Renamo leader Afonso Dhlakama accuses Frelimo of trying to kill him

Login

Register

http://www.clubofmozambique.com/

Renamo leader Afonso Dhlakama accuses Frelimo of trying to kill him

12:00 CAT | 14 Jul 2016

Lusa (File photo) / Afonso Dhakama

Afonso Dhlakama, the leader of Mozambique’s main opposition party, has accused ruling party Frelimo of having a “hidden agenda” which includes killing him, and says the defence and security forces are shelling the location where he is in hiding.

“Frelimo (Mozambique Liberation Front) has a hidden agenda. It continues to shell us here (in Gorongosa). Frelimo has always hoped that the offensive in Gorongosa would result in the death or capture of Afonso Dhlakama” the leader of Renamo told the weekly Canal de Moçambique.

According to Dhlakama, the ruling party is seeking to physically eliminate him in order to be able to negotiate the restoration of peace in the country with the main political opposition force placed in a weakened opposition.

“Every three days, they launch rockets, the famous B11, and shoot at the mountain (Gorongosa). The mountain is large. They call it an ‘offensive to capture or kill Dhlakama,’” the opposition leader said.

The Renamo leader said that the party would reiterate in negotiations with the government its demand to govern in the six provinces where it claims victory in the general 2014 elections, and the appointment of officers of its armed wing to positions in the Mozambican defence and security forces.

“Renamo’s agenda (for the negotiations) is short. We have only two points. The first is the governance of the six provinces, starting this year, 2016. The second point is in the area of defence and security, where we want integration in prominent positions,” Dhlakama said.

Dhlakama expressed openness to negotiate the disarmament of Renamo’s armed wing demanded by the Mozambican government.

The Mozambican media has recently reported the sending of government invitations to mediate to former Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete, former British prime minister Tony Bair’s Faith Foundation, and former US Undersecretary of State for African Affairs Chester Crocker.

These will join as-yet unnamed individuals from the European Union, the Catholic church and South Africa proposed by Renamo.

In June, President Nyusi and Renamo leader Afonso Dhlakama indicated they he had reached agreement over the telephone on the participation of international mediators in negotiations to end the fighting between the Mozambican Defence and Security Forces and the opposition’s armed wing.

Although the two sides have resumed negotiations, the attacks by alleged Renamo gunmen against civilian and military vehicles in several of the country’s central sections have continued, with the armed opposition movement accusing defence and security forces of intensifying shelling in the hills of Gorongosa, where Dhlakama is presumed to be living.

Source: Lusa