A law signed on July 8, 2011, criminalized domestic violence in Angola and offers victims financial and medical support. Surveys had previously found that 62 percent of women near Angola’s capital had experienced some form of domestic violence, but there was no law addressing domestic violence. The new law designates domestic violence as a public crime, so anyone, not just the victim, may report violence to the police.
The law also guarantees services such as safe houses, legal assistance, medical care and financial support to victims. Other laws improving women’s rights have also been signed in Angola recently, including a ban on marriages for girls under 14 and increased inheritance rights for women. Groups who supported the new legislation are also calling for training of police officers and education efforts to support the new law.
Compiled from: Louise Redvers, Angola: Law On Domestic Violence a Step Forward for Women's Rights, Interagency Gender Working Group, (13 July 2011).