Watch: Why are cyclone Idai victims protesting in Beira, Mozambique?

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Watch: Why are cyclone Idai victims protesting in Beira, Mozambique?

3:23 CAT | 31 Aug 2020

Photo: Miramar

Thousands of victims of Cyclone Idai gathered outside the provincial government building in Beira, Sofala province, on Friday (August 28), in protest against the suspension of assistance subsidy payments, VOA reports

Victims also speak of a lack of transparency in the grant application process.

Payment was already three months overdue when the authorities decided to suspend the process on Wednesday (25-08), ostensibly in order to avoid crowds and contain the spread of the new coronavirus.

Thirty-two thousand people affected by Cyclone Idai were registered in the city of Beira to receive the basic government subsidy (70,000 throughout all of Sofala province), worth 2,500 meticais (about US$35), but now it seems that not all of them are included in the subsidy payment lists.

Those on the list were supposed to receive an accumulated three-month payment on August 25, but the amount was not paid last week, provoking protest among the beneficiaries.

On Friday, thousands decided to occupy the main provincial government building, demanding negotiations with provincial governor Lourenço Bulha.

“When we see ourselves like this, we are helpless children,” Guilhermina Santos told VOA, who has found herself excluded from the subsidy list despite being sure she was enrolled during the survey.

“I’m asking for help. I don’t have a job, I have a small daughter and I live in a tiny house, and my name is not on the list… I want to ask the governor for help,” another young man pleaded in the makeshift gallery where the hearing took place.

Transparency

Victims also claim that the criteria used for the selection of beneficiaries was not transparent, arguing that the subsidy should be awarded to all low-income residents in the city.

The protests began on Wednesday, the date on which the subsidy was due to begin to be paid, almost 18 months after Cyclone Idai struck Beira. On Thursday, protesters camped outside the official residence of the governor of Sofala, but the negotiations were inconclusive.

On Friday, without observing any State of Emergency social distancing measures, the protesters again demonstrated for payment of the subsidy and transparency in the process. A strong police presence kept the protest under control, but the group, dispersing early in the evening, promised to return on Monday.

Sofala Governor Lourenço Bulha, who met with the victims in the middle of the afternoon, promised to find a solution for the payments, without compromising the health of the beneficiaries.

“We instructed National Institute of Social Action (INAS) to starting paying those who are registered next week,” said Bulha, adding that a new survey would be carried out to include victims who were left out of the process.

On 14th of March 2019, Cyclone Idai hit the port city of Beira and its neighbouring towns in the central Sofala and Manica Provinces.

By André Baptista