Maputo — Afonso Dhlakama, leader of the main opposition party, Renamo, who is standing for the presidency for the fourth time, told reporters after he had voted that "People want change, they want their rights.

"I hope that for the first time we have credible elections," said Dhlakama, repeating his well-worn claim that all previous elections in Mozambique had been "irregular" and "fraudulent".

He called on election observers "to open their eyes. We should not repeat history, where those who win are called losers."

Dhlakama's claim that in reality Renamo has won every election in Mozambique, but its votes have been "stolen" by the ruling Frelimo Party, has never been supported by any credible national or foreign observer group.

Mozambican President Armando Guebuza, who is standing for a second term of office, has called on all registered voters to go early to the polling stations and turn Wednesday's general and provincial elections into "a moment of festivity, peace and harmony".

Guebuza, one of the first to vote, was speaking moments after he had voted in a polling station in a Maputo secondary school and urged all Mozambicans to participate, because "the elections are fundamental to our lives, and that they do so within the festive spirit that we saw during the election campaign," he said.

Daviz Simango,leader of the Mozambique Democratic Movement (MDM), voted in his home city of Beira, where he is the mayor. Like his two contestants, he called for a mass turnout. He told reporters he was leaving the results "in the hands of God."