In June, the United Nations and Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported a significant rise in the number of children abducted by insurgents in Mozambique’s conflict-affected Cabo Delgado province. A local monitor told HRW that ‘in recent days, 120 or more children have been abducted’. In 2024, the UN recorded a total of 468 child abductions in Cabo Delgado. Most abductees are forced into labour, marriages and combat by the militants, who have been fighting an insurgency in the province since 2017.   

Sources: United Nations (1), Human Rights Watch, United Nations (2) 

On 24 March, former presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane announced that he had met with President Daniel Chapo and that they had committed to end the ongoing post-election violence that, as of the end of February, had killed over 350 people. Mondlane, who disputes the results of the October 2024 general elections and leads the protest movement that emerged in its wake, said they had also agreed that the state would provide medical support to victims of the violence, compensate families of those killed and grant amnesty to arrested protesters. Further discussions between the two men are expected. The talks may signal a change of approach from the government, which on 5 March had excluded Mondlane from an agreement it signed with eight opposition parties, aimed at facilitating a national dialogue. So far, the State has taken a hard line against protesters, launching hundreds of criminal prosecutions and continuing to employ repressive tactics to police demonstrations.

Update: Political tensions were raised in Mozambique when on 22 July Venâncio Mondlane was charged with five offences relating to the post-election violence, including inciting terrorism, which carries a maximum 30-year prison sentence.  

Sources: ISS Africa, Plataforma Eleitoral Decide, Club of Mozambique (1), Club of Mozambique (2), Club of Mozambique (3), Deutsche Welle (1), Deutsche Welle (2), International Crisis Group             

Violence in Mozambique continued to escalate during December, as the Constitutional Council confirmed the victory of the governing FRELIMO party in October’s disputed presidential and parliamentary elections. The ruling, delivered on 23 December, was rejected by all opposition parties and candidates, and the final results sparked fresh clashes between protesters and the police. In the week following the ruling, at least 176 people were killed, including protesters, children and police officers. In addition to spiralling police violence (reported to include summary executions), December also saw some protesters increase their looting and attacks on property and the security forces, as well as shut down key economic infrastructure, such as main roads, mines and power stations. By the end of the month, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) estimated that at least 3,000 people had fled the country to Malawi and Eswatini.               

Sources: Conselho Constitucional, British Broadcasting Corporation, Plataforma Eleitoral DECIDE, Africa Confidential, Le Monde, News 24, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

During November, the number of people killed in Mozambique’s post-election violence rose to 76, as clashes between protesters and the security forces worsened. The protests began in October, following the country’s disputed general election, and have been characterised by strikes, street demonstrations, roadblocks and public pot-banging, as well as looting and attacks on property and the police. The police, supported by the military, which was deployed at the beginning of the month, used highly repressive measures against the protesters, most notably shooting them with live ammunition. By 1 December at least 240 people had been struck by bullets, including several children who were shot dead during a pot-banging protest. Authorities also continued to suspend mobile internet services. While the demonstrations have been focused on the capital, Maputo, and the provinces of Nampula and Zambezia, they have taken place across the country.

Sources: International Crisis Group (1), Plataforma Eleitoral DECIDE, International IDEA, International Crisis Group (2), British Broadcasting Corporation, Access Now