Daily Maverick
Dailymaverick logo

Africa

Africa, Maverick Citizen

‘Maputo is like a warzone’ — Activists lament global inaction as protest and state suppression deepen in Mozambique

‘Maputo is like a warzone’ — Activists lament global inaction as protest and state suppression deepen in Mozambique
A protester walks past a burning barricade in Eduardo Mondlane Avenue in Maputo, Mozambique, on 7 November 2024. Tensions were rising in Mozambique’s capital as police fired tear gas to disperse demonstrators gathered after the main opposition leader called a protest against the election results. The southern African nation has been rocked by violence since the 9 October vote. (Photo: Alfred Zuniga / AFP)
Lerato Mutsila
By Lerato Mutsila
8 Nov 2024
Facebook
15
As what activists describe as state-sanctioned repression and human rights violations intensify in Mozambique with police using force to quell post-election protests, regional bodies like the Southern African Development Community and the African Union have been called on to intervene. Activists worry that the slow reaction to the increasing crisis in Mozambique will only result in more human rights violations. 

“Maputo is like a warzone,” the director of the Centre for Democracy and Human Rights in Mozambique and chairperson of the Southern Africa Human Rights Defenders Network, Professor Adriano Nuvunga, told Daily Maverick. He was describing the scenes unfolding in Mozambique as police clashed with protesters on Thursday, 7 October, during a mass Day of Freedom demonstration.

The neighbourhoods of Polana Caniço, Maxaquene, Luís Cabral and much of Mozambique’s capital city, Maputo, were covered in clouds of tear gas, with the firing of rubber bullets and live ammunition ringing out as police shot at thousands of protesters who had gathered for the largest demonstration since protests against the highly disputed Mozambican elections started on 21 October.

The protests started after election authorities announced that the long-ruling Frelimo party had won the elections. However, suspecting vote rigging in the election, many young people supporting independent candidate Venâncio Mandlane took to the streets to voice their dissent.

Civil society groups and Western election observers also noted the election was unfair and the results were altered.

Mozambique, Venâncio Mondlane. Opposition presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane. (Photo: Alfredo Zuniga / AFP)


Tear gas, rubber bullets and barricaded roads


Nuvunga, who was on the ground with protesters, lamented the heavy-handed approach of the Mozambican government since 21 October, adding that a large contingent of police and military units have been deployed in Maputo and outlying suburbs to repress unarmed and peaceful protesters in the area.

“Military vehicles, tanks and heavily armed police were stopping marchers from entering the capital city of Maputo. The police were firing tear gas, firing rubber bullets and in certain instances, firing live ammunition,” Nuvunga said. “The deployment of tanks and heavily armed officers has turned Maputo and other cities of the country into a de facto conflict zone sparking widespread alarm among the citizens.”

Acts of violence have allegedly been carried out by people who were not wearing official state uniforms but were carrying state weapons, which Nuvunga says are being used to shoot to kill.

“These [people] are acting directed by police officers to go hunting [for] some of those that are being perceived to be behind the demonstration. Most of these agents have infiltrated residential areas, heightening violence and spreading fear among the local populations in the neighbourhood,” he added.

“Such measures reveal the extent of state efforts to suppress dissent and silence calls for justice,” Nuvunga said.

He said Thursday’s protest resulted in the death of five people, with hundreds more injured and unlawfully detained. In total, Nuvungu estimates that 39 people have been killed since the beginning of the demonstrations, with more than 2,000 people arbitrarily detained, and nearly 1,000 people injured.

According to Nuvunga, the demonstrations are in their “third phase”, adding: “It is unprecedented to have a demonstration of this type, to have a week-long protest. Over these week-long demonstrations, Maputo [has] looked like a military-imposed lockdown.”

Describing the scenes on the ground over the past week, Nuvunga said that police patrol the streets of the capital city and indiscriminately use tear gas on any citizens they happen to come across. Though some people have been barred from leaving their homes, Nuvungu said this has not hampered the spirit of the demonstrations.

“People have been making noise from their apartments, shouting, chanting and calling for the name of presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane,” he said.

