23 November 2000
Maputo, Mozambique — Colleagues of murdered Mozambican journalist Carlos Cardoso on his daily paper, Metical, have pledged that they would continue with his work and would not be silenced by the editor's killing in Maputo late Wednesday.
The defiant message was contained in an extra edition of the paper distributed to subscribers Thursday morning.
"The assassins who ambushed him wanted to shut Cardoso up, and indirectly to shut the mouths of all those who have fought on the same barricades of freedom, decency, honesty and public service. But they will not achieve this goal," the paper pledged.
"They have silenced an honest and courageous man, but they have not silenced Metical, and they have not silenced all the other voices of a society that wants a decent country where people can live in peace and prosperity. We shall not allow those who killed him, whoever they may be, to achieve their filthy goals, and sit back and laugh," the editorial added.
"The pen of Carlos Cardoso shall not lie on the ground where it fell after he was riddled with bullets. We shall pick it up to continue his struggle," it said.
Metical demanded "swift and efficient justice, so that there may not grow among us the idea that Mozambican democracy is being drowned in blood, that it is being murdered just as our editor was murdered."
A message from Joaquim Fanheiro, general secretary of Mozambique's main trade union federation, the OTM, described the killing as an act of barbarism "which has silenced a voice that always fought for the development of the country and contributed to a serious and responsible mass media."
Fanheiro recalled that Cardoso "was always on the side of the workers, and made a contribution to the trade union movement, particularly to the cashew processing industry."
(Cardoso had fought tirelessly against government policy on cashew nuts, imposed by free trade ideologues in the World Bank, which has resulted in the closure of most of the processing factories and the loss of thousands of jobs).
The OTM demanded that the authorities "undertake a firm and speedy investigation in order to track down the assassins and mete out exemplary punishment."
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2000 Panafrican News Agency. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
