But freedom did not translate into peace for the Angolans. Civil war immediately broke out between a Marxist force supported by Soviet and Cuban troops and an anticommunist group backed by the United States and South Africa. Nearly a quarter century later, the battle continues. The prolonged conflict has taken its toll on the Angolan people. Attempts at peace have accomplished little.
Millions are dead and hundreds of thousands of civilians still flee villages under attack.
Camps of refugees lace the outskirts of Luanda, Angola's overpopulated capital. The city, situated on Africa's western coast, has become a haven for people escaping the fighting. An estimated 25 percent of Angola's entire population live in Luanda. It's not easy for outsiders to comprehend the tragedy so many Angolans have experienced. Clyde Berkley, the IMB's Richmond-based associate to missionaries in southern Africa, tried explaining the rough circumstances to the McHaneys when they first sensed God calling them to Angola.