Two Mozambican Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) reported at least nine deaths in the provinces of Nampula and Zambézia in clashes with the police in the context of post-election protests that have been taking place since Thursday.
According to the most recent CDD – Center for Democracy and Human Rights bulletin on human rights, “in recent days, the city and province of Nampula”, in the north of the country, “have become the scene of an alarming and brutal repression, with signs of worsening in practically all of its 23 districts”.
“In the midst of this escalation of violence, the Nampula Central Hospital became a scene of mourning and despair. Health professionals report exhaustion and profound shock at the growing number of serious cases”, reads the bulletin, which highlights the use of tear gas, rubber bullets and live bullets to disperse protesters by police.
He adds that that hospital “has already received more than 30 people with serious injuries, including 28 gunshot victims from Namialo, Meconta district”, in addition to “seven deaths have already been confirmed” in the province.
This wave of violence occurs during a seven-day period of strikes and demonstrations called for across the country, since October 31, by presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane.
The Center for Public Integrity (CIP), a Mozambican non-governmental organization that monitors electoral processes, reports, in its most recent bulletin monitoring the electoral process, two deaths in the province of Zambézia in clashes with the police.
In this case, it is said that protesters marched in Pebane, in that province in the center of the country, and “vandalized” the headquarters of the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frelimo, in power), which led to police intervention, which injured six people.
“The two dead are young people aged 14 and 17”, reads the document, which also points to the vandalization of other Frelimo headquarters and police officers’ homes.
On Thursday, the general commander of the Police of the Republic of Mozambique; Bernardino Rafael, said that until then the corporation had been called to intervene in 58 demonstrations, of which 38 were violent, accounting for 36 agents undergoing hospital treatment.
“We all witnessed these violent demonstrations. Cars and tires were burned on the highways, state institutions and commercial establishments were vandalized and even the facilities where the police work were vandalized”, lamented Bernardino Rafael.
Frelimo leader Celso Correia, also Minister of Agriculture, stated on Saturday that the right to protest must be reconciled with other fundamental rights, given the post-election demonstrations in the country.
“Frelimo defends the principle of peace and peace values. We are against any type of violence. We believe that the rights of all citizens must be safeguarded, both the right to protest and also the right to life, to free movement”, he said.
He guaranteed that Frelimo wants the electoral process to take place “with as much transparency as possible” and “that the work of the institutions is valued in a transparent and credible way”.
“To also convince the group of Mozambicans who still do not have confidence in the results. It is very important that the counting process can be as transparent as possible so that we can achieve social peace, which is very important for the construction of Mozambique,” he said.
The National Elections Commission (CNE) announced on October 24th the victory of Daniel Chapo, supported by Frelimo, the party in power since 1975, in the election for President of the Republic on October 9th, with 70.67% of the votes.
Venâncio Mondlane, supported by the Optimist Party for the Development of Mozambique (Podemos, extra-parliamentary), came in second place, with 20.32%, but stated that he did not recognize these results, which have yet to be validated and proclaimed by the Constitutional Council.
Venâncio Mondlane called for a general strike and demonstrations for a week in Mozambique, starting on October 31st, and marches in Maputo on November 7th.
He designated this as the third stage of the challenge to the electoral results, which follows the protests held on the 21st, 24th and 25th of October, which provoked clashes with the police, which resulted in at least 10 deaths, dozens of injuries and 500 detained, according to the CIP.
Source: www.jornaldenegocios.pt
