Faced with ongoing post-election disputes, the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) has filed a criminal complaint against a police commander accused of assaulting a woman during the inauguration ceremony of the new Mozambican President, Daniel Chapo. The incident, which took place a short distance from where the ceremony was taking place, was captured on camera and quickly gained notoriety on social media.
According to André Mulungo, editor of the CDD bulletin, Lusa reported that the assault took place when police forces intervened to disperse a group of demonstrators who were contesting the legitimacy of the recent elections.
‘We identified at least two crimes in what happened: serious bodily harm and physical coercion, with the intention of insulting and intimidating not only the victim, but also those who witnessed the act,’ explained Mulungo after handing in the complaint at the Attorney General’s Office in Maputo.