soviet Union and Cuba ; the insurgent National Union for the Total Independence of Angola , an originally Maoist and later anti-communist group supported by the United States and South Africa ; the militant organization National Liberation Front of Angola , backed by Zaire ; and
570-539: A larger audience (general public), in January, May, and September. Besides these, L'auditoire is the students' newspapers from both UNIL and EPFL, with a circulation of 19,000. In 2011, an on-line network of the UNIL alumni, called ALUMNIL, was created. Since then, regular events (throughout the year) and an annual party (in autumn) are organised every year for the alumni. Neoclassical school of thought in economics founded at
684-584: A leadership position in the MPLA by joining the MPLA Youth in the early 1960s. He was rebuffed by the MPLA, and joined forces with the National Liberation Front of Angola (FNLA) in 1964. The same year, he conceived UNITA with Antonio da Costa Fernandes . Savimbi went to China for help and was promised arms and military training. Upon returning to Angola in 1966, he launched UNITA and began his career as an anti-Portuguese guerrilla fighter. He also fought
798-643: A letter to Roberto putting himself at his service, which was taken in person to New York by Mboya. Upon his return to Switzerland, Roberto telephoned him. They met in Léopoldville (Kinshasa) in December 1960, and left immediately for the United States. It was the first of many visits. There are considerable differences in the source material about the date of Savimbi's official induction into the UPA. Fred Bridgland , who wrote
912-484: A man who exuded power and leadership. We can't forget that for a large segment of the population, UNITA represented something." He was survived by "several wives and dozens of children", the latter numbering at least 25. Savimbi is a minor character in Call of Duty: Black Ops II , a video game that was released in 2012. Savimbi is voiced by Robert Wisdom . Three of Savimbi’s children took issue with Savimbi's representation in
1026-756: A much-cited biography of Savimbi, says that Savimbi was "inducted into the UPA" on 1 February 1961. Nonetheless, he may not have officially joined the UPA until late 1961. It certainly seems that Savimbi was not in the inner circle of UPA activists in early 1961. He took no part in planning the uprising of March 1961, nor did he participate in it. Savimbi stayed in Léopoldville until the end of March 1961, then went to Switzerland to prepare for examinations. He may have failed, for he abandoned medical studies in Fribourg, and in December 1961 enrolled at Lausanne University in Law and International Politics. By September 1961, Africans from
1140-538: A new peace accord. Savimbi declined the vice-presidency that was offered to him and again renewed fighting in 1998. Savimbi also reportedly purged those within UNITA whom he saw as threats to his leadership or as questioning his strategic course. According to Fred Bridgland , Savimbi's foreign secretary Tito Chingunji and much of his family, possibly numbering more than 60, were murdered in 1991 after Savimbi suspected that Chingunji had been in secret, unapproved negotiations with
1254-619: A number of organizers who created the UNEA, (União Nacional dos Estudantes Angolanos) in March 1962 at Lucerne, Switzerland. Savimbi was elected Secretary-General. Savimbi participated in UPA activities while continuing to study in Switzerland. He traveled widely on behalf of the organization: to Yugoslavia for the first Non-Aligned Movement Summit in September 1961, with Holden Roberto, and on to New York for
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#17328688236181368-648: A possible military victory. Signaling the concern that the Soviet Union was placing on Savimbi's advance in Angola, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev raised the Angolan war with Reagan during numerous U.S.-Soviet summits. In addition to meeting with Reagan, Savimbi also met with Reagan's successor, George H. W. Bush , who promised Savimbi "all appropriate and effective assistance." In January 1990 and again in February 1990, Savimbi
1482-465: A power base among a large expatriate community from related families, clans, and traditions. People on both sides of the border spoke mutually intelligible dialects and enjoyed shared ties to the historical Kingdom of Kongo. Though as foreigners skilled Angolans could not take advantage of Mobutu Sese Seko 's state employment programme, some found work as middlemen for the absentee owners of various lucrative private ventures. The migrants eventually formed
1596-717: A power-hungry warmonger, and his American and other allies calling him a critical figure in the West's bid to win the Cold War. As U.S. support began to flow liberally and leading U.S. conservatives championed his cause, Savimbi won major strategic advantages in the late 1980s, and again in the early 1990s, after having taken part unsuccessfully in the general elections of 1992 . As a consequence, Moscow and Havana began to reevaluate their engagement in Angola, as Soviet and Cuban fatalities mounted and Savimbi's ground control increased. By 1989, UNITA held total control of several limited areas, but
1710-576: A precedent for the bitter factional strife which would later ignite the Angolan Civil War . Throughout the war of independence, the three rival nationalist movements were severely hampered by political and military factionalism, as well as their inability to unite guerrilla efforts against the Portuguese. Between 1961 and 1975 the MPLA, UNITA, and the FNLA competed for influence in the Angolan population and
1824-596: A result of protective tariffs , leading to increased development, and a wave of new Portuguese immigrants. Between 1939 and 1943, Portuguese army operations against the Mucubal, who they accused of rebellion and cattle-thieving, resulted in hundreds of Mucubal killed. During the campaign, 3,529 were taken prisoner, 20% of whom were women and children, and imprisoned in concentration camps. Many died in captivity from undernourishment, violence and forced labor. Around 600 were sent to Sao Tome and Principe . Hundreds were also sent to
