World Tour: Protests in Angola

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: Next up, WORLD Tour with our reporter in Africa, Onize Oduah.

SOUND: [PROTESTS]

ONIZE ODUAH: We start today in the southwestern African country of Angola, as thousands of opposition supporters march against the government.

President Joao Lourenco has ruled the country since 2017. Opposition members accuse him of authoritarianism.

The lead opposition party, which was once a former rebel group, organized the march.

Alvaro Chikwamanga is the party’s secretary general.

CHIKWAMANGA: [PORTUGUESE] Our presence here is to tell the Angolan people and the world that today, tomorrow and always, we will defend an Angola free from hunger, poverty and the systematic violation of the democratic state and the rule of law.

He says the party’s goal is to defend democracy and to protect Angola from hunger and poverty.

A record drought is affecting southern African countries including Angola.

Pinto Rafael Kangola is a 24-year-old who joined the protest.

KANGOLA: [PORTUGUESE] Even with the odd jobs I do, it doesn't solve anything, it's hard to buy for the children, I have children at school and nothing is solved, so we're here to march against hunger and poverty.

He says he struggles to meet the needs of his children.

Back in October, the country’s Catholic bishops urged the president in a statement to make hunger alleviation a national priority.

SOUND: [CHANTING]

From protests to a celebration on the streets of Uruguay where an opposition candidate defeated the ruling party’s candidate in a runoff vote.

The left-wing Yamandu Orsi won nearly 50 percent of the vote.

The ruling party’s candidate Alvaro Delgado conceded defeat ahead of the final results. Orsi is a former history teacher who had also served as mayor of Canelones.

In his victory speech, Orsi pledged to call for national dialogue.

ORSI: [SPANISH] I will be the president who calls again and again for national dialogue to find the best solutions, of course based on our proposal, but also by listening carefully to what others are telling us. I will be the president who builds a more united society, a more united country.

Next we head to the Asian country of Laos—sandwiched between Vietnam and Thailand. Authorities there are still investigating after at least six tourists died from consuming tainted alcohol.

Officials report the two Australian teenagers, a British woman, two Danish women, and an American man all drank alcohol laced with methanol in the town of Vang Vieng.

Bars often mix methanol as a cheaper alternative to ethanol.

Laotian authorities detained the manager and owner of a hotel where the Australian tourists stayed.

Neil Farmiloe is a restaurant owner in Vang Vieng. He says he expects the cases will affect tourism.

FARMILOE: There have been quite a few cancellations. It’s obviously a really bad situation. Hopefully it’s just a one off and hopefully it will get back to normal.

The United States and Canada have both issued travel advisories for Laos after the deaths.

SOUND: [COUNTDOWN IN FRENCH]

That’s the countdown to the start of the holiday season in France, where we wrap up today.

Spectators gathered to witness the annual lighting on the Champs-Elysees in Paris. Colorful lights cover the trees along the so-called “world’s most famous avenue.”

Mariana Glotova attended the event.

GLOTOVA: I was very much impressed because we waited maybe for half an hour and we were ready for these lights because we saw these lights several years [ago], but in any case it was an unexpected show, we were very pleased.

The holiday light display shines from 5 pm until midnight every day until early January.

That’s it for this week’s World Tour. Reporting for WORLD, I’m Onize Oduah in Abuja, Nigeria.

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