On Monday, June 16, the Supreme Court of Mozambique acknowledged that prison alone is ineffective in tackling organized crime, advocating instead for collective action and the full recovery of assets obtained through illegal activities to deter such crimes, according to Lusa.
“Prison has proven to be ineffective on its own in eradicating organized crime as long as it remains profitable. It is necessary to deprive organized crime of the economic resources it accumulates through illegal activities and uses to strengthen itself. It reinvests those resources into further crime, perpetuating its illicit actions,” said Luís Mabote, judge at the Maputo Court of Appeal, speaking on behalf of the President of the Supreme Court at the international seminar on asset recovery and fair victim compensation, organized by the Centre for Public Integrity, a non-governmental organization.
Mabote also stressed the importance of compensating victims of organized crime:
“Just as important as recovering assets is compensating the victims. A justice system that focuses only on punishing the perpetrator, without properly addressing the harm and suffering caused to the victim, is incomplete. We need to change the paradigm and start promoting the principles of restorative justice.”
He argued that prison sentences alone are no longer sufficient to fight organized crime and called for additional sanctions, as offenders continue to recruit, corrupt institutions, and weaken the state using their illicit gains.
“Without a collective commitment, even the best legal systems and the most comprehensive institutional networks will remain ineffective. This task belongs to all of us, and civil society plays a crucial role. It must demand transparency, inform the public, and promote a culture of integrity,” said Mabote.
At the same event, the Public Prosecutor’s Office stated that recovered assets, aside from compensating victims, could also be used for national development projects.
“The Attorney General’s Office recognizes that, more than punishing offenders, it is necessary to strip them of all benefits gained through crime, restoring them to the position they would have been in had the crime not occurred,” said Naftal Zucula, from the Attorney General’s Office of Mozambique (PGR).
On April 29, Lusa reported that the Central Office for Asset Recovery in Mozambique had seized assets worth 4.4 billion meticais (USD 68.9 million) in 2024, compared to 1.3 billion meticais (USD 20.3 million) the previous year.
According to Prosecutor General Américo Letela, of the total assets seized, 34 were properties valued at over 4.2 billion meticais (USD 65.7 million), and 183 were vehicles worth over 134 million meticais (USD 2.1 million).
“We stress the need for the approval of a civil forfeiture law as an additional tool to fight organized and transnational crime, removing from criminals the proceeds of their illicit activity,” Letela urged, during the presentation of the annual activity report.
In June 2024, the Public Prosecutor’s Office indicated that, over the past ten years, Mozambique had recovered nearly 3 billion meticais (approx. USD 46.9 million) through 11,000 legal proceedings related to corruption, terrorism financing, and money laundering.
Source: Diário Económico
