On Saturday, November 2, new clashes between police and protesters took place in several cities in Mozambique, where the opposition is challenging the results of the presidential elections, marked by multiple irregularities, according to international observers. In the capital, Maputo, hundreds of people gathered before being dispersed by police with tear gas and rubber bullets, Agence France-Presse correspondents said.
This poor southern African country has entered a cycle of violence since the proclamation, on October 24, of the official results of the presidential and parliamentary elections of October 9, which gave a large victory to the Frelimo party in power for forty-nine years. The announcement of these results immediately sparked violent demonstrations in several cities, and the opposition denounced a vote. ” stolen “. According to several NGOs, they caused at least 11 deaths. The main opposition Venancio Mondlane, 50, who claims victory in the presidential elections, called for a national strike and demonstrations until November 7.
burnt tires
In the province of Nampula (north), almost 2,000 kilometers from the capital, clashes also broke out in several places on Saturday, according to testimonies collected by Agence France-Presse (AFP). In the provincial capital Nampula, “Around nine in the morning, almost 500 people took to the streets to challenge the results of the elections”said Constantino José, a taxi driver in the city.
“The protesters gathered at Arresta [le plus grand marché de Nampula] and blocked streetshe added. “Police fired tear gas and live ammunition to disperse the crowd”he continued, without giving further details. A local civil society movement, Plataforma Decide, told AFP that the “The province of Nampula was in chaos” including “In the city of Nampula, the police fired tear gas”. Asked by AFP, the police did not respond.
In the town of Namialo, 95 km from Nampula, “More than a hundred protesters burned tires in the street”according to a local journalist who stated that a large number of police had been deployed in the area. He spoke on condition of anonymity for security reasons. According to another source, at least nine people were hit by gunfire, although it is not yet known whether it was tear gas or bullets. This was confirmed by an administrator of the city of Meconta-Namialo, Melchior Focas. “shocks” in the area.
“Unjustified alterations of results”
At the end of October, the electoral commission declared Daniel Chapo, 47, of Frelimo, the winner of the presidential election, with almost 71% of the votes. Venancio Mondlane, a former radio host who recently left Renamo, the historic opposition party, came in second with 20% of the vote, according to official results.
The opposition filed an appeal before the Constitutional Council, the country’s highest court, to demand a new recount of votes. This court then asked the electoral commission to transmit all the results of the polling stations in 6 of the 11 provinces, as well as those of the capital, Maputo.
The anti-corruption NGO Center for Public Integrity (CIP) estimated that it is about the elections “the most fraudulent since 1999”already very controversial. The European Union mission noted in particular “unjustified alterations of results”pointing out that in a third of the counts observed, the figures “I don’t agree”.
