Africa-Press – Mozambique. Mozambique’s Attorney-General’s Office (PGR) has opened 31 legal proceedings against police officers in the context of the post-election unrest.
The mass demonstrations, called by the former presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane in order to protest against the fraudulent results of the general elections held last October, started peacefully but then degenerated into rioting and destruction.
According to the Mozambican NGO, the “Decide” Electoral Platform”, the police shot dead about 400 people while 619 others were injured by gunshots during the five months of mass demonstrations that began on 21 October.
According to PGR prosecutor Beatriz Jonas, speaking on Wednesday during the 1st National Human Rights Forum, taking place in Maputo under the slogan: “The Voice of Human Rights in Critical Contexts: an Urgent, Inclusive and Constructive Dialogue for Mozambique”, the lawsuits are aimed at holding responsible for their acts the “moral and material” perpetrators of the violence that occurred during the protests.
“But it does not mean that 31 police officers are being prosecuted. We are saying that the PGR has opened 31 cases involving police officers”, she said.
Regarding the extreme violence carried out by the Islamist terrorists in the northern province of Cabo Delgado, Jonas said that the PGR faces difficulties in carrying out its work, taking into account that women and children are the main victims.
“We are well aware that the terrorist attacks in Cabo Delgado pose enormous challenges for the PGR. These attacks put women and children in a situation of extreme vulnerability, exposed to human rights violations, including gender-based violence”, she said.
“Many women are forced into marriages, sex work, human and drug trafficking and kidnappings. They are also at risk of being killed or recruited to join terrorist groups and become involved in criminal activities”, she added.
This situation, she explained, takes place at a moment when the country faces phenomena caused by climate change, such as cyclones and floods, which means that “the country needs strategic solutions to face these phenomena.”
“These phenomena affect people differently, depending on their gender, age, physical condition and other social factors. The PGR faces the challenge of investigating these cases, and proving them in court”, she explained.
Next Monday, the PGR will question Bernardino Rafael, former General Commander of the Mozambican Police (PRM), as part of a criminal complaint presented by the civil society organizations regarding the police violence during the post-election unrest.
The summons to Bernardino Rafael was confirmed by Wilker Dias, chairperson of the “Decide” Electoral Platform.” He added that the criminal complaint presented to the PGR is also against the former Minister of the Interior, Pascoal Ronda.
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