Freemuse Defending Artistic Freedom
| Two rappers are among 24 youth activists who were put in detention for having called for democratic and economic reforms in anti-government protests on 3 September 2011. The two rappers are Carbono (real name: Dionísio Casimiro) and Explosivo Mental (real name: Jeremias Aniceto). Another rapper, Brigadeiro Mata Frakuzx, has been living in exile in Portugal for a few months after receiving death threats because of his political activities. He was one of the organisers of one of the first protests in March 2011 calling for reforms, inspired by the events in Egypt and Tunisia. The rappers reportedly were part of a group of approximately 100 youths who protested in Independence Square in the capital Luanda, calling on President Jose Eduardo Dos Santo to step down after 32 years of rule. Radio report “At about 2 PM the group decided to head towards the Presidential Palace to demand the release of one of their members who had allegedly been kidnapped several hours before the protest. The police tried to stop them and this generated a small confusion, which according to our information, resulted in the injury, detention and assault that also included journalists. One of the protestors was rapper Carbono Casimiro, who is allegedly among those to have been detained.”
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 Carbono – arrested
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| Source Al Jazeera – 4 September 2011: ‘Angolan youths arrested for staging rally’ |
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