1938-529: A run-off election was scheduled. In late October 1992, Savimbi dispatched UNITA Vice President Jeremias Chitunda and UNITA senior advisor Elias Salupeto Pena to Luanda to negotiate the details of the run-off election. On 2 November 1992 in Luanda, Chitunda and Pena's convoy was attacked by government forces and they were both pulled from their car and shot dead. Their bodies were taken by government authorities and never seen again. The MPLA offensive against UNITA and
2052-567: A skirmish in the Moxico province . UNITA and the MPLA consented to the Luena Memorandum of Understanding in April; UNITA agreed to give up its armed wing. With the elections in 2008 and 2012 , an MPLA-ruled dominant-party system emerged, with UNITA and the FNLA as opposition parties. Angola has a serious humanitarian crisis; the result of the prolonged war, of the abundance of minefields , and
2166-418: A thousand Cuban soldiers in the country. They were kept supplied by a massive airbridge carried out with Soviet aircraft. The persistent buildup of Cuban and Soviet military aid allowed the MPLA to drive its opponents from Luanda and blunt an abortive intervention by Zairean and South African troops, which had deployed in a belated attempt to assist the FNLA and UNITA. The FNLA was largely annihilated after
2280-540: A wide curriculum including exchange programs with other universities. Together with the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) the university forms a vast campus at the shores of Lake Geneva . The university was founded in 1537 as the Schola Lausannensis , one year after Bern annexed the territory of Barony of Vaud from the Duchy of Savoy , as a school of theology with the purpose of training pastors for
2394-434: A witchcraft ritual. Bridgland also stated that Aurora Katalayo (widow of UNITA leader Mateus Katalayo, whom Savimbi had allegedly killed a few years earlier) and her four-year old son were burned alive, accused of witchcraft. After surviving more than six assassination attempts, and having been reported dead at least 17 times, Savimbi was killed on 22 February 2002, in a battle with Angolan government troops along riverbanks in
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#17328688236182508-471: Is also equipped with a bicycle sharing system . The university campus is made up of individual buildings with a park and arboretum in between. The university library also serves as eating hall and is centrally located. The view from the library across the sports fields to the lake of Geneva and the French and Swiss Alps . On a clear day, Mont Blanc can be seen. The Swiss Institute of Comparative Law and
2622-445: Is around 53% of the total land area, equivalent to 66,607,380 hectares (ha) of forest in 2020, down from 79,262,780 hectares (ha) in 1990. In 2020, naturally regenerating forest covered 65,800,190 hectares (ha) and planted forest covered 807,200 hectares (ha). Of the naturally regenerating forest 40% was reported to be primary forest (consisting of native tree species with no clearly visible indications of human activity) and around 3% of
2736-743: Is consistently ranked among the top 100 universities in the world. Between 2010 and 2018, the Leiden Ranking (CWTS) ranked the University of Lausanne 57th-98th globally, and 15th-38th among all universities in Europe. According to the Times Higher Education World University Rankings (THE), the University of Lausanne ranked 62nd in life sciences worldwide (4th in Switzerland) in 2017. The QS World University Rankings (QS) placed
2850-686: Is presently situated outside the city of Lausanne , on the shores of Lake Léman , in Dorigny . It is adjacent to the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL) and is served by the Lausanne Metro Line 1 (M1) . The two schools together welcome about 20,000 students. The UNIL and the EPFL share an active sports centre located on the campus, on the shores of Lake Geneva and their campus
2964-675: Is the second-largest Lusophone ( Portuguese-speaking ) country in both total area and population and is the seventh-largest country in Africa . It is bordered by Namibia to the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Zambia to the east, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Angola has an exclave province, the province of Cabinda , that borders the Republic of the Congo and
3078-476: The Atlantic slave trade continued until after Brazil's independence in the 1820s. Despite Portugal's territorial claims in Angola, its control over much of the country's vast interior was minimal. In the 16th century Portugal gained control of the coast through a series of treaties and wars. Life for European colonists was difficult and progress was slow. John Iliffe notes that "Portuguese records of Angola from
3192-780: The Benguela Railway , and raised in Chilesso, in the same province. Savimbi's father, Lote, was a stationmaster on Angola's Benguela railway line and a preacher of the Protestant Igreja Evangélica Congregacional de Angola (Evangelical Congregational Church of Angola) , founded and maintained by American missionaries. Both his parents were members of the Bieno group of the Ovimbundu , the people who later served as Savimbi's major political base. In his early years, Savimbi
3306-630: The Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda seeking the independence of the Cabinda exclave, also backed by Zaire. Since the end of the civil war in 2002, Angola has emerged as a relatively stable constitutional republic , and its economy is among the fastest-growing in the world, with China , the European Union , and the United States being the country's largest investment and trade partners. However,
3420-461: The Kwanza River in the south. The Portuguese established their primary early trading post at Soyo , which is now the northernmost city in Angola apart from the Cabinda exclave . Paulo Dias de Novais founded São Paulo de Loanda ( Luanda ) in 1575 with a hundred families of settlers and four hundred soldiers. Benguela was fortified in 1587 and became a township in 1617. An authoritarian state,
3534-708: The Ludwig Cancer Research branch of the University of Lausanne and the WHO Immunology Research and Training Centre and some laboratories of the University Hospital of Lausanne are located in Épalinges . The Biopôle was built next to the Épalinges campus. The Faculty of Biology and Medicine also comprises a fourth site, the Psychiatric Hospital of Cery , in Prilly . The University of Lausanne
