24 April 2011
Maputo — The police command in the central Mozambican province of Sofala says that it has received no formal communication from the country’s main opposition party, the former rebel movement Renamo, about any of the demonstrations which Renamo claims to be planning.
Last week, senior Renamo figures, including the party’s Sofala political delegate, Manuel Lole, said that demonstrations would be held, as from Monday, starting in Sofala and spreading across the country.
The ostensible cause for the demonstrations is Renamo’s annoyance at which it regards as intransigence by the ruling Frelimo Party in the sporadic dialogue between the two parties that has been under way since early February. But Renamo has so far not mentioned any specific demands to be raised by the demonstrations.
Renamo also said the demonstrations would be peaceful and would follow all the legal requirements for holding demonstrations. But one of those requirements is notifying the police.
Cited in the Beira daily paper “Diario de Mocambique”, the Sofala provincial police commander, Joaquim Nido, said the police have received no such notification. The first he knew of Renamo holding any demonstrations was from the media. So if Renamo did try to stage demonstrations on Monday, they would clearly be illegal.
“At no time have we been informed about the matter”, said Nido. “We have spoken with the Beira municipal bodies to confirm the threat, but the municipality also has no information”.
Nido pointed out that the organisers of demonstrations are obliged to obey the law. “We call on citizens to respect the law, and nobody is authorised to hold demonstrations without unconditional obedience to the law”.
He warned that, in the event of any illegal demonstration, the police “will act to restore order”.
Renamo leader Afonso Dhlakama has been threatening to hold nationwide demonstration against the government ever since Renamo lost the October 2009 presidential and parliamentary elections. But so far not a single Renamo demonstration has taken place.
AllAfrica – All the Time
