Cabinda (formerly calledPortuguese Congo,Kongo:Kabinda) is anexclave andprovince ofAngola, a status that has been disputed by several political organizations in the territory. The capital city is also calledCabinda, known locally asTchiowa,Tsiowa orKiowa.[3] The province is divided into four municipalities—Belize,Buco-Zau,Cabinda andCacongo.
Modern Cabinda is the result of a fusion of three kingdoms:N'Goyo,Loango andKakongo. It has an area of 7,290 km2 (2,810 sq mi) and a population of 716,076 at the 2014 census; the latest official estimate (as at mid-2019) is 824,143. According to 1988United States governmentstatistics, the total population of the province was 147,200, with a near even split between rural and urban populations.[4] At one point an estimated one third of Cabindans were refugees living in theDemocratic Republic of the Congo;[5] however, after the 2007 peace agreement, refugees started returning to their homes.[6]
In 1885, theTreaty of Simulambuco established Cabinda as aprotectorate of thePortuguese Empire, and Cabindan independence movements consider the occupation of the territory by Angola illegal. While theAngolan Civil War largely ended in 2002, an armed struggle persists in the exclave of Cabinda.[9] Some of the factions have proclaimed an independentRepublic of Cabinda, with offices inParis.
Portuguese explorers,missionaries, and traders arrived at the mouth of theCongo River in the mid-15th century, making contact with theManikongo, the powerful King of theBakongo tribe. The Manikongo controlled much of the region through affiliation with smaller kingdoms, such as the Kingdoms ofNgoyo,Loango, andKakongo in present-day Cabinda.
Over the years, the Portuguese,Dutch, andEnglish establishedtrading posts,logging camps, and smallpalm oil processing factories in Cabinda. Trade continued and the European presence grew, resulting in conflicts between the rival colonial powers. Between 1827 and 1830, theImperial Brazilian Navy maintained anaval base in the western part of Cabinda, making it the only Brazilian colony outside of South America.
Portugal first claimed sovereignty over Cabinda in the February 1885Treaty of Simulambuco, which gave Cabinda the status of a protectorate of thePortuguese Crown under the request of "the princes and governors of Cabinda". This is often the basis upon which the legal and historical arguments in defense of theself-determination of modern-day Cabinda are constructed. Article 1, for example, states, "the princes and chiefs and their successors declare, voluntarily, their recognition of Portuguese sovereignty, placing under the protectorate of this nation all the territories by them governed" [sic]. Article 2, which is often used in separatist arguments, goes even further: "Portugal is obliged to maintain the integrity of the territories placed under its protection". TheFront for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda (FLEC-R) argues that the above-mentioned treaty was signed between the emissaries of the Portuguese Crown and the princes and notables of Cabinda, then called Portuguese Congo, giving rise to not one, but three protectorates: Cacongo, Loango, and Ngoio.
Through the Treaty of Simulambuco in 1885 between the kings of Portugal and the princes of Cabinda, a Portugueseprotectorate was decreed, reserving rights to the local princes and independent of Angola. Cabinda once had the Congo River as the only natural boundary with Angola, but in 1885, theBerlin Conference extended the territory of theCongo Free State along the Congo River to the river's mouth at the sea.
During this time rubber was harvested and traded in Cabinda. Atrocities such as the cutting of hands were also committed there, although comprehensive reports on these atrocities were more scant and less publicly known compared to the neighbouring Congo Free State.[10][11]
By the mid-1920s, the borders of Angola had been finally established in negotiations with the neighboring colonial powers. From there on Angola and Cabinda were treated distinctively under the Portuguese constitution of 1933 until 15 January 1975 under the Alvor Agreement.
Detailed map of Cabinda Province
The Portuguese constitution of 1933 distinguished between the colony of Angola and the protectorate of Cabinda, but in 1956, the administration of Cabinda was transferred to the governor-general of Angola. The legal distinction of Cabinda's status from that of Angola was also expressed in the Portuguese constitution of 1971.[12] Yet, when Angola was declared an "overseas province" (Província Ultramarina) within the empire of Portugal in 1951, Cabinda was treated as an ordinary district of Angola. In 1972, the name of Angola was changed to "State of Angola".
