João Lourenço Explained

João Lourenço
Order:3rd
Office:President of Angola
Vicepresident:Bornito de Sousa
Esperança da Costa[1]
Term Start:26 September 2017
Predecessor:José Eduardo dos Santos
Office1:Minister of National Defence
President1:José Eduardo dos Santos
Term Start1:22 April 2014
Term End1:24 July 2017
Predecessor1:Cândido Pereira dos Santos Van-Dúnem
Successor1:Salviano de Jesus Sequeira
Office2:Chairman of Southern African Development Community
Term Start2:17 August 2023
Term End2:17 August 2024
Predecessor2:Felix Tshisekedi
Successor2:Emmerson Mnangagwa
Birth Date:5 March 1954
Birth Place:Lobito, Portuguese Angola
Party:MPLA (since 1974)
Spouse:Ana Afonso Dias
Children:6
Nickname:Ti Mimoso, JLo[2]
Honorific Prefix:His Excellency

João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço (born 5 March 1954) is an Angolan politician who has served as the 3rd president of Angola since 26 September 2017.[3] Previously, he was Minister of Defence from 2014 to 2017. In September 2018, he became the Chairman of the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), the ruling party. He was the party's Secretary-General from 1998 to 2003.

João Lourenço was designated in December 2016 to occupy the party's number one position in the August 2017 legislative election. In terms of the 2010 constitution, "the individual heading the national list of the political party or coalition of political parties which receives the most votes in general elections ... shall be elected President of the Republic and Head of the Executive" (Article 109).[4] [5] As the MPLA won a majority of 150 seats, Lourenço automatically became President of Angola, succeeding José Eduardo dos Santos, who had been in power for 38 years. Lourenço was officially sworn into office on 26 September 2017.[6]

Early life

Born in 1954, Lourenço grew up in a politically engaged family of ten children. His father, Sequeira João Lourenço (1923–1999),[7] a native of Malanje, was a doctor and nationalist, who served three years of imprisonment in Portuguese Angola for illegal political activity.[8] His mother, Josefa Gonçalves Cipriano Lourenço (1928–1997),[9] a seamstress, was a native of Namibe.[10] He received both a primary and secondary Portuguese-language education in Bié Province and Luanda.[11]

Education and military career

Lourenço studied at the Industrial Institute of Luanda and later participated in the liberation struggle in Ponta Negra,[12] in August 1974, where he was part of the first group of MPLA soldiers to enter Angolan territory via Miconge, towards the city of Cabinda after the fall of the Portuguese colonial regime.

He began his military career fighting against the Portuguese in the Angolan War of Independence and fought as a member of the MPLA in the Angolan Civil War.[13] Lourenço conducted his training in artillery and then became a political officer in the MPLA. In 1978, Lourenço traveled to the Soviet Union and studied at the Lenin Military-Political Academy, where he furthered his military training and completed a master's degree in Historical Sciences. He later returned to Angola in 1982. Now an artillery general, Lourenço turned towards politics and in 1984 was appointed as Governor of Moxico Province.[14]

Political career

Lourenço's early politics were mainly confined within the MPLA as an officer responsible for keeping guerrilla soldiers' morale high. Following his appointment as Governor of Moxico Province in 1984, he continued to rise through the ranks of the ruling party.[15] He also served as the provincial commissioner of Moxico Province for the MPLA, president of the Regional Military Council of the 3rd Military Political Region, First Secretary of MPLA and Provincial Commissioner of Benguela Province.[16] He was the MPLA's Secretary for Information from 1992 to 1997 and President of the MPLA Parliamentary Group in the National Assembly from 1993 to 1998.[17]

At a party congress, he was elected as Secretary-General of the MPLA on 12 December 1998. His election was said to be linked to the favour of President José Eduardo dos Santos and it was thought that Lourenço could potentially succeed the long-ruling dos Santos at some point.[18] However, after dos Santos said in 2001 that he would not seek re-election as president,[19] Lourenço openly expressed an interest in becoming the MPLA's presidential candidate and thereby damaged his standing with dos Santos, who apparently had no real intention of leaving office, but had sought to expose political rivals.[13] [20] [21] Juilão Mateus Paulo succeeded him as MPLA Secretary-General at a December 2003 party congress.[20]

Lourenço was First Vice-president of the National Assembly from 2003 to 2014.[17] He was appointed as Minister of Defense in April 2014,[22] and he was designated as vice-president of the MPLA in August 2016.[23] In September 2018 he became the Chairman of the MPLA, replacing José Eduardo dos Santos.[24]

Lourenço is very close to Elliott Broidy. Through Broidy's firm Circinus, Broidy allegedly received $6 million in January 2017 for lobbying on behalf of the interests of Angola by arranging meetings with Angolans and several Republican United States Senators including Ron Johnson and Tom Cotton, fostering a closer relationship between Washington, and Luanda, attempting to arrange meetings among Lourenço and Mike Pence and Donald Trump and allowing Lourenço to attend a September 2017 event at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club of which Broidy is a member, however, Lourenço did not attend.[25] [26]

In December 2016 the MPLA designated Lourenço as the party's top candidate in the 2017 legislative election.[27] He was elected President of Angola on 23 August 2017 and took office on 26 September becoming the third President in the country's history. On 8 September 2018, he was elected President of the MPLA, Angola's ruling party since 1975, becoming its 5th party leader.

