The Mozambican Police Association defended an urgent rapprochement between the corporation and the communities, considering that the authorities have been tested by the demonstrations that have marked the country over the last three months.
“The police urgently need to get out of the office and into the community. Make communities understand what policing is and what its importance is. Trying to restore this confidence (…) There is a nervousness within the police at the moment. This nervousness results from the fact that police action is currently being pinched,” Nazário Muanambane, the association’s president, told Lusa.
At stake is a climate of strong social unrest that Mozambique has been experiencing since October, with street protests that almost always culminate in violent clashes between the police and demonstrators, which have already caused more than 300 deaths and hundreds of gunshot wounds across the country, according to Mozambican civil society, as well as a trail of destruction.
For Nazário Muanambane, the protests have caused “nervousness” in the corporation, and the Mozambican police now face a test. Corporation leaders demand a stance that is sometimes opposed to the interests of the communities. However, he acknowledged that the population also indulges in excesses.
“What society wants is respect for people’s freedoms, but these freedoms go beyond the limits (…) For example, recently, a police officer was stoned to death. When this officer’s colleagues see this, how will they react?” he asked.
According to Nazário Muanambane, in Mozambique, there is a tendency to see the police as “instruments of the ruling party”, but officers face the same challenges as the community.
“The problems that ordinary people go through are the same as those that the police go through, including the cost of living and transport problems. They are the same problems. The police live in the community,” he said.
Nazário Muanambane advocates bringing the police closer to the communities, as well as criticising an alleged lack of responsibility on the part of Mozambican politicians, who end up “encouraging violence”.
According to figures released by former police commander Bernardino Rafael on 27 January, at least 17 members of the police died, and 187 were injured during the demonstrations, which also led to the destruction of 77 of the force’s district commands.
Since October, Mozambique has experienced a climate of strong social unrest. Demonstrations and stoppages were first called by former presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane, who rejected the election results that gave victory to Daniel Chapo, supported by the ruling Mozambique Liberation Front (Frelimo).
Small-scale protests are currently taking place in different parts of the country. In addition to contesting the results, people are complaining about the rising cost of living and other social problems.
Since October, at least 327 people have died, including around two dozen minors, and around 750 have been shot during the protests, according to the electoral platform Decide, a non-governmental organisation that monitors electoral processes.
Lusa
