Source: The Zimbabwean

Tensions have been raised between the government and Renamo following the dispersal by police on 4 April of a large group of Renamo members who had gathered at their office in the town of Muxungue in central Mozambique, and a subsequent attack by Renamo on a police post in the same town that left four policemen dead.

In an open letter addressed to President Armando Guebuza, the women’s organisations wrote “we do not need to be reminded of the headlines in the world’s newspapers displaying the humiliating violations that women are subject to in countries in armed conflict”.

The letter continued “we have experienced in Bukavu in the Democratic Republic of Congo the scale of atrocities committed against women. We have heard recently, at the World Social Forum in Tunisia, the cry of women denouncing various forms of violence suffered, even during the ‘Arab Spring’ that should have brought freedom. Therefore, Mozambican women demand that political differences be resolved through dialogue and compromise on both sides in the name of peace”.

The letter includes a separate message for Renamo leader Alfonso Dhlakama, recognising his contribution to multi-party democracy and human rights in Mozambique. However, it continues “we appeal for dialogue to always be the first and only option for the resolution of differences between various political forces in Mozambique”.

The letter was signed by fourteen civil society organisations including the Human Rights League (LDH) and the Women’s Forum.

In a similar vein, the Anglican Bishop of the Diocese of Niassa in Mozambique, the Rt Revd Mark Van Koevering, recently stated that “we are all saddened by the deaths of innocent people during the recent violence that took place in Muxungue. We call on all to follow in the way of peace, creating space and opportunity for all voices to be heard in a transparent process that renounces violence and serves the common good”.