Maputo, Mozambique — Mozambican police have offered a reward for any information leading to the identification of the gunmen who murdered Carlos Cardoso, editor of the country's private newsheet "Metical," Wednesday night.

Citizens who have any knowledge of who may have committed the murder, or can establish the whereabouts of the two cars (a Volkswagen 1600 and a red Citi-Golf) used in the killing, have been requested to come forward with the information for an undisclosed reward.

The police promised that informants will be given full confidentiality.

The murder was committed in such a short space of time that eye-witnesses hardly saw more than a glimpse of the killers.

Two men reportedly opened fire on Cardoso with AK-47 assault rifles.

Maputo police spokesman, Abilio Quive, told Mozambican Television (TVM) that a special team has been set up for the investigation of the murder.

Meanwhile, the Mozambican Human Rights League (LDH), has expressed shock and dismay at the death of "one of the journalists who always fought for freedom of expression, of opinion and of the press, and who always tried to bring matters of public interest to the attention of all."

"His persistence and courage in the search for the facts, and his ethical rigour in drawing up the information published, made him a professional who was greatly admired and respected," the LDH said, in a statement signed by its chairperson Alice Mabota.

The murder, it added, "was planned and carried out by those who want to see our country retreat rather than advance in the building of democracy and the rule of law."

The LDH demanded that the government "take a firm position to solve this case, and ensure that the moral and material authors of the murder of Carlos Cardoso are arrested, tried and severely punished".

The Mozambican chapter of the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA), a regional NGO fighting for press freedom and a pluralist media, has also demanded from the authorities "an investigation that is as speedy as it is serious with a view to bring the perpetrators to book".

In a press release signed by its chairperson, Salomao Moyana, editor of the private weekly "Savana," MISA-Mozambique noted that "the barbaric assassination of Carlos Cardoso taints Mozambique's good reputation as a country that enjoys freedom of expression and freedom of the Press in Africa."

It said the murder has "(thrown) the country back to the dark ages of its history, during which time speaking the truth meant applying for a certain death".

"Carlos Cardoso was always a tireless fighter for freedom of expression and freedom of the Press and his name will forever remain inseparably associated to the Mozambican nation's struggle for democratic freedoms," MISA-Mozambique added.

The murder deprived Mozambican society of "a voice that shook the corrupt and the enemies of transparency," it said, adding that Cardoso was killed "by enemies of the values that he most defended..."

"In this hour of hurt and mourning, MISA-Mozambique appeals to all media professionals and other institutions of civil society not to lose courage in the face of the cowardice of those that resorted to guns to impose their power rather than opting for a democratic exchange of ideas," the statement urged.

In another development, some 500 people marched through the streets of Maputo Friday morning, protesting Cardoso's murder.

The protesters marched from the headquarters of the Mozambican Journalists Union (SNJ) to the scene in the suburb of Polana where Cardoso was gunned down Wednesday evening.

At the head of the march, SNJ Secretary General Hilario Matusse carried a placard declaring "Let us not be intimated, let us go forward".

Other marchers carried placards promising that "guns will not silence our voices."

As the march progressed so it grew, as more outraged citizens, including students, business people and politicians, joined in.

At the murder scene, Matusse suggested that the city authorities should erect a commemorative plaque. Maputo mayor Artur Canana promised to consult the elected municipal assembly (of which Cardoso had been a member) about this proposal.

The spot is now covered with flowers, and with messages of grief, many of them anonymous.

One of the most eloquent read: "Carlos Cardoso, they killed you for being a great man. They silenced you because you demanded justice. But they would not have killed you, if you had been like them, if you had defended greed. But you are not alone. Honest people like you still exist."

Messages of grief continue to pour into Maputo from across the world. One of the most significant came from Angola.

Cardoso had reacted angrily a month ago to the Angolan Supreme Court's decision effectively silencing Rafael Marques, a journalist found guilty of libelling President Jose Eduardo dos Santos.

The Court imposed a five year ban on Marques publishing any journalistic work, speaking in public or travelling abroad.

Marques in his condolence message said: "Those who killed Carlos Cardoso also struck at Angolan journalists. All those who kill journalists to silence them find echoes and followers beyond their own territory," he added.

Meanwhile, Cardoso's body was driven on Friday morning from the hospital morgue to lie in State at the Maputo City Hall.

Six members of the Maputo municipal police carried the coffin into the hearse, followed by dozens of mourners, including fellow journalists, friends, and the ruling FRELIMO politicians with whom Cardoso had clashed in the 1980s, such as the country's first Information Minister, Jorge Rebelo.

The sense of shock and loss among the mourners was palpable, with scarcely a dry eye in the crowd.

At the City Hall, the crowd soon swelled to several hundred.

Cardoso was a member of the Maputo municipal assembly, elected on the slate of the independent group "Juntos pela Cidade (JPC)."

Leading municipal politicians were in the front ranks of the mourners, including Maputo Mayor Artur Canana, and the head of JPC, Philippe Gagneaux.

A choir of women municipal workers sang for the fallen editor. Some of the songs dated from the war against Portuguese colonial rule.

The mourners filed solemnly past the coffin, draped with the flag of Maputo City, on which stood a large photograph of Cardoso.

One by one they offered their condolences to his widow, Nina Berg, his son Ibo, and other family members.

The composition of the crowd spoke volumes for Cardoso's fame during his life time, as journalists, musicians, academics, business people, NGO activists, members of the Supreme Court, foreign diplomats, joined the mourning party.

Members of FRELIMO, the Party Cardoso never quite joined (his application for membership in the 1980s was rejected), were present in strength, including Secretary General Manuel Tome, and leading parliamentarians such as Sergio Vieira and Eneas Comiche.

Also present were leading figures from opposition parties, including prominent parliamentary deputies from the RENAMO- Electoral Union coalition, such as Maximo Dias and Manuel Frank.

A condolence book has been opened in the City Hall, and formal funeral elegies will be delivered Thursday afternoon, shortly before Cardoso's body makes its final journey to the crematorium.

Online condolences; go to 'Notas Soltas' at www.ccardoso.tropical.mz