The government denies reports of the arrival of new Rwandan soldiers in Cabo Delgado and clarifies that, in reality, there is a rotation of Rwandan forces in the operational theatre, the newspaper O País reported on Wednesday, February 5.
According to the Minister of National Defence, Cristóvão Chume, the information published in the press since last week, suggesting the deployment of a new contingent from Rwanda to the northern operational theatre, is nothing more than untruths.
‘I’m not confirming the arrival of more Rwandan security forces. I am confirming that the troops who were here at the beginning of the Rwandan mission have always been replaced, just like ours, who are on the ground and refreshed. So these exchanges happen periodically,’ explained the government official, who also denied the existence of any contact between Maputo and Kigali on this matter.
Meanwhile, he said that the fight against terrorism, which has persisted for eight years, since its outbreak in October 2017, requires everyone’s commitment.
‘The fight against terrorism is a process that does not obey set deadlines, and we believe it may take time, despite internal efforts, together with our partners, to eradicate the evil. What we can assure you is that the National Defence Forces and the intelligence services are working, a fact proven by the undisturbed holding of almost all political and social events in recent days, especially the electoral process,’ said Chume.
Addressing the situation of order and security in Cabo Delgado, the governor assured that it was relatively calm, although he confirmed that there had been some attacks and kidnappings of minors.
‘There may be situations that have been recorded in some regions, such as the kidnapping of boys and girls and cases of beheading defenceless citizens. The Defence Forces will not always be present to respond immediately and prevent these acts from occurring. However, in general, the situation in Cabo Delgado is stable, compared to the same period last year,’ he explained.
Speaking in Maputo, during an event of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP), the Defence Minister also reacted to the situation of the Naparamas, a group that has been causing disorder in Zambezia province. When asked by the press about the strategy for controlling the group, Cristóvão Chume said that the issue was a matter for the Ministry of the Interior, emphasising that military intervention would be the last resort if justified.
‘The situation of the Naparamas is a matter of public security, which should be dealt with by the Ministry of the Interior,’ he said.
On the same occasion, the Minister of Defence said that the post-election protests had created a ‘feeling of terror’ in the country, considering that it had experienced a ‘state of chaos’. ‘The street actions that the country experienced and the world witnessed created a feeling of terror. Families and communities experienced unfortunate moments of receiving live news of the death of their loved ones as a result of the state of chaos imposed in an attempt to reduce the authority of the state to almost nothing.’
According to the government official, the demonstrations have caused incalculable damage to Mozambique and other countries in the region, and he therefore advocates far-reaching reforms in defence and security policy to keep up with the ‘meteoric evolution’ of society.
At least 327 people died, including around two dozen minors, and 750 people were shot during the protests in the country, according to the Decide electoral platform, a non-governmental organisation that monitored the electoral process.
