Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, 2013: Sao Tome and Principe

摘要

The Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe is a multiparty constitutional democracy. Voters elected President Manuel Pinto da Costa as head of state in 2011. In December 2012 the president appointed Gabriel Arcanjo Ferreira da Costa as prime minister to replace Patrice Emery Trovoada, who was removed from office following a November 2012 censure motion approved by a minority coalition in the National Assembly acting while Trovoadas party was absent. Trovoada and his party, which won the most parliamentary seats in 2010 legislative elections, subsequently contested the censure motion and described his removal as illegal. International observers deemed both the 2011 presidential and the 2010 legislative elections free and fair. Authorities maintained effective control over security forces. Security forces did not commit human rights abuses. Key human rights concerns included difficult prison conditions, official corruption, societal violence, and discrimination against women. While the government took some steps to punish officials who committed abuses, impunity was reportedly a problem.