Mozambique: Woman beaten by police during Chapo’s inauguration almost got shot this Thursday – Carta

Login

Register

http://www.clubofmozambique.com/

Mozambique: Woman beaten by police during Chapo’s inauguration almost got shot this Thursday – Carta

2:39 CAT | 17 Jan 2025

Screen grab: Social Media

After being brutally attacked by the police this Wednesday near Independence Square during the inauguration of President Daniel Francisco Chapo, victim Venilda Mondlane joined other women to demonstrate in front of the house of the “aggressor” officer, Jaime Zaqueu Fernando, resident in the Unidade 7 neighbourhood in Maputo city.

Waging posters and chanting, the women were met with gunshots from all sides and had to flee the vicinity of the officer’s house. The victim explained that the group had decided to march to the police officer’s house to seek justice for the brutality she suffered.

“On Wednesday, we left the Patrice Lumumba neighbourhood to demonstrate in Independence Square, and when we arrived, we started shouting ‘Venâncio is our president, Venâncio is the president of the people’, and the police decided to send us away,” Venilda recalls.

“The people who were with me ran away, but I decided to stay because I wasn’t there to hurt anyone. However, out of nowhere, the officers started beating me, and one of the officers even took my money and didn’t give it back. I wanted that money to buy Rachel (sausages) to resell,” she explained.

Video of the incident shared on social media shortly after the attack shocked national and international internet users, who condemned the actions of the police officers.

While the victim and her companions were demonstrating near the police officer’s residence in ‘Unidade 7’, the Centre for Democracy and Human Rights (CDD) submitted a criminal complaint to the Attorney General’s Office (PGR) to hold the PRM member accountable.

Source: Carta de Moçambique