POLICE REFUSE TO CONFIRM GUNS AND DRUG SEIZURE

The Mozambican police and customs service have declined to confirm or deny the story published by the independent daily “O Pais” on Wednesday that containers in which guns and drugs were hidden have been seized in the port of Maputo.The Mozambican Tax Authority (AT), which is responsible for the customs service, sent a note to “O Pais” saying it had been “surprised” by the story, and even asking the paper to reveal its source.“Since the AT is not the source of this information, we request “O Pais” to give an express and public clarification of its source for the good of preserving the ethics of the mass media”, said the note.The ethical position for the paper to take is, in reality, the exact opposite. Across the world the generally accepted ethical practice is for journalists to protect their sources, not to reveal them. In the Mozambican case, the professional secrecy of journalists is guaranteed in the Constitution.The Thursday issue of “O Pais” reports that some senior police and customs officials have privately insisted that the story is not true – but none of them are prepared to say so officially.The paper sent reporters down to the port where an unusually sizeable security operation was under way. Sources inside the port told the paper that joint teams of the State Security and Intelligence Service (SISE), the Criminal Investigation Police (PIC) and Customs were overseeing the opening of the containers.One source said the operation was shrouded in secrecy in order not to disturb the investigations, and that the earlier leak of information to “O Pais” had seriously worried the authorities.