An Angolan social media influencer Ana da Silva Miguel’s prison sentence for insulting President João Lourenço on TikTok has been increased to two years, the BBC reports.
The popular TikTok personality, known as Neth Nahara, initially received a six-month sentence from a court in August. However, an appeals court later deemed this sentence too lenient and extended it to two years.
Ms. Miguel, using her TikTok account with the username @nethnahara.yaya, accused the president of “anarchy and disorganization,” as reported by local media. She also held the president responsible for the lack of educational institutions, housing, and employment opportunities in the oil-rich southern African nation.
President Lourenço secured re-election for a second term in August of the previous year in a tightly contested election, thereby prolonging the ruling MPLA party’s long-standing dominance, which has been in power since the country’s independence in 1975. The ruling party is often criticized for its authoritarian governance.
The appeals court in the capital city of Luanda stated that Ms. Miguel had employed offensive language against the president. They also noted that her ability to shape public opinion rendered her actions “more offensive.”
Despite being a first-time offender and a mother of young children who expressed remorse for her comments, the court rejected her plea for leniency.
In addition to upholding her sentence, the court went a step further by requiring her to pay President Lourenço $1,200 (£1,000) as compensation for the purported harm to his reputation caused by her remarks.
Judge Salomão Raimundo Kulanda characterized the president as “sovereign” and pointed out that the TikToker was well aware of this fact.
Ana da Silva Miguel has over 230,000 TikTok followers, and her videos are watched by thousands of people.
Her legal representative informed the Portuguese news outlet Lusa that this marked the first instance in Angola where an individual had been convicted for content posted on TikTok. The lawyer also noted that the court’s decision was final, as appeals to the Supreme Court were only permissible for sentences exceeding three years.
The state prosecutor had requested a more severe penalty, asserting that the initial six-month sentence was excessively lenient and expressing concern that Ms. Miguel might continue to make similar social media posts.
Despite being one of Africa’s leading oil-exporting nations, Angola struggles with widespread poverty among its population. The country has witnessed a surge in protests due to the escalating cost of living in recent times.