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3648-524: The Maoist -oriented Communist Organisation of Angola (OCA) in 1977, which was suppressed after a series of bloody political purges left thousands of OCA supporters dead. The MPLA abandoned its former Marxist ideology at its third party congress in 1990, and declared social democracy to be its new platform. Angola subsequently became a member of the International Monetary Fund ; restrictions on
3762-546: The Republic of the Congo , and Gabon . It established trade routes with other city-states and civilisations up and down the coast of southwestern and western Africa. Its traders even reached Great Zimbabwe and the Mutapa Empire , although the kingdom engaged in little or no trans-oceanic trade. To its south lay the Kingdom of Ndongo , from which the area of the later Portuguese colony was sometimes known as Dongo . Next to that
3876-700: The Southern African Development Community . As of 2023 , the Angolan population is estimated at 37.2 million. Angolan culture reflects centuries of Portuguese influence, namely the predominance of the Portuguese language and of the Catholic Church , intermingled with a variety of indigenous customs and traditions. The name Angola comes from the Portuguese colonial name Reino de Angola ('Kingdom of Angola'), which appeared as early as Paulo Dias de Novais 's 1571 charter. The toponym
3990-489: The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL) . Among others, this led to the transfer of the sections of Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry from the university to the EPFL; the funds that were made available following this transfer were invested in the development of the life sciences at the university, including the creation of a Center for Integrative Genomics. In 2003, two new faculties were founded, concentrating on
4104-612: The United Arab Republic . The MPLA attempted to move its headquarters from Conakry to Léopoldville in October 1961, renewing efforts to create a common front with the FNLA, then known as the Union of Angolan Peoples (UPA) and its leader Holden Roberto . Roberto turned down the offer. When the MPLA first attempted to insert its own insurgents into Angola, the cadres were ambushed and annihilated by UPA partisans on Roberto's orders—setting
4218-628: The United States State Department subsequently confirmed it. He was interred in Luena Main Cemetery in Luena, Moxico Province . On 3 January 2008, his tomb was vandalised and four members of the youth wing of the MPLA were charged and arrested. His body was exhumed and reburied publicly in 2019. Savimbi was succeeded by António Dembo , who assumed UNITA's leadership on an interim basis in February 2002. But Dembo had sustained wounds in
4332-787: The White House . Following the meeting, Reagan spoke of UNITA winning "a victory that electrifies the world." Two years later, with the Angolan Civil War intensifying, Savimbi returned to Washington, where he praised the Heritage Foundation's work on UNITA's behalf. Complementing his military skills, Savimbi also impressed many with his intellectual qualities. He spoke seven languages fluently including Portuguese, French, and English. In visits to foreign diplomats and in speeches before American audiences, he often cited classical Western political and social philosophy, ultimately becoming one of
4446-702: The 16th century show that a great famine occurred on average every seventy years; accompanied by epidemic disease, it might kill one-third or one-half of the population, destroying the demographic growth of a generation and forcing colonists back into the river valleys". During the Portuguese Restoration War , the Dutch West India Company occupied the principal settlement of Luanda in 1641, using alliances with local peoples to carry out attacks against Portuguese holdings elsewhere. A fleet under Salvador de Sá retook Luanda in 1648; reconquest of
4560-522: The Angolan government during Chingunji's various diplomatic assignments in Europe and the United States. Savimbi denied his involvement in the Chingunji killing and blamed it on UNITA dissidents. According to Bridgland in his book The War for Africa: Twelve Months that Transformed a Continent , in an earlier incident termed 'Red September', Savimbi oversaw the torture and killing of dozens of people, including many of his own officers, their wives and children, in
4674-565: The Atlantic Ocean. Thus, at Soyo , at the mouth of the Congo River , the average annual temperature is about 26 °C, but it is under 16 °C at Huambo on the temperate central plateau. The coolest months are July and August (in the middle of the dry season), when frost may sometimes form at higher altitudes. The Angolan government is composed of three branches of government: executive, legislative and judicial. The executive branch of
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4788-542: The Congo to the south. Angola has a favorable coastline for maritime trade, with four natural harbors: Luanda, Lobito, Moçâmedes, and Porto Alexandre. These natural indentations contrast with Africa's typical coastline of rocky cliffs and deep bays. Angola's capital, Luanda , lies on the Atlantic coast in the northwest of the country. Angola had a 2018 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 8.35/10, ranking it 23rd globally out of 172 countries. In Angola forest cover
4902-598: The Democratic Republic of the Congo. The capital and most populous city is Luanda . Angola has been inhabited since the Paleolithic Age . After the Bantu expansion reached the region, states were formed by the 13th century and organised into confederations. The Kingdom of Kongo ascended to achieve hegemony among the other kingdoms from the 14th century. Portuguese explorers established relations with Kongo in 1483. To
5016-406: The FNLA and MPLA, as the three resistance movements tried to position themselves to lead a post-colonial Angola. Portugal later released PIDE (Polícia Internacional e de Defesa do Estado, a Portuguese security agency) archives revealing that Savimbi had signed a collaboration pact with Portuguese colonial authorities to fight the MPLA. Following Angola's independence in 1975, Savimbi gradually drew