Disappointment in SADC and AU


Mozambique protests A protester walks past a burning barricade in Eduardo Mondlane Avenue in Maputo, Mozambique, on 7 November 2024. Tensions were rising in Mozambique’s capital as police fired tear gas to disperse demonstrators gathered after the main opposition leader called a protest against the election results. The southern African nation has been rocked by violence since the 9 October vote, won by the Frelimo party, which has been in power for almost 50 years. (Photo: Alfred Zuniga / AFP)



As the protests intensify and the violent response from the state heightens, what stands out for activists in the country is the seemingly weak response from regional and international bodies like the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the United Nations (UN).

South Africa’s response has been to temporarily close the Lebombo port of entry in Mpumalanga, the main border crossing with Mozambique. The closing of the border was triggered by escalating protests 

Read more: Protest is not a crime — Mozambique’s struggle for freedoms in a fragile democracy 

South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Co-operation said: “South Africa expresses concern at the outbreak of incidents of post-electoral violence and regrets the loss of lives and destruction of property.” It called for a speedy investigation of the incidents to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Meanwhile, SADC announced the convening of the SADC Extraordinary Organ Troika Summit on 20 November in Zimbabwe, where SADC heads of state will discuss the crisis in Mozambique. Daily Maverick asked SADC what steps would be taken in the 10 days leading up to the summit, but had received no response by the time of publication.

Nuvunga said Mozambique is in a stalemate, with Frelimo insisting it will only engage in dialogue once the Constitutional Council has ratified the results, while the opposition is insisting on dialogue now. “This is the situation, people have been calling for dialogue, which is not coming,” he said.

“There is disappointment with SADC and AU on how they have remained silent with this piling up until it reached the level of yesterday. SADC was here, the EU was here observing the election; they were told, they saw this coming but three days after the election, they left. Now they are nowhere to be seen. There is no response from SADC. They have called for a meeting in Harare, but that meeting will not result in much because domestically Ferlimo is intransigent [unwilling to change],” Nuvunga added.

Limits to the flow of information


The Mozambique government has allegedly imposed internet blackouts, infringing on citizens’ right to freedom of expression and access to information.

“These measures have hindered citizens' ability to organise, communicate and share real-time updates with the international community. The internet restrictions raise critical concerns about transparency and suppression of freedom of expression, isolating protestors and obstructing the documentation of human rights abuses,” Nuvunga said. 

Posting on X, the president of the Youth Parliament of Mozambique, David Fardo said: “The situation in Mozambique is very tricky right now, since last Friday, the government decided to restrict the internet connection and we have been forced to use VPNs. It’s so difficult to have information.”

Read more: Mozambique’s dark hour — repression, digital isolation and the struggle for freedom

Powder keg


Fardo said that as Mozambicans took to the streets to protest against what they view as a fraudulent election and how the ruling party handled the post-election dissent, the disputed elections have become very much a powderkeg, with demonstrations evolving into a powerful national movement demanding electoral justice, the protection of human rights and redress for socio-economic issues.

“We used to say Mozambican people are very peaceful and pacific and that is correct, but nowadays the Mozambican young people are also fighting for their own rights. We know that the current protests are linked to the electoral process, but it is also linked with many, many challenges that we have been shouting about with the government,” Fardo said.

According to Mozambican journalist Alexandre Nhampossa, people on the ground have been complaining about the country’s standard of living. “They are taking the opportunity to demonstrate about everything. On Wednesday, for example, there was a march by doctors. Yesterday there was a march by unemployed university students. A few days ago there was a march against the kidnapping of businessmen,” he said.

Mozambican activist Francisca Guilherme added: “We are facing a situation where young people are the majority in Mozambique and they are calling for justice. Young people are suffering; we have no opportunity for employment. There is a lack of observation of human rights, especially for young people, hence you see that most of those who are in the streets calling for justice calling for their rights are young people and women. We are tired.

“They [Frelimo] say that the people who are on the street are marginals or people who don’t have any type of literacy. This is not true; the people who are in the streets are young people who are acknowledging their rights, they are young people from Mozambique who have been speaking up for a long time.”

Activists have called on regional and international bodies to address the crisis unfolding in Mozambique. “This situation demands urgent attention from human rights organisations, regional stakeholders and the global community to halt further violence, promote further transparency and protect the fundamental rights of the Mozambican people,” Nuvunga said. DM

Categories:

Tags: