Protests are a problem for the police

Good afternoon. Yesterday saw the first day of the proposed week of strikes and demonstrations called by Venâncio Mondlane, who claims he won Mozambique’s presidential election, in protest at the disputed election results. It passed off largely peacefully, although one man was shot by police in the city of Tete and tear gas was fired a few times by police in Maputo, when marchers threatened to enter the city proper. Whether that peace will continue is another matter.

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From the Zitamar Live Blog:

Zitamar Mozambique Live Blog

Manuel Chang, Mozambique’s former finance minister, is to be sentenced on 20 November, a judge in New York city has ruled. In August, Chang was convicted by a US federal court of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering, when he committed Mozambique to guarantee $2bn of borrowing to buy offshore security and fishing equipment from the Lebanese shipbuilder Privinvest as part of the so-called “hidden debts” or “tuna bond” scandal. According to a communication from the court, Chang is seeking to obtain his medical records from the Metropolitan Detention Center, the federal prison where he is being held, as part of the process before his sentencing.

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Yesterday also saw an extraordinary TV appearance by Bernardino Rafael, the commander of the Mozambican police, in a meeting with Albino Forquilha, leader of the Podemos party which has been supporting Mondlane’s candidacy. Rafael is just as much a politician as Forquilha: he has made no secret of his loyalty to ruling party Frelimo in the past, and his officers have a long history of double standards when it comes to policing Frelimo and opposition marches. According to newssheet Mediafax, he made a long speech attacking the demonstrations and appealed for them to come to an end. As if he was a TV presenter, Rafael questioned Forquilha about whether people could go back to work.