Mozambique Elections: Three killed and 14 injured in two days of demonstrations in Manica – Hospital

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Mozambique Elections: Three killed and 14 injured in two days of demonstrations in Manica – Hospital

3:47 CAT | 19 Nov 2024

Screen grab: Miramar

At least three people were killed and another 14 were injured in the province of Manica, central Mozambique, in two days of post-election demonstrations, the clinical director of Chimoio Provincial Hospital (HPC) said on Tuesday.

“Last afternoon and evening [Monday] we received four more patients (…). Two of them had very serious abdominal injuries and died shortly after being admitted to the hospital,” Juvenal Chitovele told journalists, adding that two other injured people underwent surgery and are in stable condition.

The third fatality had occurred during the demonstrations on Sunday night, in the same province.

Chitovele explained that the Chimoio Provincial Hospital has a “cumulative of 14 people treated, five hospitalised, six discharged and a total of three deaths” following the post-election demonstrations in Manica province, with most of the victims having gunshot wounds.

According to an update made on Monday by the electoral platform Decide, at least 25 people had died and another 26 were shot in five days of demonstrations contesting the results of the general elections in Mozambique.

The deaths and shootings occurred between November 13 and 17, in at least five Mozambican provinces, during the fourth stage of strikes called by presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane, who is contesting the victory of Daniel Chapo, a candidate supported by the ruling Mozambique Liberation Front (Frelimo), who, according to the results announced on October 24 by the National Electoral Commission (CNE), won with 70.67% of the votes.

According to the electoral monitoring platform, there were also 135 arrests in Mozambique following the protests, most of which were recorded in Zambézia, in the centre of the country, with a total of 25 detainees.

On Friday, Mozambique experienced the third and final day of the so-called “third phase” of the fourth stage of strikes and demonstrations to contest the election results called by presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane, who promised to announce a new phase of protests today, insisting that they will continue “until the electoral truth is restored”.

According to the CNE, Mondlane came in second place, with 20.32%, but he has said he does not recognize the results, still to be validated and proclaimed by the Constitutional Council, which has no deadline for the purpose and is still analysing various disputes.

After street protests that paralyzed the country on October 21, 24 and 25, Mondlane called for a seven-day general strike starting October 31, with nationwide protests and a demonstration culminating in Maputo on Thursday, November 7. This resulted in chaos in the capital, with barricades erected, tires burned, and tear gas fired by the police throughout the day to disperse the protests.

Source: Lusa