5130-601: The FNLA began massing large numbers of troops in northern Angola in an attempt to gain military superiority. Meanwhile, the MPLA began securing control of Luanda, a traditional Ambundu stronghold. Sporadic violence broke out in Luanda over the next few months after the FNLA attacked the MPLA's political headquarters in March 1975. The fighting intensified with street clashes in April and May, and UNITA became involved after over two hundred of its members were massacred by an MPLA contingent that June. An upswing in Soviet arms shipments to
5244-487: The FNLA has come to be known as the Halloween Massacre where over 10,000 of their voters were massacred nationwide by MPLA forces. Alleging governmental electoral fraud and questioning the government's commitment to peace, Savimbi withdrew from the run-off election and resumed fighting, mostly with foreign funds. UNITA again quickly advanced militarily, encircling the nation's capital of Luanda . In 1994, UNITA signed
5358-467: The FNLA with the intention of making a bid for political power upon their envisaged return to Angola. A largely Ovimbundu guerrilla initiative against the Portuguese in central Angola from 1966 was spearheaded by Jonas Savimbi and the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA). It remained handicapped by its geographic remoteness from friendly borders, the ethnic fragmentation of
5472-401: The Kingdom of Kongo after the death of António I. Much of the stability and access to iron ore and charcoal necessary for gunsmiths to maintain the arms industry was disrupted. From then on, in this period almost every Kongolese citizen was in danger of being enslaved. Many Kongolese subjects were adroit in making guns, and they were enslaved to have their skills available to colonists in
5586-427: The Kingdom of Kongo was highly centralised around its monarch and controlled neighbouring states as vassals . It had a strong economy, based on the industries of copper , ivory , salt , hides , and, to a lesser extent, slaves . The transition from a feudal system of slavery to a capitalist one with Portugal would prove crucial to the history of the Kingdom of Kongo. As relations between Kongo and Portugal grew in
5700-512: The MPLA and Angola's first state President. Under increasing pressure from the Portuguese secret police ( PIDE ), Savimbi left Portugal for Switzerland with the assistance of Portuguese and French communists and other sympathizers, and eventually wound up in Lausanne . There he was able to obtain a new scholarship from American missionaries and studied social sciences. He then went to the University at Fribourg for further studies. While there, probably in August 1960, he met Holden Roberto , who
5814-399: The MPLA and its rivals accepted material assistance from the Soviet Union or the People's Republic of China , the former harboured strong anti-imperialist views and was openly critical of the United States and its support for Portugal. This allowed it to win important ground on the diplomatic front, soliciting support from nonaligned governments in Morocco , Ghana , Guinea , Mali , and
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#17328688236185928-503: The MPLA influenced a decision by the Central Intelligence Agency to likewise provide substantial covert aid to the FNLA and UNITA. In August 1975, the MPLA requested direct assistance from the Soviet Union in the form of ground troops. The Soviets declined, offering to send advisers but no troops; however, Cuba was more forthcoming and in late September dispatched nearly five hundred combat personnel to Angola, along with sophisticated weaponry and supplies. By independence, there were over
6042-402: The New World, where they worked as blacksmiths, ironworkers, and charcoal makers. The Portuguese established several other settlements, forts and trading posts along the Angolan coast, principally trading in Angolan slaves for plantations . Local slave dealers provided a large number of slaves for the Portuguese Empire , usually in exchange for manufactured goods from Europe. This part of
6156-513: The Ovimbundu, and the isolation of peasants on European plantations where they had little opportunity to mobilise. During the late 1950s, the rise of the Marxist–Leninist Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) in the east and Dembos hills north of Luanda came to hold special significance. Formed as a coalition resistance movement by the Angolan Communist Party , the organisation's leadership remained predominantly Ambundu and courted public sector workers in Luanda . Although both
6270-456: The Portuguese colonies studying abroad formed the UGEAN (União Geral dos Estudantes da Africa Negra Sob Dominacão Colonial Portuguesa) at a meeting in Rabat , Morocco. Again, this organization was affiliated with the MPLA. Holden Roberto and the UPA wanted a student organization affiliated with their party. In December 1961, Roberto chaired a meeting at Camp Green Lane near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Savimbi attended this meeting and became one of
6384-480: The Portuguese depended on assistance from the British Royal Navy and what became known as the Blockade of Africa to enforce their ban on the slave trade. This coincided with a series of renewed military expeditions into the bush. By the mid-nineteenth century Portugal had established its dominion as far north as the Congo River and as far south as Mossâmedes . Until the late 1880s, Portugal entertained proposals to link Angola with its colony in Mozambique but
6498-461: The United Nations meeting later that fall. In a very short time, he was a member of the Executive Committee of the UPA. It was he who encouraged the PDA (Partido Democrático de Angola) to join in a united front with the UPA, creating the FNLA (Frente Nacional de Libertação de Angola) and when these parties formed the GRAE (Govêrno Revolucionário de Angola no Exílio) on April 3, 1962, Savimbi became Foreign Minister of this organization. Savimbi sought
6612-400: The University of Lausanne 96th in life science and medicine. The Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) ranked the University of Lausanne 101-150 globally. Below are rankings for the University of Lausanne by the Leiden Ranking (CWTS). The UNIL publishes a free monthly campus magazine entitled L'Uniscope The UNIL also publishes Allez savoir ! , a free magazine aimed at