Under Portuguese rule, Cabinda was an important agricultural and forestry center, and in 1967, it discovered hugeoffshore oil fields. Oil, timber, andcocoa had been its main exports until then. The town of Cabinda, the capital of the territory, was a Portuguese administrative and services center with aport and airfield. The beaches of Cabinda were popular with Portuguese Angolans.
A 1974military coup in Lisbon abolished the authoritarian regime established byAntónio de Oliveira Salazar that had prevailed in Portugal for decades. The new government decided immediately to grant all Portuguese colonies the independence for which nationalist guerilla movements had been striving. In Angola, thedecolonization process took the form of a violent conflict between the different guerilla movements and their allies. In 1975, theTreaty of Alvor between Portugal andNational Liberation Front of Angola (FNLA), People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) and National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) reconfirmed Cabinda's status as part of Angola. The treaty was rejected by theFront for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda and other local political organizations which advocated for separate independence. Since then, Cabinda has been, on the one hand, a normal Angolan province, but on the other hand, there has been persistent political protest against this status; the "Kabinda Free State" says theexclave was a Portugueseprotectorate until Angola invaded in 1974.[13] They also say they control 85% of Kabinda territory and invite proposals forjoint ventures.[13] A number of guerrilla actions have also occurred in Cabinda.[14]
The arguments for self-determination are based on Cabindans' cultural and ethnic background. Prior to theTreaty of Simulambuco, three kingdoms existed in what is now referred to as Cabinda: Cacongo, Ngoyo, and Loango. The Cabindans belong to theBakongo ethnic group whose language isKikongo. The Bakongo also comprise the majority of the population inUíge andZaire provinces ofAngola. However, despite this shared ancestry, the Cabindans developed a very different culture and distinct variants of the Kikongo language.
In the early 1960s, several movements advocating a separate status for Cabinda came into being. TheMovement for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda (MLEC) was formed in 1960 under the leadership ofLuis Ranque Franque. Resulting from the merger of variousémigré associations inBrazzaville, the MLEC rapidly became the most prominent of the separatist movements. A further group was theAlliama (Alliance of the Mayombe), representing theMayombe, a small minority of the population. In an important development, these movements united in August 1963 to form a united front. They called themselves the FLEC, and the leadership role was taken by the MLEC's Ranque Franque.
In marked contrast with the FNLA, the FLEC's efforts to mobilize international support for itsgovernment in exile met with little success. In fact, the majority ofOrganization of African Unity (OAU) members, concerned that this could encourage separatism elsewhere onthe continent,[citation needed] committed to the sanctity of state borders and firmly rejected recognition of the FLEC's government in exile.[citation needed]
In January 1975, Angola's MPLA, FNLA and UNITA liberation movements signed theAlvor Agreement with Portugal, to establish the modalities of the transition to independence. FLEC was not invited.[citation needed]
On 1 August 1975, at an OAU summit inKampala which was discussing Angola in the midst of its turbulentdecolonization process, Ranque Franque proclaimed theindependence of the "Republic of Cabinda".[citation needed]Zairian PresidentMobutu Sese Seko called for a referendum on the future of Cabinda.
For much of the 1970s and 1980s, FLEC operated alow intensityguerrilla war, attacking Angolan government troops and economic targets, or creating havoc by kidnapping foreign employees working in the province's oil and construction businesses.
The National Union for the Liberation of Cabinda (Portuguese:União Nacional de Libertação de Cabinda; UNLC), a militant separatist group, emerged in the 1990s under the leadership of Lumingu Luis Gimby.[15]
In July 2006, after ceasefire negotiations in the Republic of Congo,António Bento Bembe – as a president of Cabindan Forum for Dialogue and Peace, and vice-president and executive secretary of FLEC – announced that the Cabindan separatist forces were ready to declare a ceasefire. Bembe is the leader of the "Cabindan Forum for Dialogue", an organization which represents most Cabindan groups[citation needed]. The peace was recognized by the United States, France, Portugal,Russia, Gabon,Democratic Republic of the Congo,Republic of the Congo,Japan,South Korea, theEuropean Union and the African Union.
