Africa-Press – Mozambique. Residents of Quissanga-sede town and surrounding areas in Cabo Delgado say that military personnel deployed since the voter registration have cultivated good relations with the local population, unlike others previously there, who were accused of mistreating civilians.
Sources told ‘Carta’ that the improved environment was contributing to the flow of information about the movements of terrorists who have established small bases in a region bordering the administrative post of Mucojo, district of Macomia, and who frequently circulate in other parts of Quissanga.
READ: Voter registration interrupted in Quissanga because of insurgent threats – CIP Mozambique Elections
“These soldiers we have now have no problem with the population; they even say that if they hear any strange movement they should tell us and vice versa,” said Tima Saide, who did not confirm reports of alleged sexual violence against a woman that circulated a few days ago.
“In these days I have not yet heard anything about attacks on women, whether it happened then we don’t know, but the military here has won everyone’s sympathy,” added Mohamed Nsilimo, another resident.
Another example of good relations between the population and the forces deployed in Quissanga is the fact that fishermen are now told how far out at sea they should work. “In the past, they did not say where the people must finish fishing, so each vessel was a target,” another resident pointed out.
Similarly, residents of the Tandanhangue village in Quissanga-sede were advised not to visit the northern end of the district due to the presence of terrorists in that area.
However, while there is talk of healthy relations between the population and the FDS in Quissanga, in the town of Macomia the opposite is true. Some people there accuse the FDS of kidnapping young people for alleged collaboration with terrorists. The most recent case, in which a young man could not be found after supposedly being abducted by members of the Armed Forces, occurred on Friday.
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