In June 2018, Lourenço legalised Angola's first LGBT collective. The following January, he replaced the 1886 colonial law banning homosexual acts, and prohibited discrimination against LGBT people. The reforms also permitted abortion in cases of rape or danger to mother or fetus.[28] [29] [30]

Personal life

He is married to Ana Afonso Dias Lourenço, a Member of Parliament of the MPLA and former Minister of Planning, who held a position at the World Bank in Washington D.C. until October 2016. They have six children, all of whom are currently active in the MPLA.[21] Apart from his indigenous Umbundu language and Portuguese, he speaks Russian, Spanish, and English.[31] He is popularly nicknamed "Ti Mimoso"[32] and "JLo".[2]

Honours

Foreign honours

Notes and References

  1. https://rna.ao/rna.ao/2022/09/15/investidura-do-presidente-da-republica/ Investidura do Presidente da República
  2. News: Joao Lourenco: Can 'Angola's JLo' fill Dos Santos' shoes? . 25 August 2017 . BBC News . 25 August 2017 . 26 August 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170826203532/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-41037721 . live .
  3. News: Eisenhammer. Stephen. Angola's first new president in 38 years vows to fight graft. Reuters. 27 September 2017. 26 September 2017. 16 July 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180716225718/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-angola-politics/angolas-first-new-president-in-38-years-vows-to-fight-graft-idUSKCN1C12G0?il=0. live.
  4. Web site: Angola's Constitution of 2010 . . 6 June 2017 . Oxford Constitutional Law (Oxford University Press) . en . 27 September 2017 . 1 October 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181001104114/https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Angola_2010.pdf?lang=en . live .
  5. Web site: Constituição da Républica de Angola . . World Intellectual Property Organisation . pt . 27 September 2017 . 19 June 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180619033319/http://www.wipo.int/edocs/lexdocs/laws/pt/ao/ao001pt.pdf . live .
  6. Web site: Angola swears in Lourenco, first new president for 38 years. 27 July 2021. News24. en-US. 27 July 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210727113152/https://www.news24.com/news24/Africa/News/angola-swears-in-lourenco-first-new-president-for-38-years-20170926. live.
  7. Web site: Sequeira João Lourenço, 1923 – 1999. My Heritage. 24 August 2017. 24 August 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170824134202/https://www.myheritage.com/names/sequeira_louren%C3%A7o. live.
  8. Web site: fr. Angola : qui est Joao Lourenço, l'ancien général désigné comme successeur de Dos Santos ?. Jeune Afrique. 4 February 2017. 23 August 2017. 27 August 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220827000000/https://www.jeuneafrique.com/depeches/400097/politique/angola-joao-lourenco-lancien-general-designe-successeur-de-santos/. live.
  9. Web site: Josefa Gonçalves Cipriano Lourenço (born Cipriano), 1928 – 1998. My Heritage. 24 August 2017. 24 August 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170824134902/https://www.myheritage.com/names/josefa_louren%C3%A7o. live.
  10. Web site: fr. Huíla: João Lourenço entre en pré-campagne. Agência Angola Press. 18 February 2017. 23 August 2017. 23 August 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170823165645/http://m.portalangop.co.ao/angola/fr_fr/mobile/noticias/politica/2017/1/7/Huila-Joao-Lourenco-entre-pre-campagne,12c74683-3fd3-45d1-a33f-ef93b38c098f.html. live.
  11. Web site: pt. JOÃO LOURENÇO COMANDA CAMPANHA DO "M". OPAÍS. 10 February 2017.
  12. Refers to the Ponta Negra in Angola; not to be confused with the city with a similar name in Brazil.
  13. http://www.news24.com/Africa/News/lourenco-ex-general-poised-to-be-angolas-next-leader-20170203 "Lourenco: Ex-general poised to be Angola's next leader"
  14. News: Angola's new 'president in waiting'. Deutsche Welle. 3 February 2017. 18 July 2017. 28 July 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190728084813/https://www.dw.com/en/angolas-new-president-in-waiting/a-36705629. live.
  15. News: After 37 years, Angola will get a new president. Can Joao Lourenco reduce widespread corruption?. Steven Mufson. The Washington Post. 21 May 2017. 18 July 2017. 19 August 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170819061738/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2017/05/21/after-37-years-angola-will-get-a-new-president-can-joao-lourenco-reduce-widespread-corruption/. live.
  16. News: pt. Quem é João Lourenço, o homem que irá suceder a José Eduardo dos Santos?. Steven Mufson. OBS. 18 February 2017. 23 August 2017. 23 August 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170823211452/http://observador.pt/2017/02/18/quem-e-joao-lourenco-o-homem-que-ira-suceder-a-jose-eduardo-dos-santos/. live.
