Paper short abstract:

The paper unpacks the characteristics of the ‘good' Angolan citizen during three periods of the country’s history, while arguing that Angola’s case differs from other forms of 'good' citizenship in Africa that sponsor privileged belonging to those who embody the positive qualities of the nation.

Paper long abstract:

This paper explores changing notions of 'good' citizenship in Angola during three distinct periods, the colonial, post-colonial and contemporary age. These periods represent a time in the history of the country when particular yet changing forms and practices of 'good' citizenship were required to achieve social mobility. If late colonialism is defined by the liberation war, which romanticised the idea of the freedom fighter but subjected him entirely to the whims of the party, the post-colonial period is heavily marked by a civil-war that attempted to define the Angolan nation, consequently producing two different notions of the 'good' citizen. Throughout these periods political identity and party allegiance remained the required elements for enjoying quality citizenship rights, encouraging people to follow party ideologies and adopt specific public behaviours which could allow access to clientele networks or promotions within party hierarchies. However, it is in the contemporary period, fruit of the organisation of political power, that a more crystallised notion of the 'good' citizen emerges, one Angolans commonly refer to as 'grovelers'. The good Angolan citizen of today is the groveler that publicly defends the political regime that feeds his social status, essentially arguing for a symbiotic relationship characterised by patron-client relations. The paper attempts to unpack all these notions by following the proposed chronological order while showing that Angola may differ from other cases in Africa where privileged citizenship is attributed to those who are seen as representatives of the positive qualities of the nation.