CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) – Mozambique’s security forces have killed at least 10 children and wounded dozens more as they tried to quell weeks of protests following a disputed presidential election, Human Rights Watch said Monday.
Hundreds of other minors have been detained by the military, some of them for days in violation of international law, since the election results were announced last month, the rights group said.
The North African country faced violence after the representative of the ruling party was declared the winner of the elections on October 9, despite the manipulation by the opposition and the criticism of the vote by experts from other countries, including the European Union.
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Officials in Mozambique have not yet released evidence of how many people have been killed or detained in this protest, but they have said that some of the protests have become violent and must be quelled by the military.
Mr. Daniel Chapo was declared the winner of the election on October 24, adding to the party’s unbroken rule of Mozambique since it gained independence from Portugal in 1975. Mr. Chapo is expected to take over from the incumbent president, Mr. Filipe Nyusi. words.
The left-wing party, known as Frelimo, is regularly accused of rigging elections to stay in power. There was some violence after last year’s local elections, but these protests have been the biggest challenge to Frelimo’s long rule.
The protest erupted on the streets of the capital Maputo and other major cities after two opposition leaders were killed by unknown gunmen in a shootout that took place at midnight on October 18, which their party called a political assassination.
Since then, thousands have responded to the campaign that has been called on the internet from the independent candidates Mr. Venancio Mondlane, who was defeated by Chapo. Mr. Mondlane has left the country fearing for his safety, after his lawyer was one of the two opponents who were killed when the car they were in was blocked and riddled with bullets on the road in Maputo. No one has been arrested for this murder.
International human rights organizations say that at least 30 people have been killed by soldiers who fired live bullets at protesters, while groups in Mozambique say that at least 50 people have died. The Mozambican Bar Association said at the beginning of this month that more than 2,700 people have been released from custody. they had been arrested by the army, most of them young people.
The protests have forced schools and businesses to close, forcing many Mozambicans to stay at home. The army was deployed to maintain peace.
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AP Africa news: svx