- The mass demonstrations caused at least 10 deaths and more than a hundred injuries. The opposition leader is threatening to call worse demonstrations for next Monday, 28 October
By António Cumbane
Maputo (MOZTIMES) – The opposition presidential candidate, Venâncio Mondlane, says he is available for dialogue with the government to halt the mass demonstrations. He called those demonstrations to protest against the results of the 9 October elections, which gave victory to Frelimo and to its presidential candidate, Daniel Chapo.
Mondlane was speaking on Saturday to the public through a live broadcast on Facebook, after two days of mass revolts across the country, which caused at least 10 deaths. More than 100 people were injured, and at least 500 were detained, according to figures from the Centre for Public Integrity (CIP), a civil society organisation which has election observers stationed throughout the country.
"We want dialogue, we want to discuss what the people want", said Mondlane, indicating the conditions required for there to be a dialogue. "One of the things we have to do to go forward to this dialogue is, point number one, the votes. Votes are not negotiated, votes are counted. Where are the polling station results sheets ("editais") of the Frelimo Party? Where are the results sheets of the election management bodies? We have to start from there", he declared.
The European Union Election Observation Mission in Mozambique has already recommended that the election bodies publish the results sheet from the partial count of votes – which is the count at the polling stations immediately after the polls have closed.
The opposition presidential candidate warned that, if there is no dialogue, on Monday he will announce a further stage in the mass demonstrations which will be worse than the ones that have happened so far.
"In the third stage of stoppages, it is expected that four million Mozambicans will go on strike", he predicted.
"Now we shall respond to the longings of the people", declared Mondlane. The key longing of the people, he claimed, is the publication of the results sheets from the more than 25,000 polling stations.
Mondlane also spoke of the need to unite all the opposition parties in the fight against fraud and for the creation of a government of national unity, an idea that was initially proposed last Tuesday by the Catholic Bishops of Mozambique.
Threat to destroy mobile phone infrastructures
The mobile phone companies blocked access to the Internet from Friday afternoon until Saturday morning, an action which the Mozambican chapter of the regional press freedom body MISA (Media Institute of Southern Africa) described as "intentional". The opposition leader said that switching off the mobile Internet, which is used by the great majority of Mozambicans, was in obedience to orders given by the government. He threatened to order attacks on the infrastructures of the mobile phone companies if they switched the Internet off again.
"If you again obey this type of order", Mondlane warned them, "the demonstrations will be reflected in your digital infrastructure throughout the country. If you violate the people's rights, the people will also violate your rights. The people will violate your property".
"Do not oblige the people to resort to radical measures", he added
"If you want a relation of mutual respect, if you want a civilised relationship, then respect the people, so that the people will also respect you", Mondlane said. "If you do not respect the people, then the people are also not obliged to respect you".
Neither the mobile phone companies nor the regulator of the telecommunications sector have explained to the public the reasons for the Internet switch-off. (AC)
