Mozambique: NGO accuses government of ‘disturbing silence’ about Xitaxi massacre

Login

Register

http://www.clubofmozambique.com/

Mozambique: NGO accuses government of ‘disturbing silence’ about Xitaxi massacre

2:41 CAT | 09 Jun 2020

Image: AFP

– The Center for Democracy and Development (CDD), a Mozambican non-governmental organisation, on Tuesday accused the government of “disturbing silence” for not having yet released the results of the inquiry into the deaths of 52 people by alleged armed groups in April.

The defence ministry said in April that the victims, mostly young people, were killed in the village of Xitaxi in northern Mozambique, by armed groups who are leading attacks in the region.

The killings were the result of retaliation for the victims’ refusal to join the armed groups, the ministry said.

At the time, the authorities said a team of experts was on the ground doing the assessment and producing a report “for Mozambicans and the world to understand the occurrence of Xixati”.

In a communiqué released today, the CDD noted that two months after “the massacre”, the government has still not fulfilled its promise to present the results of a report on the occurrence, considering that it stands out for a “disturbing silence”.

“The lack of official information on the circumstances in which the massacre took place and the noisy silence that marked the two months after the occurrence refers to the forgetfulness of the so-called ‘martyrs of Xitaxi'”, the communiqué said.

The event, the CDD continued, cannot be erased from the collective memory of Mozambicans, because it represents one of the most critical phases in Mozambique’s recent history.

“After having failed in their mission to ensure security for victims and neutralise violent attacks against civilians, the most that the Defence and Security Forces can do is to assess and understand the circumstances under which the massacre occurred in order to prevent acts like this from happening again,” the civil society organisation said.

ALSO READ: Mozambique: FDS confirms murder of 52 young people in Xitaxi, Muidumbe – Noticias

Lusa tried to hear the defence ministry about the investigation into the deaths in Xitaxi, but without success.

Cabo Delgado, the province where there is e largest private investment in Africa for natural gas exploration, has been under attack since October 2017 by insurgents, classified since the beginning of the year by Mozambican and international authorities as a terrorist threat.

In two and a half years of conflict, it is estimated that at least 600 people have died and some 200,000 have been affected, forcing them to take refuge in safer places, losing their homes, gardens and other assets.

TWO MONTHS AFTER THE MASSACRE OF XITAXI: WHEN WILL AN OFFICIAL EXPLANATION ABOUT THE MURDER OF 52 YOUNG PEOPLE FROM MUIDUMBE DISTRICT COME?

FDS must present the report on the massacre, to inform the people and honor the memory of 52 young people.

Read: https://t.co/7ZTPCoNvVe pic.twitter.com/boUGQTKn1M

— CDD Moçambique (@CDD_Moz) June 9, 2020