Exiled opposition candidate Venâncio Mondlane has called for a new round of protests against last month’s presidential election, urging supporters to take to the streets of major cities and towns and target key regional trade routes, reports Bloomberg.
Mondlane called on his supporters to demonstrate across Mozambique’s 11 provincial capitals for three days, starting Wednesday, in what he termed the “fourth stage” of protests. He also called on truck drivers driving routes to the central Beira port and the Maputo port in the south to “take time off during these three days.” Such a move would have economic impact well beyond Mozambique as the two ports serve South Africa, Zambia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and landlocked Zimbabwe. “We will paralyse all activities,” Mondlane said in the live stream late Monday.
Previous protests already caused a temporary closure of Mozambique’s border with South Africa, one of the busiest crossings in the entire region, as its neighbour feared the violence that led to burned buildings and vehicles might spread if the border remained open.
[See more: Chapo claims victory for ruling party in disputed Mozambique elections]
The protests began in mid-October, escalating after the murder of two associates of Mondlane looking to challenge the results of the 9 October election, characterised by local and outside observers as riddled with irregularities. A subsequent crackdown by the government, with Mondlane and his supporters tear gassed during a press conference two days later, ratcheted tensions even higher.
By 6 November, Human Rights Watch reported at least 30 dead. Five more were killed during protests on 7 November, with dozens arrested.
Mondlane rejects accusations that he is attempting a coup. “If we wanted to carry out a coup d’état, we would have done it,” he said on Monday. He asserted that the objective of the protests is to “pressure the institutions” to “restore electoral justice” and turn “a new page for Mozambique,” where the ruling Frelimo party has clung onto power for nearly 50 years.
