Mozambique: “Our editorial line will not bow to fire” – journalist Matias Guente

Login

Register

http://www.clubofmozambique.com/

Mozambique: “Our editorial line will not bow to fire” – journalist Matias Guente

3:09 CAT | 24 Aug 2020

Photo: O País

The executive editor of Canal de Moçambique said today that the newspaper’s editorial line “will not bow to fire”, after an arson attack on the newsroom of the weekly newspaper in Maputo.

Matias Guente was speaking to the media outside the Canal de Moçambique premises in the centre of the Mozambican capital, which were completely gutted on Sunday night.

ALSO READ: Maputo: Newsroom of weekly newspaper burned down – VOA

Through the newsroom’s smashed-in doors, it was still possible to see the small fuel containers used in the arson attack.

“This is a terrorist attack on freedom of expression and against the freedom of the press,” Guente said, admitting that the newsroom was “reduced to ashes”.

ALSO READ: Canal de Moçambique newspaper broken into and set on fire – @Verdade

The weekly paper is setting up in a tent in the building’s yard in an effort to ensure the provision of minimal services.

“We will tentatively set up in a tent here, which will be our headquarters, and we will work to the best of our ability while searching for a more permanent solution,” Guente added.

Our colleagues from @Canal_Moz working under a gazebo on the street today after their offices were firebombed last night. pic.twitter.com/UUVBS7wTYB

— Tom Bowker (@TomBowk) August 24, 2020

The incident was referred to the 6th Police Station in Maputo, in the expectation that the authorities will investigate the circumstances and identify the perpetrators of the arson.

Several personalities appeared at the weekly newspaper’s facilities this morning to express their solidarity with the agency.

Canal de Moçambique is one of the country’s main weekly newspapers, and has spoken out on issues such as corruption and governance.

The newspaper has already been the target of several lawsuits for alleged slander, and its executive director was recently summoned by the Attorney General’s Office to answer questions about texts commenting on security contracts between the government and oil multinationals operating in Cabo Delgado province in northern Mozambique.

Guente escaped an attempted abduction in Maputo at the end of last year, an episode which has yet to be clarified and which drew severe criticism from Mozambican and international entities, including the United States and the European Union.

Grande ataque à #Democracia com fogo posto na redacção @Canal_Moz #CanaldeMoçambique. Esta governação do President @FNyusi tem de tudo. Dos assassinatos de activistas, das guerras e agora Redacção de jornal queimada. #Mozambique @freedomhouse @CPJAfrica pic.twitter.com/usCpos8tF6

— Borges Nhamirre (@BorgesNhamirre) August 23, 2020