"We're going to sign a cease-fire with the Angolans who in return have accepted the principle of granting special status to Cabinda", he announced, implying that while his group is resigned to be a part of Angola, they have gotten a promise of some form of autonomy.[18]
From Paris, FLEC-FAC contended Bembe has no authority or mandate to negotiate with the Angolans, and that the only acceptable solution is total independence.[19]
On 8 January 2010, the bus carrying theTogo national football team traveling through Cabinda en route to the2010 Africa Cup of Nations tournament was attacked by gunmen, even though it had an escort of Angolan forces. The ensuing gunfight resulted in the deaths of the assistant coach, team spokesman and bus driver, and caused injuries to several others as well.
An offshoot of the FLEC claimed responsibility.Rodrigues Mingas, secretary general of the Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda-Military Position (FLEC-PM), said his fighters had meant to attack security guards as the convoy passed through Cabinda. "This attack was not aimed at theTogolese players but at the Angolan forces at the head of the convoy", Mingas toldFrance 24 television. "So it was pure chance that the gunfire hit the players. We don't have anything to do with the Togolese and we present our condolences to the African families and the Togo government. We are fighting for the total liberation of Cabinda."[20]
Consisting largely oftropical forest, Cabinda produceshardwoods, coffee, cocoa, crude rubber, and palm oil. The product for which it is best known, however, is itsoil. Conservative estimates say that Cabinda accounts for close to 60% of Angola's oil production, estimated at approximately 900,000 barrels per day (140,000 m3/d), and it is estimated that oil exports from the province are worth the equivalent of US$100,000 per annum for every Cabindan.[21] Yet Cabinda remains one of the poorest provinces in Angola. An agreement in 1996 between the national and provincial governments stipulated that 10% of Cabinda's taxes on oil revenues would be given back to the province, but Cabindans often feel that these revenues do not benefit the population as a whole, largely because of corruption. The private sector, particularly theoil industry, has both affected and been affected by the secessionist conflict. During the early days of Cabinda's struggle, theoil companies were perceived as sympathetic to, if not supportive of, Cabinda's self-determination cause. The strategy used by the separatists to gain international attention, was most evident in 1999 and 2000. During 1999, FLEC-R kidnapped four foreign workers (two Portuguese and two French citizens), but released them after several months, having failed to attract the attention of the international community.FLEC-FAC also increased its activities during 2000 with the more widely publicized kidnapping of three Portuguese workers employed by a construction company, while FLEC-R kidnapped another five Portuguese civilians. These hostages were not freed until June 2001, following diplomatic intervention by the governments ofGabon and theRepublic of the Congo.
The province of Cabinda consists of fourmunicipalities (Portuguese:municípios); listed below with their areas (in km2) and populations at the 2014 Census and according to the latest official estimates:[22]
Two giantoil fields, theMalonga North andMalonga West were discovered in 1967 and 1970, respectively, bothpre-salt or pre-Aptian producers.[23]: 198–199
Located in water depths of 50 to 75 m, oil was discovered inBarremian deposits in 1971, then theCenomanian section in 1979.
Four offshore oil fields, theWamba,Takula,Numbi andVuko, are located in the greater Takula area, producing from theUpper Cretaceous,Cenomanian Vermelhasandstone deposited in the coastal environment.[23]: 197
Cretaceous and Paleocene vertebrates, including fossil turtles asCabindachelys[24] have been collected from Lândana.
^André Gomes Capita Nionje,Arquitetura tradicional em Cabinda Comuna do Tando-zinze Aldeia de Lucula-zenze Cabinda-Angola, Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias, 2019
^Collelo, Thomas (editor) (1989)A Country Study: Angola Federal Research Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.,Appendix A, Table 2, Cabinda,Archived 2 March 1999
^abDale, C.T., Lopes, J.R., and Abilio, S., 1992, Takula Oil Field and the Greater Takula Area, Cabinda, Angola, In Giant Oil and Gas Fields of the Decade, 1978–1988, AAPG Memoir 54, Halbouty, M.T., editor, Tulsa: American Association of Petroleum Geologists,ISBN0891813330
^Myers, T. S., Polcyn M. J., Mateus O., Vineyard D. P., Gonçalves A. O., & Jacobs L. L. (2017). A new durophagous stem cheloniid turtle from the lower Paleocene of Cabinda, Angola. Papers in Palaeontology. 2017, 1–16
1 1975 is the year of East Timor's Declaration of Independence and subsequentinvasion by Indonesia. In 2002, East Timor's independence was fully recognized.
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