Ulrich Fehling reports on the current situation in the former Portuguese colony Angola: when President dos Santos retired in 2017 after nearly 40 years in power, to be succeeded by João Lourenço, many hoped that this would bring a marked decrease in corruption, brutality on the part of state security forces and other civil rights abuses. Alas, many of these hopes were already dashed over the course of the new president’s first term. Meanwhile, Lourenço has entered into a second term after winning the election held in August 2022. How does Angola’s future look, in particular regarding civil rights?