Angola's campaigns gain momentum as political parties call for peace

The first week of the election campaign in Angola went more smoothly. The political tensions of the pre-election period dropped considerably and the tone of the candidates has also become more positive.

This is the analysis of Luís Jimbo, from the Angolan electoral observatory.

"This one week that is now running of the official electoral campaign, and the pre-campaign atmosphere that had been launched by the political parties, this one is more peaceful so far, compared to the previous period. Also, the civic conscience of the citizenry is demanding that the candidates bring messages of what they want to do for the country," said Luís Jimbo, Angolan Electoral Observatory.

"The candidates are focusing on electoral promise and this is fundamental because at the beginning they tried to dodge this issue. They made it a personal attack, to attract more followers," added Jimbo.

This is a stance taken also by political parties, as the main opposition party explained to Euronews.

"We've learned that you can't win in turbulence, you can only win in serenity. So we are helping to serenade the political environment. It's true that here or there is always one or another incident but even so I consider the political environment quite serene," said Nelito Ekuikui, UNITA opposition party.

The ruling MPLA has also urged its supporters to avoid practices that taint the electoral process.

The tense moments will persist until the August 24 elections as evidenced by the refusal of an opposition march this Saturday in Luanda with authorities and promoters fencing off divergent arguments.