6726-473: The attention of Chinese and, ultimately, American policymakers and intellectuals. Trained in China during the 1960s, Savimbi was a highly successful guerrilla fighter schooled in classic Maoist approaches to warfare, including baiting his enemies with multiple military fronts, some of which attacked and some of which consciously retreated. Like the People's Liberation Army of Mao Zedong , Savimbi mobilized important, although ethnically confined segments of
6840-489: The authoritarian system and the aristocracy. If several villagers were deemed guilty of a crime, it became relatively common for the whole village to be enslaved. The resulting chaos and internal conflict from Garcia II's reign would lead into that of his son and successor, António I . He was killed in 1665 by Portuguese at the Battle of Mbwila 1665, together with a substantial proportion of the aristocracy. The colonists were expanding their power. War broke out more widely in
6954-422: The authorities of the canton of Vaud , becoming a secular institution divided into three faculties (letters and sciences, theology, and law). It continued to expand throughout the second half of the 19th century, until 1890, with the establishment of a medicine course, the academy received the name and status of a university. In 1909, Rudolphe Archibald Reiss founded the first school of forensic science in
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#17328688236187068-479: The brokering of a ceasefire pending negotiations for Angolan independence. Encouraged by the Organisation of African Unity , Holden Roberto, Jonas Savimbi, and MPLA chairman Agostinho Neto met in Mombasa in early January 1975 and agreed to form a coalition government. This was ratified by the Alvor Agreement later that month, which called for general elections and set the country's independence date for 11 November 1975. All three factions, however, followed up on
7182-424: The ceasefire by taking advantage of the gradual Portuguese withdrawal to seize various strategic positions, acquire more arms, and enlarge their militant forces. The rapid influx of weapons from numerous external sources, especially the Soviet Union and the United States, as well as the escalation of tensions between the nationalist parties, fueled a new outbreak of hostilities. With tacit American and Zairean support
7296-433: The central administration of the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics are also located on the main campus. In addition to its main campus at the lakeside, the University of Lausanne also has other sites. The Faculty of Biology and Medicine is also located in two other sites: around the University Hospital of Lausanne (CHUV) (site called Bugnon) and in Épalinges (to the north of Lausanne ). The Department of Biochemistry,
7410-413: The church. It enjoyed great renown in its early years for being the first and, until the establishment of the Academy of Geneva in 1559, the only French-language Protestant school of theology. It quickly became a center of humanist learning, with thinkers such as Corderius and Celio Secondo Curione among its professors. In 1558, the school had 700 students. It entered into a period of decline in
7524-772: The continued political agitation in favour of the independence of the exclave of Cabinda (carried out in the context of the protracted Cabinda conflict by the FLEC ). While most of the internally displaced have now squatted around the capital, in musseques ( shanty towns ) the general situation for Angolans remains desperate. A drought in 2016 caused the worst food crisis in Southern Africa in 25 years, affecting 1.4 million people across seven of Angola's eighteen provinces. Food prices rose and acute malnutrition rates doubled, impacting over 95,000 children. José Eduardo dos Santos stepped down as President of Angola after 38 years in 2017, being peacefully succeeded by João Lourenço , Santos' chosen successor. Some members of
7638-420: The decisive Battle of Quifangondo , although UNITA managed to withdraw its civil officials and militia from Luanda and seek sanctuary in the southern provinces. From there, Savimbi continued to mount a determined insurgent campaign against the MPLA. Between 1975 and 1991, the MPLA implemented an economic and political system based on the principles of scientific socialism , incorporating central planning and
7752-473: The dos Santos family were later linked to high levels of corruption. In July 2022, ex-president José Eduardo dos Santos died in Spain. In August 2022, the ruling party, MPLA, won another majority and President Lourenço won a second five-year term in the election . However, the election was the tightest in Angola's history. At 1,246,700 km (481,400 sq mi), Angola is the world's twenty-second largest country – comparable in size to Mali, or twice
7866-466: The early 16th century, trade between the kingdoms also increased. Most of the trade was in palm cloth, copper, and ivory, but also increasing numbers of slaves. Kongo exported few slaves, and its slave market had remained internal. But, following the development of a successful sugar-growing colony after Portuguese settlement of São Tomé , Kongo became a major source of slaves for the island's traders and plantations. Correspondence by King Afonso documents
7980-409: The economic growth is highly uneven, with most of the nation's wealth concentrated in a disproportionately small part of the population as most Angolans have a low standard of living ; life expectancy is among the lowest in the world , while infant mortality is among the highest . Angola is a member of the United Nations , African Union , the Community of Portuguese Language Countries , and
8094-418: The fighting between the Portuguese government and local forces, supported to varying degrees by the Portuguese Communist Party . The National Front for the Liberation of Angola (FNLA) recruited from Bakongo refugees in Zaire . Benefiting from particularly favourable political circumstances in Léopoldville , and especially from a common border with Zaire, Angolan political exiles were able to build up
8208-407: The first millennium BC, they were displaced by Bantu peoples arriving from the north, most of whom likely originated in what is today northwestern Nigeria and southern Niger . Bantu speakers introduced the cultivation of bananas and taro , as well as maintenance of large cattle herds, to Angola's central highlands and the Luanda plain. Due to a number of inhibiting geographic factors throughout
