Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda
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The Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda (Portuguese: Frente para a Libertação do Enclave de Cabinda, FLEC) is a separatist movement in Cabinda, Angola.
The FLEC acts in the region occupied by the former kingdoms of Kakongo, Loango and N'Goyo.
On February 1, 1885, a treaty was signed at Simulambuco establishing Cabinda as a Portuguese protectorate. A monument was built there later.
The FLEC was founded in 1963 by the union of three nationalist movements:
- MLEC - Movemento de Liberaçao do Enclave of Cabinda (Movement for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda),
- CAUNC - Comite d'acçao do Union Nacional Cabindesa (Action Committee of the Cabinda National Union), and
- ALLIAMA - Aliança Nacional do El Mayombe (El Mayombe National Alliance). Mayombe is a mountain between Cabinda and the Republic of Congo.
The MLEC flag was yellow with a seal in the center showing the Mayombe.
The leader of the united group was Luiz Ranque Franque, who refused to join other Angolan independence movements. FLEC adopted a flag was with horizontal red, yellow and blue bands -- one color for each of the groups. The new emblem (a white star and a green triangle within a ring) was added in the center.
In 1975, FLEC constituted a provisional government led by Enriquez Tiago that proclaimed independence from Portugal on August 1, 1975. Luiz Ranque was the president.
Between November 1975 and January 4, 1976, the Cabinda enclave was invaded by soldiers of the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), which was the dominant independence movement in the rest of Angola, supported by Cuban troops. The MPLA quickly gained control of the urban areas while FLEC controlled the countryside.
FLEC broke into three factions:
- FLEC-Ranque Franque,
- FLEC-N'Zita, led by Enriquez Tiago N'Zita, and
- FLEC-Lubota, led by Francisco Xavier Lubota.
In November 1977, another faction was created:
- the Military Command for the Liberation of Cabinda.
In June 1979, the Armed Forces for the Liberation of Cabinda created another movement:
- MPLC - the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Cabinda (Movimento Popular de Libertação de Cabinda).
In the 1980s, FLEC received help from the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), which opposed the MPLA-controlled government of Angola, and from South Africa.
1988 CCC - the Communist Committee of Cabinda (Comité Communista de Cabinda) divorced from FLEC, led by Kaya Mohamed Yay.
In 1990s, one more faction was created:
- UNLC - the National Union for the Liberation of Cabinda (União Nacional de Libertação de Cabinda), led by Lumingu Luis Gimby
The original FLEC was re-formed in the 1990s, and two factions were created:
- FLEC-Renovada, whose flag was white with a central stripe divided into three colors: green, yellow and black, with a red ring in the center of the flag.
- FLEC-Armed Forces of Cabinda (Forças Armadas do Cabinda - FLEC-FAC), using the original red, yellow, and blue flag, with emblem.
Another group was created by Cabindese ex-patriates in the Netherlands in 1996:
- FLEC(Lopes) - Frente de Libertação do Estado de Cabinda" (Liberation Front of the State of Cabinda). This group adopted a flag blue, yellow and black with the Silambuco monument in the center.
In August 2006, a ceasefire was signed between FLEC-Renovada and Angola government. This has been denounced by most Cabindan groups both inside and outside Cabinda as a sham. FLEC-FAC continues its struggle for independence both inside and outside Cabinda.
In October 2006 The Republic of Cabinda in Exile, FLEC-FAC and President Tiago asked for intervention by the African Union's Commission on Human and People's Rights.
