Africa-Press – Mozambique. Mozambican Interior Minister Paulo Chachine has announced that 73 police officers were expelled from the force between January 2024 and March this year, for involvement in various offences.
According to the minister, who was speaking on Wednesday at the country’s parliament, the Assembly of the Republic, the measure was taken after it was proven that these police officers had committed crimes. The crimes included 14 cases of extortion, 13 of fraud, ten of theft and three of bodily harm resulting in death.
Chachine added that during the same period, 32 police officers were demoted. Of this number, eight were demoted for embezzlement of state assets, four for fraud, three for trafficking and criminal conspiracy, three for misuse of firearms and two for theft.
According to Chachine, from January 2024 to March 2025, 514 disciplinary cases were filed against police officers – an average of more than one a day.
Answering a question from the Renamo parliamentary group about the measures adopted by the government in order to end violent behavior by the police against civilians, Chachine claimed that some of the episodes of police violence fall within the scope of crowd control in situations of serious alterations of public order.
“No other form of treatment is expected than an intervention that will prevent greater evils”, Chachine claimed. However, eye-witness accounts state that, in clashes with protesters, police frequently used live ammunition as well as tear gas and rubber bullets, despite explicit instructions not to use lethal force.
During the post-election demonstrations that took place over the last six months, civil society organizations accused police officers of firing indiscriminately at defenceless civilians. According to a report by the NGO “Decide” Electoral Platform, over 350 people were shot dead by police during the unrest.
Chachine also said that between January 2024 and March this year, 33 people were arrested and charged with kidnapping. In these operations, the police seized 12 firearms, 28 mobile phones and two computers. They also occupied four houses that kidnap gangs had used as prisons to hold their victims.
As a result of the police action, Chachine added, eight kidnap victims were released and returned to their families.
The Minister said that, as part of its programme for 2025-2029, to be submitted to parliament, the government is proposing the creating of a specialised police unit to fight against kidnapping and other instances of organised and transnational crimes.
Chachine said that, between 2011 and last March, the police recorded 205 kidnappings. The worst year was 2013, when there were 37 kidnappings. The province worst affected was Maputo City, where 133 of the kidnappings occurred.
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