Mozambican opposition leader Venancio Mondlane, who returned from a self-imposed exile last week, has called for three days of protests. His appeal came just hours before the southern African country swore in its new parliament on Monday January 13.
Mondlane, whose return from exile on November 7 sparked bloody clashes between his supporters and police in the capital Maputo, has called for three days of protests this week over the results of the highly disputed elections. In a Facebook post at the weekend, the opposition leader urged a “national strike” only hours before the new parliament was sworn in on Monday, with Frelimo’s Daniel Chapo due to be inaugurated as president on Wednesday January 15. “These three days are important to decide what future the people want,” Mondlane said in his post, appealing to his supporters to “declare a national strike… paralyze activities during these three days.”
Mondlane insists he was robbed of victory in the elections, in which the ruling Frelimo party secured victory to extend its half a century grip on power. In December, Mozambique’s highest court confirmed the parliamentary seat allocation based on their performances during the elections, giving Frelimo party 171 seats, while the smaller opposition Podemos party won 43. “Let us demonstrate against the inauguration of those who betrayed the will of the people on Monday and against those who stole the will of the people on Wednesday,” Mondlane said while Chapo called for calm and unity after months of deadly unrest. Mondlane also earlier vowed to inaugurate himself as the country’s president in a separate ceremony held on January 15, the same day Chapo will be taking the oath of office.