Mozambique's major cities paralyzed by post-election unrest
Isaac Kaledzi | Romeu da Silva in Maputo, Mozambique
Looting, fires and a rising death toll
The Constitutional Council's announcement triggered opposition protests that often turned into clashes with police, with buildings burned and supermarkets ransacked.
A female resident in Maputo told DW that she witnessed looting in Maputo's Praca dos Combatentes neighborhood.
"The people I saw ran away and broke glass. I saw everything that was happening. They took microwaves, televisions, beds. This should not happen because they are ruining many things, and they cannot behave like this," she said.
In the George Dimitrov neighborhood, also known as Benfica, at least 11 people died inside a food warehouse when a fire broke out after it was attacked and looted.
In the Polana Canico neighborhood, residents also set up barricades to prevent road traffic.
"We are willing to organize this. We are tired, after all, what is democracy for? We don't want Frelimo anymore and we will fight. We only want the best for our country, we are tired of wars, of blood, we are tired," a resident told DW.
Police chief Bernardino Rafael described the people who broke into warehouses and stores as criminals.
"What we are witnessing is an assault on the Matola industrial complex, which houses various industries and warehouses," Rafael told reporters. "This was caused by a group of criminals, making it difficult to maintain control."
Opposition blames police for deadly violence
Venancio Mondlane, the opposition leader who has contested the election results, blamed the police for the vandalism and deaths of protesters. He called for more protests from his supporters but cautioned them against looting and damaging infrastructure.
"It's the police men who are prepared to rob the stores, set fire to the banks, break into the warehouses," he said during a live broadcast on Thursday. "You saw the images of policemen telling the population to come in to get food. People come in because they are hungry."
UN calls for dialogue
UN chief Antonio Guterres has expressed concern about the ongoing unrest in Mozambique.
"The secretary-general is concerned about the post-election violence, which has resulted in loss of lives and the destruction of public and private property," Stephanie Tremblay, Guterres' associate spokesperson, told reporters.
Tremblay said Guterres is following developments closely.
"He urges all political leaders and relevant national stakeholders to defuse tensions including through meaningful dialogue, legal redress, refrain from the use of violence, and redouble efforts to seek a peaceful resolution to the ongoing crisis, in a constructive manner, which is essential to the collective future of Mozambicans," she added.
Edited by: Keith Walker
Isaac Kaledzi | Romeu da Silva in Maputo, Mozambique
DW
Post-election violence has spread across Mozambique, paralyzing cities and disrupting daily life. As the chaos escalates, the United Nations has called for calm and a peaceful resolution.
Post-election violence has spread across Mozambique, paralyzing cities and disrupting daily life. As the chaos escalates, the United Nations has called for calm and a peaceful resolution.
Mozambique has been gripped by violent protests for about two months since the electoral commission said the ruling Frelimo party had retained power
Image: AMILTON NEVES/AFP
Major cities in Mozambique were without key human and business activities on Friday as post-election violence in the country spread. Some businesses, including banks, were closed in the capital, Maputo.
Transportation and trading were both halted as opposition-led demonstrations continued amid looting and vandalism.
Maputo and its largest suburb, Matola, have experienced chaos since the Constitutional Council, Mozambique's highest court, confirmed the results of the disputed October presidential election, extending the ruling Frelimo party's grip on power into a 50th year.
The court's seven-judge bench ruled that Frelimo candidate Daniel Chapo had secured 65% of the vote, revising down the initial results of nearly 71%. Frelimo has governed Mozambique since 1975.
Major cities in Mozambique were without key human and business activities on Friday as post-election violence in the country spread. Some businesses, including banks, were closed in the capital, Maputo.
Transportation and trading were both halted as opposition-led demonstrations continued amid looting and vandalism.
Maputo and its largest suburb, Matola, have experienced chaos since the Constitutional Council, Mozambique's highest court, confirmed the results of the disputed October presidential election, extending the ruling Frelimo party's grip on power into a 50th year.
The court's seven-judge bench ruled that Frelimo candidate Daniel Chapo had secured 65% of the vote, revising down the initial results of nearly 71%. Frelimo has governed Mozambique since 1975.
Looting, fires and a rising death toll
The Constitutional Council's announcement triggered opposition protests that often turned into clashes with police, with buildings burned and supermarkets ransacked.
A female resident in Maputo told DW that she witnessed looting in Maputo's Praca dos Combatentes neighborhood.
