Important Figure in Angolan History Dies

Holden Roberto (NYT link, interesting article!), one of the early leaders in the fight for independence from Portugal, died late last week. He was the leader of the Frente Nacional de Libertação de Angola (FNLA, or National Liberation Front of Angola). During the early part of the struggle, the US supported the FNLA to counter the MPLA (current ruling party), which was supported by the Soviets.

I don't know much about the FNLA. It is one of the minor opposition parties, with no real political power to speak of. However, the fact that so many people have expressed regret over his death shows that he was respected as one of the first leader to fight for Angolan independence. I wish I knew more about this history. Before I came here I had a hard time finding any books that dealt with it. Another Day of Life, by Ryszard Kapuscinski is one of the few good books I found on the independence era. It's more of a memoir, however.