  17. Kumuênho da Rosa and João Dias, "João Lourenço é o candidato escolhido pelo MPLA", Jornal de Angola, 4 February 2017 .
  18. http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Urgent_Action/apic_122898.html "MPLA chooses new Secretary General"
  19. http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=25333 "Dos Santos to bow out"
  20. http://www.irinnews.org/feature/2003/12/17/dos-santos-helm "Dos Santos at the helm"
  21. Web site: Who is Angola's new president Joao Lourenco? Africa DW 26 September 2017. (www.dw.com). Deutsche Welle. DW.COM. en. 21 November 2017. 11 November 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171111160537/http://www.dw.com/en/who-is-angolas-new-president-joao-lourenco/a-40218458. live.
  22. Web site: Angola: Presidente nomeia João Lourenço para ministro da Defesa Nacional. 22 April 2014. pt. Agência Angola Press. 23 August 2017. 7 July 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180707144231/http://m.portalangop.co.ao/angola/pt_pt/mobile/noticias/politica/2014/3/17/Angola-Presidente-nomeia-Joao-Lourenco-para-ministro-Defesa-Nacional,cfd146b4-721c-4810-bc08-431943e8d2dc.html. live.
  23. https://www.voaportugues.com/a/nova-lideranca-mpla-joao-lourenco-novo-presidente/3476366.html "Nova liderança no MPLA, João Lourenço é o novo vice-presidente"
  24. News: Ex-Angola president dos Santos quits last political post. Africanews. 8 September 2018. en. 26 October 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191026103752/https://www.africanews.com/2018/09/07/ex-angola-president-dos-santos-quits-last-political-post/. live.
  25. News: Vogel . Kenneth P. . Kirkpatrick . David D. . Fund-Raiser Held Out Access to Trump as a Prize for Prospective Clients . . 25 March 2018 . 21 September 2021 . 25 June 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180625204952/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/25/us/politics/elliott-broidy-trump-access-circinus-lobbying.html.
  26. News: Biddle . Sam . Trump Insider Wanted to Sell Social Media Surveillance Tools to Abusive Governments, Leaked Documents Suggest . . 22 June 2018 . 21 September 2021 . 25 June 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180625213227/https://theintercept.com/2018/06/22/broidy-circinus-spying-tunisia-romania-uae/.
  27. Herculano Coroado, "Angola's Dos Santos not up for re-election in 2017 – party document", Reuters, 3 December 2016.
  28. News: Soares . Cristina . Angola despenaliza homossexualidade . Angola decriminalises homosexuality . 12 July 2022 . . 25 January 2019 . Portuguese . 12 July 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220712143531/https://www.rfi.fr/pt/angola/20190125-angola-despenaliza-homossexualidade . live .
  29. News: Angola despenaliza homossexualidade . Angola decriminalises homosexuality . 12 July 2022 . . 24 January 2019 . Portuguese . 19 January 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220119154845/https://www.dn.pt/mundo/novo-codigo-penal-angolano-despenaliza-homossexualidade-10484193.html . live .
  30. News: Angola despenaliza homossexualidade e permite aborto em certos casos . Angola decriminalises homosexuality and permit abortion in certain cases . 12 July 2022 . . . 24 January 2019 . Portuguese . 12 July 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220712143537/https://g1.globo.com/mundo/noticia/2019/01/24/angola-despenaliza-homossexualidade-e-permite-aborto-em-certos-casos.ghtml . live .
  31. News: 3 February 2017. Angola's President Dos Santos anoints deputy Lourenco. en-gb. BBC News. 27 July 2021. live. 20 October 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211020054802/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-38856597.
  32. Catarina Machado. "Luaty Beirão está 'malaike' com exoneração de Isabel dos Santos." TVI 24. 16 November 2017. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  33. https://www.jornaldeangola.ao/ao/noticias/presidente-joao-lourenco-condecorado-com-colar-da-ordem-nacional-do-cruzeiro-do-sul
  34. https://platinaline.com/joao-lourenco-e-condecorado-com-a-medalha-amilcar-cabral
  35. https://rna.ao/rna.ao/2021/07/31/joao-lourenco-condecorado-com-a-gra-cruz-da-ordem-nacional-da-guine
  36. Italian Presidency website, Lourenço S.E. João – Decorato di Gran Cordone – Cavaliere di Gran Croce Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana
  37. https://www.verangola.net/va/en/062024/Politics/40548/Jo%C3%A3o-Louren%C3%A7o-awarded-the-highest-Ivorian-distinction.htm
  38. 992426847785897984. hagegeingob. On the 40th anniversary of Cassinga Day, 4 May 2018 Namibia awards to H.E. João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, The Orde… . 4 May 2018.
  39. Web site: Home . presidencia.pt . 23 November 2018 . 24 February 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110224155518/http://www.presidencia.pt/ . live .
  40. Web site: Boletín Oficial del Estado: A-2023-2706.

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