International community pledges support to peace process

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International community pledges support to peace process

8:09 CAT | 08 Aug 2018

The international community is available to offer support for the disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration of the militia belonging to the country’s largest opposition party Renamo.

In a press statement, Swiss ambassador Mirko Manzoni, who heads the International Contact Group, pointed out “the international community is ready to support both sides in this journey, and all Mozambicans as they forge their future in unity and common purpose”.

On Monday, President Filipe Nyusi announced that a memorandum of understanding had been signed with Renamo which “clearly outlines the itinerary for military issues”.

Ambassador Manzoni hailed the two sides for signing the memorandum, stating “as the Swiss Ambassador in Mozambique and the head of the Contact Group, I would like to congratulate warmly the President of the Republic, Filipe Nyusi, and the coordinator of the Renamo Political Commission, Ossufo Momade, for reaching agreement on military issues”.

He pointed out, “yesterday marked a year since the historic meeting in Gorongosa between President Nyusi and the late President of Renamo Afonso Dhlakama. Since then, there has been notable progress in the peace process”.

On 6 August 2017 President Nyusi travelled to the Gorongosa mountains to strike an agreement directly with Afonso Dhlakama to push the peace process forward.

Afonso Dhlakama died on 3 May due to complications linked to his diabetes. Since then, Renamo’s interim leader Ossufo Momade has negotiated with the President on the key issues of disarmament and decentralisation.

To keep the momentum, the government and the ruling party Frelimo met demands from Renamo for amendments to the constitution and electoral law which will allow for the indirect election of mayors, provincial governors and district administrators.

However, until now Renamo has not met its obligations to disarm its militia. Yesterday’s agreement was based on the consensus reached during the meeting President Nyusi held with Ossufo Momade on 11 July which covered “the principles, processes, actions, and timetable for the inclusion of soldiers from Renamo into the armed forces and the police”.

Source: AIM