"The people I saw ran away and broke glass. I saw everything that was happening. They took microwaves, televisions, beds. This should not happen because they are ruining many things, and they cannot behave like this," she said.
In the George Dimitrov neighborhood, also known as Benfica, at least 11 people died inside a food warehouse when a fire broke out after it was attacked and looted.
In the Polana Canico neighborhood, residents also set up barricades to prevent road traffic.
"We are willing to organize this. We are tired, after all, what is democracy for? We don't want Frelimo anymore and we will fight. We only want the best for our country, we are tired of wars, of blood, we are tired," a resident told DW.
Police chief Bernardino Rafael described the people who broke into warehouses and stores as criminals.
"What we are witnessing is an assault on the Matola industrial complex, which houses various industries and warehouses," Rafael told reporters. "This was caused by a group of criminals, making it difficult to maintain control."
Opposition blames police for deadly violence
Venancio Mondlane, the opposition leader who has contested the election results, blamed the police for the vandalism and deaths of protesters. He called for more protests from his supporters but cautioned them against looting and damaging infrastructure.
"It's the police men who are prepared to rob the stores, set fire to the banks, break into the warehouses," he said during a live broadcast on Thursday. "You saw the images of policemen telling the population to come in to get food. People come in because they are hungry."
Venancio Mondlane, Mozambique's main opposition leader, has claimed the October 9 election was rigged
Alfredo Zungia/AFP
The violent protests that have rocked Mozambique have resulted in the deaths of 248 people, including 33 in a prison break on Wednesday.
Mondlane has claimed widespread vote rigging and called on his supporters to continue to protest, vowing to install himself as president on January 15.
At least 1,500 inmates took advantage of the chaos on December 25 to escape from a high-security prison in Maputo, with The Associated Press putting the number at around 6,000.
Rafael said apart from the 33 prisoners who died, 15 others were injured during a confrontation with the security forces.
"A curious fact is that in that prison we had 29 convicted terrorists, who were released. We are worried, as a country, as Mozambicans, as members of the defense and security forces," the police chief told reporters.
"They [protesters] were making noise, demanding that they be able to remove the prisoners who are there serving their sentences."
The violent protests that have rocked Mozambique have resulted in the deaths of 248 people, including 33 in a prison break on Wednesday.
Mondlane has claimed widespread vote rigging and called on his supporters to continue to protest, vowing to install himself as president on January 15.
At least 1,500 inmates took advantage of the chaos on December 25 to escape from a high-security prison in Maputo, with The Associated Press putting the number at around 6,000.
Rafael said apart from the 33 prisoners who died, 15 others were injured during a confrontation with the security forces.
"A curious fact is that in that prison we had 29 convicted terrorists, who were released. We are worried, as a country, as Mozambicans, as members of the defense and security forces," the police chief told reporters.
"They [protesters] were making noise, demanding that they be able to remove the prisoners who are there serving their sentences."
UN calls for dialogue
UN chief Antonio Guterres has expressed concern about the ongoing unrest in Mozambique.
"The secretary-general is concerned about the post-election violence, which has resulted in loss of lives and the destruction of public and private property," Stephanie Tremblay, Guterres' associate spokesperson, told reporters.
Tremblay said Guterres is following developments closely.
"He urges all political leaders and relevant national stakeholders to defuse tensions including through meaningful dialogue, legal redress, refrain from the use of violence, and redouble efforts to seek a peaceful resolution to the ongoing crisis, in a constructive manner, which is essential to the collective future of Mozambicans," she added.
Edited by: Keith Walker
Maputo (AFP) – Around 125 people have been killed in three days of violent clashes across Mozambique amid opposition-led protests over the presidential election results, a non-governmental organisation said Thursday.
By: RFI
27/12/2024 -
Despite international observers raising concerns about irregularities in the 9 October elections, the country's highest court on Monday confirmed that Daniel Chapo of the Frelimo party, which has been in power since 1975, won the presidential race with 65.17 percent of the vote.
That announcement triggered opposition protests that often turned into clashes with police, with buildings burned and supermarkets ransacked.
On Tuesday evening, the government reported a death toll of 21 in the first 24 hours of rioting in several major cities of the southern African nation.
Prison break
The national police chief then announced Wednesday that a mass jailbreak occurred near the capital Maputo, leaving at least 33 inmates dead during clashes with prison staff as they tried to escape.
The NGO Plataforma Decide on Thursday put the toll at 125 deaths since Monday, also raising the total deaths since violence erupted in October to 252.
