Government Of The Municipality Of Viana
An Interview With Mr. Julio Sebastiao Fernandes De Carvalho Administrator Of The Mucipality Of Viana

[Read this in Portuguese]

The Administrator´S Background

Full Name:      Julio Sebastiao Fernandes Carvalho
Son of:        Manuel Sebastião and Maria de Carvalho
Date of birth:     23 December 1955
Marital status:    Married to Amelia Miguel Barros de Carvalho and has six children
Profession:       Military

Educational background

University graduate
Did various Military Courses in Russia and Cuba
I have participated in various courses of Management, Congresses and Conferences.

Work Experience

Worked in the country’s foreign missions in Europe and in Africa.
Started my military services as a First Lieutenant and rose up to my current rank of Brigadier In 1990 I was appointed as an Administrator for the Municipality of Ingombota, then I was later transferred to Cacuaco still in Luanda Province under the same capacity .
My main duties are to carry out administration functions as an Administrator for the Municipality of Viana.

Achievements

I was awarded a medal of ´Defense of the Homeland` and many other military awards.

Brief History of Viana

The name of the Municipality of Viana originates from a small place that is located at the junction of the roads going to Calumbo, Bom Jesus and Catete. This place is also situated along the railway Line.

The place was famous because it provided a passage for goods coming from the inland to the port of Luanda in readiness for export. Viana is at a distance of 18km from the city of Luanda.

Along time ago Viana was known as ´´21 Kilometer´´ because of the Catete-Luanda Railway which has a stretch of 21 kilometers. Along this railway lived an old man by the name of Viana.

He lived in a house made of wood surrounded by cashew nut a tree in a quiet place. It was from this man’s name that the place was named after.

The people who used to pass through this area either with a train or by cars started calling this place as Viana but without any recognition of the government.

In 1948, the government passed a law (Law No. 2049) which recognized Viana as a trading centre which fell under the administration of Luanda. The same law saw the establishment of an Administration Post in Viana.

On 19th December 1956 the Governor General of Luanda Mr. Horacio Jose de Sa Viana Rebelo passed a law which included Viana under the administration council of Luanda. Under this new law, Viana took over the administration of Sao Paulo, Barra do Kwanza, Belas, Boavista and Cacuaco.

A little while later on 11th May 1960, another new law was passed (Law No. 3042) which declared Viana as an administrative centre independent of Luanda.

On 15th of September 1962 the region of Bela was made into an administration centre free from Viana this was according the law No. 12388 of 18 September 1962.

On 27th of March 1965, Viana was given a Municipality status by the central government .This was in respect of Law No. 13735 enacted on 27th of March 1965.

Still in the same year on the 13th of December, Cacuaco which was under Viana was awarded an administrative status free from the administration of Viana. This was backed by Law No. 14061 of 13th of December 1965.

Finally, Law No. 14062 enacted on the 13th of December 1965 put into effect the creation of Municipal Commission of Viana.

Financial and economical aspects

The geographical position of Viana in relation to the Capital City Luanda and its vast free land is slowly making it change into a great industrial area.

Many industries have been set up in this area and many more others are still being constructed. Because of this high rate of industrial growth, Viana is bound to play a great part in the economical growth of Angola.

POPULATION

Viana´s population is made up of 47% of children of 15 years and below and 1.5 % of people aged between 65 years and above. While the population of vulnerable children is about 31.2% out of which 12.5% are orphans.

The main reason for the migration of the people to Viana was the war which represents 53.8% and out of this number, 15.4% have shown interest to go back to their place of origin.        

FAMILY SYSTEM

It is interesting to mention here that the married men and women of different ethnic groups speak different types of vernacular languages but all of them speak also Portuguese.

Each family on average has 4 children and men are allowed to marry more than one wife or to have other children outside marriage.

MIGRATION

In the 17th Century, Luanda was known as a great trading centre. Many traders from Portugal ,Brazil, Britain and many others used to come to Angola in ships to do business. These traders used to do business in a Triangular Trade System which saw the movement of goods from Lisbon to Baia in South America then to Luanda and vice versa.

Luanda was a station for the merchants through which they distributed their goods to the inland markets of Dondo. They used to travel with their ships off the coast of Luanda on the Cuanza river up to Dondo which was a big trading centre.

