Mozambique: At least 411 people died during post-election unrest

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Mozambique: At least 411 people died during post-election unrest

7:28 CAT | 22 Oct 2025

File photo:Lusa

The “Decide” Electoral Platform, a prominent Mozambican NGO, claims that at least 411 people died during the post-election unrest characterized by mass demonstrations called by the former presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane to protest against the allegedly fraudulent results of the general elections held in October 2024.

The demonstrations started peacefully but later degenerated into rioting, looting, and destruction of private and public property.

A report from “Decide”, entitled “Scars of Democracy in Mozambique: Human Impacts and Protection Failures in Post-Election Demonstrations (2024-2025)”, reports that during the unrest, from October 2024 to March of this year, in addition to the death toll, 3,700 people were injured, over 900 of them by firearms, and five people are still reported missing.

According to the document, at least 2,790 people remain in detention, out of a total of 7,200 arrested during the demonstrations. 4,410 people were released.

“Maputo, Nampula, Zambézia, and Sofala provinces accounted for 78 per cent of the cases, with a predominance of young people aged between 18 and 35”, says the report. “Women accounted for 14 per cent of the victims in cases of detention, injuries, and death”.

Members of the Mozambican Defense and Security Forces represent 4.2 percent of the total of 411 deaths while children are five per cent of the dead.

The organization accuses the government of “repeatedly denying the seriousness of the events, classifying the demonstrations as isolated disturbances, while security forces acted with tacit permission to repress.”

“Not even the cases confirmed as deaths and injuries by the police received any proper response from local authorities. There is a complete lack of public investigation, judicial accountability, and reparation for the victims of the wave of protests, in addition to the failures of judicial institutions, subject to political interference, in protecting fundamental rights”, the report says.

READ: Mozambique: Over 2,790 still detained one year after election protests – Plataforma Decide report

In order to minimize the pain of the victims, the document says, the organization has been providing psychosocial support and medical assistance, in addition to work with the Mozambique Bar Association (OAM) to hold accountable those responsible for the violation of human rights.

“Over 30 people received medical and psychosocial support. The program included treatment for injuries, physical rehabilitation, emotional support, food supplies, and rent payments, as well as financial support for social reintegration”, the document reads.

Source: AIM