Former Mozambique peace agreement mediator Matteo Zuppi says it is necessary to overcome mistrust

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Former Mozambique peace agreement mediator Matteo Zuppi says it is necessary to overcome mistrust

12:13 CAT | 07 Nov 2017

Courtesy of Instituto Humanitas Unisinos (File photo) / Don Matteo Zuppi, archbishop of Bologna, Italy

Former Mozambique peace negotiator Matteo Zuppi yesterday called on Mozambicans to overcome mistrust and commit themselves to dialogue to achieve a definitive peace, noting that there are no perfect agreements.

Matteo Zuppi expressed his views from the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa by videoconference, addressing an audience in Maputo gathered to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the General Agreement of Rome.

Mozambicans, he argued, should capitalise on the spirit of the agreement signed in 1992 between the Mozambican Liberation Front (Frelimo) government and the Mozambican National Resistance (Renamo), which ended 16 years of civil war.

“The spirit of the Rome General Agreement must be kept alive. because it was the foundation for the example of peace that Mozambique has given over the years that followed the understanding,” the general ecclesiastical assistant of the Community of Sant’Egidio and current Archbishop of Bologna said.

The Frelimo government and Renamo continued to work to build trust and engage in dialogue in order to overcome the differences between the two parties.

“Given the longevity of the conflict and the profound differences between the two sides, an agreement seemed impossible, but persistence in dialogue and trust resulted in a final understanding,” he said.

The Rome Accord, he argued, was possible because “all parties involved had the necessary patience”, capitalising on the points of convergence rather than focussing on the most controversial issues.

“I myself was less patient, but the Mozambican process taught me to be more patient,” he said.

Asked about the necessary bases for the current negotiations between the Mozambican government and Renamo, Zuppi insisted on the need for dialogue and trust.

“I think President [Filipe Nyusi] and Renamo leader [Afonso Dhlakama] have demonstrated this through the channels of dialogue they maintain.” “Another important entity is parliament, which should reaffirm itself as the home of Mozambican democracy,” he added.

Matteo Zuppi was one of four mediators of the General Agreement of Peace between the Government of Frelimo and Renamo.

Other mediators were the founder of the Community of Sant’Egidio, Andreia Ricardi, the late Archbishop of Beira, Jaime Gonçalves, and Italian MP Mario Raffaelli.

Source: Lusa