MOZAMBICANS IN ANGOLA CALL FOR DISARMING OF RENAMO

Mozambicans resident in Angola on Sunday asked President Filipe Nyusi to instruct his government to use all means in its power to disarm the militia of the former rebel movement Renamo.Speaking at a meeting with Nyusi, shortly after his arrival in Luanda for a state visit, a representative of the Mozambican community, Tomas Chirindza, stressed that the existence of armed groups cannot be tolerated in Mozambique, and they must be disarmed. Disarmament first, dialogue later, insisted Chirindza – since those who have guns in their hands will always tend to use them for blackmail, as has repeatedly happened in previous attempts to talk to Renamo.“Conflicts are not solved merely with negotiations”, he said. “We must be serious about what we are doing. While the government accepts blackmail, it will be weakened. This shows that in Mozambique there is still a deficit of knowledge about what democracy is”.Another participant in the meeting, Adriano Sambo, backed up Chirindza, arguing that those who violate the norms must be punished without mercy.Asked by Nyusi to respond to these concerns, Interior Minister Jaime Monteiro said the government is committed to ensuring compliance with the laws, and those who are in illegal possession of firearms will be held responsible for their actions. “Guns should be in the hands of the authorities”, he stressed.Addressing the meeting, Nyusi said that Mozambique is stable and its institutions are functioning normally, although there are always signs of disturbances. “After the elections (of 15 October 2014), which were regarded as transparent by the observers, someone came along and said he had been robbed, and now wants to govern by force in the places where he won”, said the President, referring to Renamo leader Afonso Dhlakama and his repeated threats to seize control of six northern and central provinces. The government had decided to talk with Renamo, but “over 100 rounds of dialogue have been held without any solution because the desire to take power by force is very strong”, added Nyusi.He told his audience of the meeting he had held in Maputo on Sunday morning with Catholic bishops. He had assured the bishops of his total willingness to continue dialogue, but had asked them not only to point to problems, but also to bring solutions. Nyusi explained that the programme of his government is based on five pillars. The first of these is the consolidation of peace, national unity and the defence of sovereignty “because without peace and stability there is no development”.The second pillar is human and social development, the third is job creation and increasing production and productivity, the fourth is the building of infrastructures, and the fifth is the sustainable management of natural resources. “Our exports have fallen. We are importing more, and the price of coal has dropped on the international markets”, said Nyusi. “To solve this problem, we have to increase production and our competitiveness”. The Mozambicans told Nyusi of their difficulties in obtaining Mozambican passports and identity cards, stressing that when these documents expire they have to travel to Maputo to renew them. The urged the government to make such renewals easier.There are about 1,000 Mozambicans, including students and workers in various areas, living in Angola, of whom around 700 are registered at the Mozambican embassy.