POLICE DETAIN, THEN RELEASE, LEADER OF MOATIZE PROTESTS

The Mozambican police detained the leader of brickmakers in Cateme, in the western province of Tete, who last week blocked the movement of coal from the mine owned by the Brazilian mining giant, Vale, but released him on Sunday after a demonstration in front of the police station.

The brickmakers were resettled in Cateme in order to make way for the Vale mine. They claim that Vale has reneged on its promises of compensation. According to the protestors Vale was to pay each of them 120,000 meticais (about 3,950 US dollars). But Vale says the true figure is 60,000 meticais which was paid in full.

Last week several hundred brickmakers blocked the entrance to the Vale mine, briefly halting the transport of coal by rail. When the police arrested the leader of the protestors, 43 year old Refo Agostinho, his supporters claimed this was an attempt to intimidate them so that there would be no further blockades. They claimed that the police seized Agostinho even though they had no arrest warrant. 

According to a report in Monday’s issue of the independent daily “O Pais”, on Sunday the brickmakers gathered outside the Moatize District Police command, demanding the release of their leader. “We’re not leaving without Refo”, said Maria Faria, one of the protestors. “He didn’t kill anybody. We’re just demanding our rights. Let them pay what they owe us. 60,000 meticais is a derisory sum. We’ve had enough of Vale messing us around”.

At about midday, the lawyer for the brickmakers, Herminio Nhantumbo, told the crowd “this arrest is illegal. The police cannot continue to act in this way. This just shows that they are abusing the authority of the state”. 

However, the District Attorney’s Office was now involved, and clearly agreed with Nhantumbo. At around 13.00, Nhantumbo appeared again, this time accompanied by a representative of the District Attorney, with a warrant for the release of Agostinho.

Outside the police station, Refo Agostinho declared “what the police are doing is unjust. They came to arrest me at night. Am I a thief?”

“I shall continue to fight for our rights”, he promised. “There will be a major demonstration. If we don’t get a positive answer, you’ll see what we shall do. We’ve had enough”.

Activities inside the Vale open cast mine have returned to normal, but the trains have not resumed the transport of coal to the port of Beira, for fear of renewed incidents. A Vale source, cited by “O Pais”, said that the company intends to meet with government representatives in order to study how to overcome the dispute with the brickmakers.