The hardest-hit areas include around the capital, northern provinces including Nampula and the country's second-largest city Beira.
Mass jailbreak in Mozambique amid post-election unrest
More than 4,000 people have been arrested since October in connection with demonstrations that often turn violent, including 137 arrests in the last three days, the NGO said.
Chapo's main challenger, exiled opposition leader Venancio Mondlane, has claimed the election was rigged.
Mondlane on Thursday accused security forces of encouraging the recent unrest and looting to allow authorities to declare a state of emergency and crush the protests.
Some barricades around the capital had been dismantled Thursday but many remained in place limiting traffic, according to an AFP journalist in Maputo. Public transport was also suspended.
Gemfields pauses Mozambique operation amid political unrest
Staff Writer | December 27, 2024 |
Montepuez is an open-pit mine, considered the world’s most lucrative ruby operation. (Image courtesy of Gemfields.)
Gemfields (LON: GEM) (JSE: GML) has temporarily suspended ruby mining operations in Mozambique following violent incidents that resulted in two deaths.
On Christmas Eve, more than 200 individuals linked to illegal ruby mining attempted to invade the residential village adjacent to Gemfields’ Montepuez Ruby Mining (MRM) operation in northern Mozambique. The groups reportedly set fire to community buildings constructed by MRM and tried to breach the site amid widespread civil unrest triggered by the country’s disputed national election.
Security forces comprising Mozambican police and military responded with a “staged escalation of force,” leading to two fatalities, the company said.
In a related incident, a vocational training center in the nearby village of Wikupuri, built by MRM and managed by Mozambique’s Institute for Vocational Training and Labor Studies, was looted and damaged on the same day.
To prioritize safety, Gemfields temporarily relocated some of its more than 500 employees to off-site locations due to the heightened risk. A phased return of staff began on Thursday, the company confirmed.
Contested elections
The unrest follows Mozambique’s top court’s confirmation of the long-ruling Frelimo party’s election victory, which has been contested by opposition groups citing electoral fraud. Civil society monitoring group Plataforma Decide reports that at least 130 people have died in clashes with police since the election.
Frelimo has consistently denied allegations of vote-rigging, while the electoral commission has not commented on claims of fraud.
The violence has also impacted other foreign miners operating in the country, including South32.
The Montepuez ruby mine is considered the world’s most lucrative ruby operation.
MRM, 75% owned by Gemfields, employs approximately 1,400 people, according to the company’s website.
Shares of Gemfields rose 5.6% by 2:00 p.m. GMT. The miner has a market capitalization of £$84 million ($106 million).
Staff Writer | December 27, 2024 |
Montepuez is an open-pit mine, considered the world’s most lucrative ruby operation. (Image courtesy of Gemfields.)
Gemfields (LON: GEM) (JSE: GML) has temporarily suspended ruby mining operations in Mozambique following violent incidents that resulted in two deaths.
On Christmas Eve, more than 200 individuals linked to illegal ruby mining attempted to invade the residential village adjacent to Gemfields’ Montepuez Ruby Mining (MRM) operation in northern Mozambique. The groups reportedly set fire to community buildings constructed by MRM and tried to breach the site amid widespread civil unrest triggered by the country’s disputed national election.
Security forces comprising Mozambican police and military responded with a “staged escalation of force,” leading to two fatalities, the company said.
In a related incident, a vocational training center in the nearby village of Wikupuri, built by MRM and managed by Mozambique’s Institute for Vocational Training and Labor Studies, was looted and damaged on the same day.
To prioritize safety, Gemfields temporarily relocated some of its more than 500 employees to off-site locations due to the heightened risk. A phased return of staff began on Thursday, the company confirmed.
Contested elections
The unrest follows Mozambique’s top court’s confirmation of the long-ruling Frelimo party’s election victory, which has been contested by opposition groups citing electoral fraud. Civil society monitoring group Plataforma Decide reports that at least 130 people have died in clashes with police since the election.
Frelimo has consistently denied allegations of vote-rigging, while the electoral commission has not commented on claims of fraud.
The violence has also impacted other foreign miners operating in the country, including South32.
The Montepuez ruby mine is considered the world’s most lucrative ruby operation.
MRM, 75% owned by Gemfields, employs approximately 1,400 people, according to the company’s website.
Shares of Gemfields rose 5.6% by 2:00 p.m. GMT. The miner has a market capitalization of £$84 million ($106 million).
No comments:
Post a Comment