Mozambique’s opposition is staging its largest protest yet as police crack down

Mozambican police fired tear gas at protesters in the capital Maputo on Thursday in the largest demonstration yet against the long-ruling Frelimo party, which was declared the winner of a disputed election last month.

Anger has grown since election authorities said Frelimo had won the October 9 vote, extending its 49-year rule. Human rights groups say at least 18 people have since been killed in the police crackdown on protests.

The election was fiercely contested, with many young people supporting independent candidate Venancio Mondlane, who says the vote was rigged and called for a week of protests culminating on Thursday.

Civil society organizations and Western observers also said the election was unfair and that the results had been changed. A spokesperson for Frelimo did not respond to requests for comment.

The party has been accused of election fraud in previous polls and has denied it, leading to smaller protests last year.

Police were deployed in full force on Thursday as large groups, mostly young men, barricaded the streets with burning tires and waved homemade signs in support of Mondlane.

A Reuters witness saw a police officer fire a gun toward a crowd of protesters in a Maputo township.

“Nothing like this has ever happened in the country,” said Adriano Nuvunga, director of the Mozambique Center for Democracy and Human Rights.

“Whatever the outcome… the youth have been given their voice,” he said.

President Filipe Nyusi has not spoken since the protests escalated. His defense minister has threatened to deploy the army and warned against attempts to seize power.

Mozambique’s Constitutional Council has not yet approved the election results, a process that typically takes about two months.

On Tuesday, it ordered the electoral commission to provide clarity within 72 hours on the discrepancies in the number of votes counted in the presidential, parliamentary and provincial elections, according to a letter seen by Reuters.

A spokesperson for the electoral commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“(The outcome) comes down to what the Constitutional Council decides, I guess. But the anger is palpable and I don’t know what they can say to calm things down,” said Louw Nel, a political analyst at Oxford Economics Africa. .

South Africa has closed its main border crossing for security reasons, and the Department of Foreign Affairs has advised its citizens against making only essential trips to Mozambique.

South African logistics company Grindrod GNDJ.J said on Thursday it has suspended port and terminal operations in Mozambique.