Beside doing business, the traders started involving themselves in social activities which were relevant or important to the local people. This gave birth to the spread of their language and culture among the local people.

Dondo was also a meeting place for the local traders from the plateaus of Malange, Bie and Benguela.

The relationship between deferent types of ethnic groups became so cohesive because of intermarriages though this was spoken against through traditional dances and songs.

The process of migration to viana started as far back as 1836 shortly after the abolishing of the slave trade. Most people targeted Calumbo because of its nearness to the Cuanza river for easy access to river transport and also the railway line which passes right in Calumbo was another contributing factor.

MAIN FOOD

The main food eaten by most people in the area is ´´Funge`` a thick porridge made from either cassava flour or Maize. It is usually eaten with grilled dry fish, beans, meat ,bubble fish and ´´Cacusso`` a local fish.

The most popular drink in the area is a traditional drink called ´´Kissangua`` and traditional brewed beers like Maruvo, Caporroto, Macau and Quimbombo. Other people also drink modern wine and the modern lager beer.

TRADITION

The traditional ceremony of ´´Kianda`` is usually performed on Cuanza river between Calumbo and Barra do Cuanza. It is believed that this customary act helps the community to catch more fish in this river.

A long time ago traditional leaders used to perform some religious acts by praying to God that he gives them abundance rainfall, fish, food , good health and many other things. During this ceremony, the traditional leaders wears a special outfit called ´´Mbangala.``

This ceremony still takes place up to now on the 1st ,2nd  and 3rd   of  November every year .During this ceremony, people take food staffs, traditional brewed drinks and beers and throw then into this river as a way to pay homage to the ancestral spirits .This ceremony is known as ´´KIANDA CEREMONY``

HISTORICAL MONUMENTS

There is an old Catholic Church in Viana which was built by the Dutch in the 17th Century and was under the guardianship of S. Jose. The church was later renovated by the then Provincial Governor Mr. Conselheiro Adriano Acacio Silva Pinto in 1830 with donations from volunteers like Jose Inacio Pereira de Morais who was the administrator of this district and Colonel Horacio de Sa Viana Rebelo who was the Governor General of Angola and may other residents of this district. The government declared this church a national monument.

There is also a building which belonged to famous Portuguese slave trader called Ze Inacio. He used to keep slaves in this building before transporting them to America. This building still exist upto now and the government has declared it a national monument.

Still in Viana, there is also an old workshop where they used to repair ships. It was owned by Mr. Santos Tavares who was a driver of Mr. Gaspar Domingos who was popularly known as Tejo. Mr. Gaspar Domingos used to transport various products like clay pots, drums of wine and many more from Calumbo to Dondo for sale.

CASETA CAMBEMBA

Caseta Cambemba was a railway station. On this station lived a famous mechanic called Adao Cassule who used to repair tankers which used to transport water from Calumbo to Luanda and vice versa. The servicing of the train was also done in this same place by the same man this was in the year 1958.

The train coming Bungu to Calumbo used to transport goods like Palm Oil, Sweet Potatoes, Fish etc…

After the train had broken down, a Portuguese business man by the name of Fernandes and Sons started servicing the route with his bus transporting people and merchandise.

KIMBONDO

According to history, Kimbondo was a big farm belonging to a Portuguese farmer by the name of Jose de Melo. On this farm he employed a lot of blacks, the farm was situated in the lower and higher Carinda.

There was also a big ditch in the area which couldn’t allow vehicles to pass to the other end. This ditch became known as ´´Muigi do Melo.`` During the flooding period , Nunda river poured its water into this ditch and eventually it became a lake and this lake still exist upto now and it is called  ´´Cauigia.``

A lot of black natives that were killed by the Portuguese were thrown into this ditch. The last man who attempted to burry this ditch was buried alive by the Portuguese.

Another historical monument in the area is the wall fence of Jose Inacio in which there was a prison for the black natives. It was from this prison that prisoners were being sent into exile.

Historical monument also can be found in the village of Kakila where Portuguese massacred a lot of black natives during the year 1961. This monument was recognized by the government after the country´ s independence in 1975.

TRANSLATION DONE BY KENNEDY KAYOMBO