8322-458: The following years, after several members of the academic staff, including rector Theodore Beza and Pierre Viret , resigned their seats to join the newly established Academy of Geneva. In the seventeenth century, the institution became known as the Academy of Lausanne ( Académie de Lausanne ). In 1741, it counted 150 students and seven professors. Starting in 1837, the academy was modernized by
8436-407: The forest area was found within protected areas. For the year 2015, 100% of the forest area was reported to be under public ownership . Like the rest of tropical Africa, Angola experiences distinct, alternating rainy and dry seasons. In the north, the rainy season may last for as long as seven months—usually from September to April, with perhaps a brief slackening in January or February. In
8550-399: The game, claiming that he was portrayed as a "big halfwit who wanted to kill everybody". However, Activision , the publishers of Black Ops II , argued that the game portrayed him as a "political leader and strategist". The lawsuit was rejected by a French court. Angola Angola , officially the Republic of Angola , is a country on the west- central coast of Southern Africa . It
8664-656: The government is composed of the President, the vice-presidents and the Council of Ministers. The legislative branch comprises a 220-seat unicameral legislature, the National Assembly of Angola , elected from multi-member province-wide and nationwide constituencies using party-list proportional representation . For decades, political power has been concentrated in the presidency. After 38 years of rule, in 2017 President dos Santos stepped down from MPLA leadership. The leader of
8778-576: The head of the intelligence service, Apolinário José Pereira. Both are considered allies of former president Dos Santos. He also removed Isabel dos Santos , daughter of the former president, as head of the country's state oil company Sonangol . In August 2020, José Filomeno dos Santos , son of Angola's former president, was sentenced for five years in jail for fraud and corruption. Lausanne University The University of Lausanne ( UNIL ; French: Université de Lausanne ) in Lausanne , Switzerland ,
8892-482: The inroads from Luanda and Benguela were very limited. Hamstrung by a series of political upheavals in the early 1800s, Portugal was slow to mount a large scale annexation of Angolan territory. The slave trade was abolished in Angola in 1836, and in 1854 the colonial government freed all its existing slaves. Four years later, a more progressive administration appointed by Portugal abolished slavery altogether. However, these decrees remained largely unenforceable, and
9006-551: The interior of the region. The Portuguese colony that became Angola did not achieve its present borders until the early 20th century and experienced the strong resistance from the native groups such as the Cuamato, the Kwanyama , and the Mbunda . After a protracted anti-colonial struggle (1961–1974), Angola achieved independence in 1975 as a one-party Republic , but the country descended into
9120-493: The international community. The Soviet Union and Cuba became especially sympathetic towards the MPLA and supplied that party with arms, ammunition, funding, and training. They also backed UNITA militants until it became clear that the latter was at irreconcilable odds with the MPLA. The collapse of Portugal's Estado Novo government following the 1974 Carnation Revolution suspended all Portuguese military activity in Africa and
9234-488: The international scene as a protagonist of anti-communism . The war between the MPLA and UNITA, whatever its internal reasons and dynamics, thus became part of the Cold War, with both Moscow and Washington viewing the conflict as important to the global balance of power. In 1985, with the backing of the Reagan administration and through the lobbying efforts of Paul Manafort and his firm Black, Manafort, Stone and Kelly which
9348-581: The kingdom was due to the salient issue of the slave trade, which had become an increasingly violent struggle. There was a constant need for slaves for the kings and queens to sell in exchange for foreign commodities, the absence of which would prevent them from having any influence with European powers such as Portugal and eventually the Dutch Republic . Kongolese kings needed this influence to garner support from European powers for quelling internal rebellions. The situation became increasingly complicated during
9462-732: The life and human sciences: the Faculty of Biology and Medicine and the Faculty of Geosciences and Environment. On 1 January 2014, the Swiss Graduate School of Public Administration (IDHEAP) was integrated into the University of Lausanne. Since August 2021, the rector of the University of Lausanne is Frédéric Herman ; before then, the university was led by Nouria Hernandez (2016–2021) and by Dominique Arlettaz (2006–2016). The University of Lausanne comprises seven faculties : The University of Lausanne also comprises schools and different sections, including but not limited to: The main campus
9576-682: The market economy were also reduced in an attempt to draw foreign investment. By May 1991 it reached a peace agreement with UNITA, the Bicesse Accords , which scheduled new general elections for September 1992. When the MPLA secured a major electoral victory, UNITA objected to the results of both the presidential and legislative vote count and returned to war. Following the election, the Halloween massacre occurred from 30 October to 1 November, where MPLA forces killed thousands of UNITA supporters. On 22 February 2002, government troops killed Savimbi in
9690-540: The most vocal anti-communists of the Third World . Savimbi's biography describes him as "an incredible linguist. He spoke four European languages, including English although he had never lived in an English-speaking country. He was extremely well read. He was an extremely fine conversationalist and a very good listener." Savimbi also accused his political opponents of witchcraft. These contrasting images of Savimbi would play out throughout his life, with his enemies calling him
