Nyusi welcomes passage of amnesty bill – AIM report

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Nyusi welcomes passage of amnesty bill – AIM report

9:23 CAT | 31 Jul 2019

File photo: RM

Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi on Monday praised the deputies of the Mozambican parliament, the Assembly of the Republic, for their approval earlier in the day of a bill which he had proposed, granting amnesty to anyone accused of security and military crimes arising out of the insurrection waged by the former rebel movement Renamo.

Speaking at a rally in Macossa district, in the central province of Manica, Nyusi declared “The amnesty law is necessary. We shall wipe out the past. We shall start a new life”.

He said the Assembly had passed the bill unanimously and by acclamation, because the deputies of the ruling Frelimo Party and of the opposition parties alike had recognised its importance for peace and reconciliation. The amnesty would allow “forgiveness among Mozambicans”.

Local residents who spoke at the rally encouraged Nyusi to continue his contacts with the Renamo leadership in the search for effective and definitive peace.

The President replied that on Sunday night he had spoken by phone with Renamo leader Ossufo Momade, who assured him that the demobilisation and disarming of Renamo’s armed force would begin on Monday.

“One of the matters we talked about was the call for reconciliation”, said Nyusi. “We Mozambicans can only develop this country if we know that we are all one people, if we know how to forgive others, to tolerate, and to understand that each person has his own ideas”.

In this context, he said, it made no sense to speak in Manica of “Frelimo zones” or “Renamo zones”. He insisted that the main challenge should be reconciliation, so that all can develop the country.

In Manica, however, there are still areas where Renamo has set up road blocks. Nyusi promised he would speak with Momade to solve this issue and remove the barriers.

“Is there an enemy here?”, he asked. “If I went to Gorongosa (the district where Renamo has its military headquarters), and they didn’t kill me, what is the enemy you’re afraid of? I’ve been there several times. In a short while, I’ll go there again. This is Mozambique”.

He pointed out that in the Renamo bases in Gorongosa, there are still people who need water, roads and health care, and it is the government’s responsibility to provide these services.

Source: AIM