Mozambican parliament places peace agreement on agenda

Login

Register

http://www.clubofmozambique.com/

Mozambican parliament places peace agreement on agenda

5:04 CAT | 27 Feb 2017

Voa (Courtery Ivone Soares) / Renamo deputy Ivone Soares

The main item on the agenda when the fifth session of the Assembly of the Republic starts today will be peace and the debate on decentralization.

Ivone Soares, head of Renamo’s parliamentary group, guarantees that her party will prioritize peace.

“We have to contribute to a language that helps Mozambicans to build the necessary consensus that is not part of violence and where violence is the resource that no one feels the urge to appeal to because it only creates problems, only creates pain for us and disaster in our families,” Soares said.

For Frelimo, the priority in this session will be the disarmament of Renamo, “just as the Constitution of the Republic states”.

“There is a huge effort, particularly by President Filipe Jacinto Nyusi, for a definitive peace and we as MPs will echo his words and actions,” said parliamentary spokesman Edmundo Galiza Matos Júnior.

Although the MDM is not party to the dialogue preparing the decentralization package to be submitted to parliament, party leader Lutero Simango says he will make the best possible contribution to achieving peace.

“The greatest concern of Mozambicans is in fact to rescue peace, the peace that has to be truly effective, cannot be subject to conditions, much less borrowed, hence our parliamentary bench will continue to say that we all want an effective peace which is real, we want peace for all Mozambicans,” Simango said.

Journalist and political analyst Luís Mazoio believes that the steps taken by the political leaders have created conditions for Parliament to start discussing the decentralization package.

“The latest signs are very encouraging, and while Parliament may not be fundamental, it can serve as a notary and ratifier of the agreements,” Mazoio explained, noting that “as happened on other occasions, like the electoral package, when it reached Parliament it was soon ratified.”

The fifth parliamentary session runs until 11 May.

Source: Voa Portugues