Africa-Press – Mozambique. Mozambican politician Venâncio Mondlane has complained of “blockages” in the legalization of his party, ‘Anamola’, saying he would continue to appeal the matter in court after the government’s deadline for a response expired.
“We are entering a phase where this government says it wants dialogue, defends peace, and wants reconciliation, and we are saying, ‘Let us exercise a basic right, which is to form our party to engage in political activity within the legal framework,’ but there are all these obstacles they are putting in place,” said former presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane in a live broadcast on his Facebook page on Friday, August 8.
The former presidential candidate also expressed a “genuine desire to collaborate and respect institutions”, noting that he will continue to use legal institutions “to the fullest extent” to legalize his party formation, but criticized the government for “not cooperating”.
“We accept all of this because it’s to make it clear to everyone that we have a genuine intention, a desire to collaborate, to respect the institutions, to abide by what these legal institutions say are the rules of the game. But the legal institutions themselves don’t want to comply with the very rules they exist to enforce,” Mondlane said.
On June 6, Mondlane submitted an appeal to the Ministry of Justice, Constitutional and Religious Affairs with responses to the government’s demands, including the change of his party’s acronym to ‘Anamola’.
“We were forced to change the party’s name, we were forced to accept allegations that had no legal basis (…), we agreed to all of this, but the Ministry of Justice still won’t respond to us,” he complained.
On Thursday of last week, Mondlane submitted an appeal to the Constitutional Council (CC) again, asserting that the Ministry of Justice had already exceeded the deadline to review and approve the party.
The document sent to the Constitutional Court states that an appeal is being filed against the Ministry of Justice’s decision for “tacit rejection”, after the ministry exceeded the 60-day deadline to respond to the request for formalization of the party formation and remained silent.
This new appeal comes after the same Constitutional Council, in a ruling dated July 14, refused to consider the appeal, denying that the deadline had been exceeded.
In late May, the Ministry of Justice, Constitutional and Religious Affairs set a 30-day deadline for the acronym change.
In a letter from the ministry, signed by Minister Mateus Saíze and dated May 28, it is stated that the term ‘Anamalala’, the proposed acronym for the National Alliance for a Free and Autonomous Mozambique, comes from the Macua language, spoken in Nampula, in the north of the country, “and therefore already carries linguistic meaning for the communication of those who speak it”.
Anamalala, meaning “it will end” or “it’s over”, was an expression used by Venâncio Mondlane during the campaign for the general elections of October 9, 2024, and which became popular during the protests he called in the following months, when he refused to recognize the election results.
The ruling adds that the statutes of the party Venâncio Mondlane intends to create “do not fit the concept of principles nor are they aligned” either with the Constitution of the Republic or the Law on Political Parties, and requesting their correction.
In response to government demands, Mondlane changed the acronym to Anamola, denoting, ‘National Alliance for a Free and Autonomous Mozambique’.
Since the elections, Mozambique has experienced a climate of social unrest, with demonstrations and strikes called by Mondlane. The politician rejects the election results that gave victory to Daniel Chapo, supported by the ruling Frelimo party.
The clashes in Mozambique have left around 400 dead, according to non-governmental organizations monitoring the electoral process.
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