Africa-Press – Mozambique. Mozambican police have recovered ten home-made guns from civilians in a campaign to collect voluntarily illegally held weapons, the corporation announced in Chimoio (central Manica province).
The weapons were recovered in two villages in the district of Macossa, adjacent to the Gorongosa National Park, one of the country’s largest game hunting reserves, but which faces intense poaching activity, said police spokesman Mateus Mindu.
“We have already had reported several cases of poaching and assault using firearms,” in which the weapons now handed over were assumed to have played some part, he added.
The police did not give the campaign’s state date, but remarked that its agents, alongside the National Criminal Investigation Service (Sernic) and SISE (the intelligence services), were involved in awareness-raising actions.
Some may “fear reprisals”, he explained, but it was being made clear that “local authorities and other channels can be used for the delivery of weapons” in the affected communities.
The police would however not hesitate to use coercive means in situations where civilians refused to voluntarily surrender weapons.
The ongoing campaign will cover all provinces in Mozambique, Mindu concluded.
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