9804-503: The national currency of nzimbu shells , which could be traded for slaves. These could be sold to gain international currency. As the slave trade was the only commodity in which Europeans were interested in the region during the 16th and 17th centuries, the Kongo economy was unable to diversify or later industrialise outside of sectors in which slavery was involved, such as the arms industry . The increased production and sale of guns within
9918-627: The power of the monarchy. He also established a royal monopoly on some trade. To govern the growing slave trade, Afonso and several Portuguese kings claimed a joint monopoly on the external slave trade. The slave trade increasingly became Kongo's primary, and arguably sole, economic sector . A major obstacle for the Kingdom of Kongo was that slaves were the only commodity for which the European powers were willing to trade. Kongo lacked an effective international currency . Kongolese nobles could buy slaves with
10032-515: The province of Moxico , his birthplace. In the firefight, Savimbi sustained 15 gunshot wounds to his head, throat, upper body and legs. While Savimbi returned fire, his wounds proved fatal; he died almost instantly. Savimbi's somewhat mystical reputation for eluding the Angolan military and their Soviet and Cuban military advisors led many Angolans to question the validity of reports of his 2002 death in combat until pictures of his bloodied and bullet-riddled body appeared on Angolan state television, and
10146-413: The purchase and sale of slaves within the country. His accounts also detail which slaves captured in war were given or sold to Portuguese merchants. Afonso continued to expand the kingdom of Kongo into the 1540s, expanding its borders to the south and east. The expansion of Kongo's population, coupled with Afonso's earlier religious reforms, allowed the ruler to centralize power in his capital and increase
10260-477: The rebel leader with ongoing political and military guidance in his war against the Angolan government. Savimbi's U.S.-based supporters ultimately proved successful in convincing the Central Intelligence Agency to channel covert weapons and recruit guerrillas for Savimbi's war against Angola's Marxist government. During a visit to Washington, D.C. in 1986, Reagan invited Savimbi to meet with him at
10374-464: The rest of the territory was completed by 1650. New treaties with the Kongo were signed in 1649; others with Njinga 's Kingdom of Matamba and Ndongo followed in 1656. The conquest of Pungo Andongo in 1671 was the last major Portuguese expansion from Luanda, as attempts to invade Kongo in 1670 and Matamba in 1681 failed. Colonial outposts also expanded inward from Benguela, but until the late 19th century
10488-539: The rule of Garcia II , who needed the assistance of the Dutch military to drive out the Portuguese from Luanda , in spite of the fact that Portugal was Kongo's primary slave trading partner. By the early 17th century, the supply of foreign slaves captured by the Kongolese externally was waning. The government began to approve the enslavement of freeborn Kongolese citizens for relatively minor infractions, nearly any disobeying of
10602-461: The ruling People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola ( MPLA ) during the Angolan Civil War . Savimbi had extensive contact with anti-communist activists in the United States, including Jack Abramoff and was one of the leading anti-communist voices in the world. Savimbi was killed in a clash with government troops in 2002. Jonas Malheiro Savimbi was born in Munhango, Bié Province , a small town on
10716-456: The rural peasantry – overwhelmingly Ovimbundu – as part of his military tactics. From a military strategy standpoint, he can be considered one of the most effective guerrilla leaders of the 20th century. As the MPLA was supported by the Soviet bloc since 1974, and declared itself Marxist-Leninist in 1977, Savimbi renounced his earlier Maoist leanings and contacts with China, presenting himself on
10830-456: The rural workforce. Portugal's refusal to address increasing Angolan demands for self-determination provoked an armed conflict, which erupted in 1961 with the Baixa de Cassanje revolt and gradually evolved into a protracted war of independence that persisted for the next twelve years. Throughout the conflict, three militant nationalist movements with their own partisan guerrilla wings emerged from
10944-446: The same attack that killed Savimbi, and he died from them three days later and was succeeded by Paulo Lukamba Gato . Six weeks after Savimbi's death, a ceasefire between UNITA and the MPLA was signed, but Angola remains deeply divided politically between MPLA and UNITA supporters. A parliamentary election in September 2008 resulted in an overwhelming majority for the MPLA, but its legitimacy was questioned by international observers. In
11058-484: The size of France or of Texas. It lies mostly between latitudes 4° and 18°S , and longitudes 12° and 24°E . Angola borders Namibia to the south, Zambia to the east, the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north-east and the South Atlantic Ocean to the west. The coastal exclave of Cabinda in the north has borders with the Republic of the Congo to the north and with the Democratic Republic of
11172-534: The south were the kingdoms of Ndongo and Matamba , with the Ovimbundu kingdoms further south, and the Mbunda Kingdom in the east. The Portuguese began colonising the coast in the 16th century. Kongo fought three wars against the Portuguese, ending in the Portuguese conquest of Ndongo. The banning of the slave trade in the 19th century severely disrupted Kongo's undiversified economic system and European settlers gradually began to establish their presence in
11286-459: The south, the rainy season begins later, in November, and lasts until about February. The dry season ( cacimbo ) is often characterized by a heavy morning mist. In general, precipitation is higher in the north, but at any latitude it is greater in the interior than along the coast and increases with altitude. Temperatures fall with distance from the equator and with altitude and tend to rise closer to
11400-399: The territory of Angola, namely harshly traversable land, hot/humid climate, and a plethora of deadly diseases, intermingling of pre-colonial tribes in Angola had been rare. After settlement of the migrants, a number of political entities developed. The best-known of these was the Kingdom of Kongo , based in Angola. It extended northward to what are now the Democratic Republic of the Congo ,
