The Mozambican police recorded 236 ‘acts of serious violence’ in 24 hours, in the contestation of the election results, including attacks on police stations and prisons, which caused 21 deaths, the interior minister announced today, guaranteeing the immediate reinforcement of security.
‘Nobody can call or consider these criminal acts peaceful demonstrations,’ said Minister Pascoal Ronda at a press conference in Maputo this evening, at a time of widespread chaos in the country, with barricades, looting, vandalisation and various attacks, the day after the final results of the general elections on 9 October were announced.
The government official revealed that among the 236 incidents in the last 24 hours ‘throughout the country’ were 25 vehicles set on fire, two of which belonged to the Police of the Republic of Mozambique (PRM), 11 police sub-units and a prison ‘attacked and vandalised, from which 86 inmates were removed’, four tollbooths set on fire, three health facilities vandalised, a central medicine warehouse set on fire and vandalised and ten Frelimo party headquarters set on fire.
‘This resulted in 21 deaths, including two PRM members, 25 injuries, 13 of which were civilians and 12 PRM members,’ added Pascoal Ronda, noting that 78 people had been arrested and that the police were investigating the moral and material perpetrators of these crimes, which represent a “difficult” and “nefarious” moment.
‘Given the seriousness of the events, the Mozambican government has ordered the immediate reinforcement of security measures throughout the country and the Defence and Security Forces [FDS] will intensify their presence at strategic and critical points,’ said Ronda.
He also pointed out that ‘while the acts of violence are unfolding, groups of armed men, using both bladed weapons and firearms, have been carrying out attacks on police posts, prisons and other critical infrastructure’.
‘The ‘modus operandi’ of these actions suggests the possibility of selective attacks conducted by a terrorist group associated with the insurgency in Cabo Delgado. Faced with this situation, the FDS will intervene, as they cannot innocently and forever watch this movement grow, which tends to be characterised as full-blown urban terrorism,’ said Pascoal Ronda.
On Monday afternoon, the Mozambican Constitutional Council proclaimed Daniel Chapo, the candidate supported by the ruling Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frelimo), as the winner of the election for Mozambican President, with 65.17% of the votes, succeeding Filipe Nyusi in office, as well as the victory of Frelimo, which retained its parliamentary majority, in the general elections on 9 October.
The announcement sparked chaos across the country, with demonstrators in the streets, barricades, looting and clashes with the police, who have been firing shots in an attempt to demobilise them.
The capital, Maputo, is experiencing another day of chaos today, with avenues blocked by demonstrators, burning tyres and all kinds of barricades in protest at the announcement of the results, which involve looting and destruction of various private and public establishments, including banks.
These demonstrations and stoppages, which since 21 October – the day before Monday – had already resulted in the deaths of at least 120 people, have been called by presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane, who does not recognise the results initially announced by the National Electoral Commission (CNE) and now proclaimed by the Constitutional Council, which give him around 24% of the vote.
Among other consequences, the Interior Minister says that essential services are being disrupted, with schools, courts, state administrative buildings and companies being destroyed.
‘The actions of the DSF must be firm and within the limits of the law, in order to restore normality in the affected areas, ensuring that those responsible for leading or participating in acts of destruction or aggression are, as we have said, duly identified, including the principals and promoters, and held accountable through the legal mechanisms,’ added Pascoal Ronda, who also launched “a firm and urgent appeal for calm and serenity” in the face of the current scenario of “public disorder”.
‘It is essential that all differences are resolved peacefully,’ he emphasised.
Lusa