In this file photo taken on Aug 19, 2017, former Angolan president Jose Eduardo dos Santos acknowledges the crowd during the closing campaign rally in Luanda. (MARCO LONGARI / AFP)
LUANDA – Tchize dos Santos, daughter of former Angolan president Jose Eduardo dos Santos, will appeal against the Spanish court's decision to deliver the corpse of her father to his ex-wife Ana Paula dos Santos, her lawyer Carmen Varela said Wednesday.
"The decision of the instruction judge number 11 of Barcelona to deliver the body of the former Angolan president Jose Eduardo dos Santos to his former wife will be subject to appeal by Tchize dos Santos," Varela said.
Jose Eduardo dos Santos, who ruled Angola from 1979 to 2017, died on July 8, at the age of 79, in Barcelona, Spain, where he spent most of his time over the past five years
"We will file an appeal because we understand that the criminal jurisdiction is not competent to rule on this matter, it should be the civil jurisdiction to rule on it," the lawyer said, adding that a process is currently underway in the civil court on this issue.
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Jose Eduardo dos Santos, who ruled Angola from 1979 to 2017, died on July 8, at the age of 79, in Barcelona, Spain, where he spent most of his time over the past five years.
Two factions of the dos Santos' family dispute the custody of Jose Eduardo dos Santos' body in the Family Court of the Civil Court of Catalonia.
On one side are Tchize dos Santos and her older siblings, who oppose the delivery of the remains to the former first lady and are against holding a state funeral before the Aug 24 elections in Angola to avoid political exploitation.
On the other side, there is the widow Ana Paula dos Santos and her three children with the former president, who also claim the body and want it to be buried in Angola in the near future.
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