Angolan President Joao Lourenco has granted pardons to around 50 prisoners, including José Filomeno Dos Santos, the son of former President Jose Eduardo Dos Santos, who was serving a five-year sentence for fraud.
José Filomeno, also known as “Zenu,” was convicted in 2020 for his role in transferring $500 million from Angola’s national bank to an account in the United Kingdom. The case, which also led to the conviction of the former governor of Angola’s national bank, was a key part of Lourenco’s anti-corruption campaign.
The Dos Santos family has dismissed the allegations as a politically motivated campaign against them.
The pardons, set to take effect on January 1, were announced in a presidential decree shared on social media. The decree cited the “good behavior” of the inmates and stated they posed no “social danger.”
The decision was tied to next year’s 50th anniversary of Angola’s independence from Portugal. The decree emphasized that the pardons aim to promote “harmony, leniency, and fraternity” in the country.
The release of José Filomeno Dos Santos and others marks a significant development in Angola’s political and judicial landscape, raising questions about the future of Lourenco’s anti-corruption efforts and the broader reconciliation process within the nation.
