Mozambique’s Post Election Violence at Glance

News:

According to Mozambique's Centre for Democracy and Human Rights and Reuters, as of 8/11/2024, a total of 34 deaths were reported while other sources put up the death toll to be more than 50, as the result of post election violence following the declaration of the candidate for the ruling Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frelimo), Daniel Chapo, as the winner of the presidential election on October 24 which oppositions claimed the result was rigged.

Comment:

Electoral violence has been part of democratic elections all over the world and familiar phenomenon in developing nations. Global reports estimate that violence occurs in roughly 19%, and approximately 58%. of elections in Africa. In the early 1990s it reached 86%.

Some examples of electoral violence in some of African countries:

In Tanzania since the first multi-party presidential election held in 1995, resurgence of post-election violence has been consecutive and incessant matter in every five years.

The most distressing one is following the 2000 elections where more than 40 opposition adherents (CUF) in Zanzibar (semi-autonomous islands) were shot dead, more than 600 injured and estimated 2,000 fled to neighboring Kenya, when state apparatus opened fire on a crowd protesting against the results of the ballot.

In December 2007 to February 2008 in Kenya over 1,200 people were killed and as many as 350,000 displaced, Côte d’Ivoire’s 2010 in which an estimated 3,000 people were killed, Senegal in 2012 in which as many as 15 fatalities and the ongoing Mozambique’s 2024 violence where more than 50 people have been killed, to mention a few.

The main cause of electoral violence in Mozambique, Africa and the world generally is undoubtedly primary nature of creed of capitalism ideology in which democracy political system sprouted from. The capitalist foundation of secularism advocates evil and nonsensical viewpoint of separation between religion and governance that culminates humanity being deprived sense of spiritual values, and instead pushed them to engage in a great deal of greedy in material gains.

Furthermore, political parties in developing world are being possessed by western nations with objective of exerting their political and economic influence and interests via neo-colonialism in those particular countries. Thus, in all cases competition and violence between political parties in the real sense is between capitalist colonial nations at the cost of innocents.

Not to mention that capitalist perspective dealings in politics or other utilizes Machiavellian approach of fighting to reach desired target and objective for whatever means and way being used.

In this case, democratic politicians in most cases using very brutal means to achieve their political gains. For example, in 1992, it is believed that Kenya’s then President Moi killed 1,500 and forced the displacement of approximately 250,000 residents in Rift Valley preventing them from voting for the opposition.

The current distressing situation in Mozambique at this peril stage that has costed lives of many including two senior opposition figures is among many violence being perpetrated by capitalist colonial states justifying them to exploit of her wealth and huge amount of natural resources.

It is more than sad that Mozambique once enjoyed a peaceful life when it experienced Islam when its northern part of now richest Cabo Delgado province was part of the great East African Kilwa semi Islamic state in 1505 until the colonial invasion in 1700’s. The Portuguese invasion and later colonization brought nothing but ongoing endless violence, killings, exploitation and all evils to its people.

It is high time for people of Mozambique to return to what gave them peace at first time which is Islam, by working to re-establish its state (Khilafah) in Muslim world that would bring peace and prosperity, unify all Muslim lands and eliminate all sorts of capitalist colonial exploitation and violence.

Written for the Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir by
Said Bitomwa
Member of the Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir in Tanzania