11514-508: The winning party at the parliamentary elections in August 2017 would become the next president of Angola. The MPLA selected the former Defense Minister João Lourenço as Santos' chosen successor. In what has been described as a political purge to cement his power and reduce the influence of the Dos Santos family, Lourenço subsequently sacked the chief of the national police, Ambrósio de Lemos, and
11628-575: The world: the Institut de police scientifique . From 1970, the university moved progressively from the old centre of Lausanne, around the Cathedral and Château, to its present site at Dorigny . The end of the 20th century, witnessed the beginnings of an ambitious project aiming at greater co-operation and development among the French-speaking universities of Lausanne, Geneva, and Neuchâtel, together with
11742-456: The years since Savimbi's death, his legacy has been a source of debate. "The mistake that Savimbi made, the historical, big mistake he made, was to reject (the election) and go back to war", Alex Vines, head of the Africa program at London-based Chatham House research institute said in February 2012. Africa expert Paula Roque, of the University of Oxford , says Savimbi was "a very charismatic man,
11856-424: Was able to develop significant guerrilla operations everywhere in Angola, with the exception of the coastal cities and Namibe Province . At the height of his military success, in 1989 and 1990, Savimbi was beginning to launch attacks on government and military targets in and around the country's capital, Luanda . Observers felt that the strategic balance in Angola had shifted and that Savimbi was positioning UNITA for
11970-457: Was already a rising star in émigré circles. Roberto was a founding member of the UPA ( União das Populaçoes de Angola ) and was already known for his efforts to promote Angolan independence at the United Nations . He tried to recruit Savimbi who seemed to have been undecided whether to commit himself to the cause of Angolan independence at that point in his life. In late September 1960, Savimbi
12084-506: Was asked to give a speech in Kampala, Uganda on behalf of the UDEAN (União Democrática dos Estudantes da Africa Negra), a student organization affiliated with the MPLA. At this meeting he met Tom Mboya who took him to Kenya to see Jomo Kenyatta . They both urged Savimbi to join the UPA. He told French interviewers "J'ai été convaincu par Kenyatta" ("I was convinced by Kenyatta"). He immediately wrote
12198-469: Was blocked by British and Belgian opposition. In this period, the Portuguese came up against different forms of armed resistance from various peoples in Angola. The Berlin Conference in 1884–1885 set the colony's borders, delineating the boundaries of Portuguese claims in Angola, although many details were unresolved until the 1920s. Trade between Portugal and its African territories rapidly increased as
12312-570: Was derived by the Portuguese from the title ngola , held by the kings of Ndongo and Matamba . Ndongo in the highlands , between the Kwanza and Lucala rivers, was nominally a possession of the Kingdom of Kongo . But in the 16th century it was seeking greater independence. Modern Angola was populated predominantly by nomadic Khoi and San peoples prior to the first Bantu migrations . The Khoi and San peoples were hunter-gatherers , rather than practicing pastoralism or cultivation of crops. In
12426-568: Was educated mainly in Protestant schools, but also attended Roman Catholic schools. At the age of 24 he received a scholarship to study in Portugal . Instead he became associated with students from Angola and other Portuguese colonies who were preparing themselves for anti-colonial resistance and had contacts with the clandestine Portuguese Communist Party. He knew Agostinho Neto , who was at that time studying medicine and who later became president of
12540-422: Was founded in 1537 as a school of Protestant theology , before being made a university in 1890. The university is the second oldest in Switzerland, and one of the oldest universities in the world to be in continuous operation. As of fall 2017, about 15,000 students and 3,300 employees studied and worked at the university. Approximately 1,500 international students attend the university (120 nationalities), which has
12654-422: Was not interested in a political test, but on preparing another war. Under military pressure from UNITA, the Angolan government negotiated a cease-fire with Savimbi, and Savimbi ran for president in the national elections of 1992. Foreign monitors claimed the election to be fair. But because neither Savimbi (40 percent) nor Angolan President José Eduardo dos Santos (49%) obtained the 50 percent necessary to prevail,
12768-741: Was paid $ 600,000 each year from Savimbi beginning in 1985, Jack Abramoff and other U.S. conservatives organized the Democratic International in Savimbi's base in Jamba , in Cuando Cubango Province in southeastern Angola. Savimbi was strongly supported by the influential, conservative Heritage Foundation . Heritage foreign policy analyst Michael Johns and other conservatives visited regularly with Savimbi in his clandestine camps in Jamba and provided
12882-409: Was the Kingdom of Matamba . The lesser Kingdom of Kakongo to the north was later a vassal of the Kingdom of Kongo. The people in all of these states spoke Kikongo as a common language. Portuguese explorer Diogo Cão reached the area in 1484. The previous year, the Portuguese had established relations with the Kingdom of Kongo , which stretched at the time from modern Gabon in the north to
12996-562: Was wounded in armed conflict with Angolan government troops. The injuries did not prevent him from again returning to Washington, where he met with his American supporters and President Bush in an effort to further increase US military assistance to UNITA. Savimbi's supporters warned that continued Soviet support for the MPLA was threatening broader global collaboration between Gorbachev and the US. In February 1992, Antonio da Costa Fernandes and Nzau Puna defected from UNITA, declaring publicly that Savimbi
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