Maputo — GRACA Machel has asked President Mugabe to assist in investigating what really caused the death of her former husband Mozambique's founding President Samora Moises Machel.
Cde Machel died in a mysterious plane crash along the border of Mozambique and South Africa on October 19, 1986.
She made the plea during her "touching speech" at the Independence Square in central Maputo yesterday after the unveiling of the Statue of Cde Machel at a colourful ceremony attended by President Mugabe, South African President Jacob Zuma, Botswana President Seretse Khama Ian Khama and the host President Amando Guebuza.
On arrival at the Harare International Airport yesterday, President Mugabe said Graca Machel indicated to him that she will be visiting Zimbabwe to discuss the request.
"I take that some investigations of a preliminary nature were done before, but she wants much more information of what really happened and whether we can connect the incident to some underhand . . . technological manipulation of the flight control system, guiding the plane towards a wrong place. Of course, we have been wanting that done, but the initiative is for Mozambique with assistance from South Africa.
"She might feel that not enough is being done. She said she might be coming here."
Relevant Links
President Machel was killed when his plane, a Russian-made Tupolev 134, crashed in the Mbuzini mountains leading to widespread suspicion that this had been planned by the apartheid regime in South Africa.
Cde Machel died alongside 34 other passengers in the plane who included ministers and other top Mozambican government officials.
There were only nine survivors.
In the book, "Samora - Man of the People" published in 2001, several conspiracy theories of what could have caused President Machel's death are put forward with the strongest one linking the apartheid regime.
In the book, one Marcelo Mosse wrote about suspicious events that took place before this fateful day in 1986 saying: "On the 11th October, Samora Machel's government accused the RSA (South Africa) of preparing a direct attack against Maputo and the overthrow of the regime . . . On the 16th, the newspapers report massive infiltrations of Renamo's elements, 'strongly armed' through the Malawi border.
Observers in Maputo believe that the assassination of the Mozambican leader seems to be in the minds of the South African generals, existing public indications in this direction, writes Carlos Cardoso on the 16th October.
"Analysing the events on the day before, the journalist came to the conclusion that Samora Machel was the chosen target by the RSA military hierarchies."
During his opening speech at an International Symposium to mark the 25th Anniversary of the death of Cde Machel, Mozambican President Guebuza said his government will not rest until they find who really killed Mozambique's founding father.
As she made the plea at Independence Square yesterday, Graca Machel received a standing ovation from thousands of Mozambicans who, 25 years down the line, seem to have woken up to the realisation that Cde Machel made immense contributions to the birth of their country.
Also in attendance were former Mozambican leader Joachim Chissano, former Zambian leader Dr Kenneth Kaunda together with top government officials from many countries that included Angola, Tanzania, Malawi and Namibia.
The ceremony yesterday started at the Mozambican Heroes Acre where President Mugabe and the other Heads of State and Government laid a wreath on Cde Machel's grave and later moved to the Independence Square where the statue of Cde Machel was unveiled.
Comments Post a comment
The pilots were drunk as usual and flew the plane into the top of the mountain. Who cares the man was a dictator like mugabe and gadaffi. When Gadaffi gets to hell he can ask for mugabe to come and be his teaboy in hell.
Jeffjedi06;
You are a foolish fool; how can you insult two great leaders of our time the late Camarada Samora and Brother Leader Qaddafi? You do not even know what you are talking about.
Who goes to hell; the one that was defending his people in Sirte and, indeed, in Libya and those who slaughtered civilians for the past nine months as they reduce not only Sirte but all of Libya to rubbles?
Obviously, those terrorists of the Nato Terrorist Council (NTC) and their masters - Obama, Cameron and Sarkozy - are going STRAIGHT TO HELL.
On the other hand Qaddafi died a martyr who had promised to die for and among his own people. Indeed, he did not flee Libya because he was Libyan and in Libya is where he died. They can throw his body into the sea (typical of CIA) but the fact shall remain that his blood was spilt on Libyan soil and in his home town of Sirte and shall water the seeds of the revolution.
As for Camarada Samora Moises MACHEL, well, this was another "great revolutionary, a resolute and fearless freedom fighter, a military commander and astute politician, and above all, a unique diplomat and noble statesman whose contribution to the fight against colonial subjugation and exploitation will remain LEGENDARY", President R.G. Mugabe in Maputo during the 25th Anniversary of the death of hero of heroes - Machel.
You can say what you want about these revolutionaries but whatever you say against them SHALL NEVER change the contribution they have made to the people of Africa and, indeed, the world at large.
Jesus Christ was beaten, spit on, scolded, insulted, was made to wear a thorny crown, was striped of all clothes, dragged through the streets with blooded body and face, and finally ASSASSINATED on the cross but this did not change what he had done for humanity. Jesus legacy shall live forever!!
His popularity is growing everyday such that even the devil now wants to be associated with Him because without Him, Lucifer SHALL NOT SEE GOD. The accusations against Him (at the time of His murder) were so strong and appealing to those that were possessed by the evil spirit, such that, literally EVERYBODY was shouting and calling for His death.
Today Jesus is the ONLY WAY there is to Heaven and without HIM none, NONE whatsoever, SHALL enter the Kingdom of God.
Similarly, while Qaddafi and Samora are not JESUS and are nowhere near Him, they represent what Jesus fought for (the poor, oppressed, enslaved, subjugated, dispossessed and vulnerable) and against (the BLOODY vampires, genocidaires and blood suckers massacring Libyans, Iraqis and Afghans) on this earth.
It is my fervent hope and prayer that they (Samora and Qaddafi), therefore, will be standing on the right-hand side of God on judgment day.
Jesus' demise brought about the awakening of Africa that you may not be seeing now (but which I see and know of through teachings of the Holy Spirit) and shall manifest itself very soon. The Holy Spirit abandoned the killers of the Son of God and came to AFRICA.
That is why you see them (devil possessed murderers) all over the show massacring innocent and unarmed people. AFRICA SHALL soon be a VERY POWERFUL continent (through the Holy Spirit) and will conquer all devilish nations of the earth.
The BLOOD of all the martyrs being slaughtered by the devil is watering the seeds of that REVOLUTION soon to come. Just wait and see, and if you are dead by then, you will be watching the scene from HELL!!
Hey Taki-Garden-boy. Did you even see the reports coming out of Libya? Your great hero Gadaffi was pleading like a coward to the people of Libya not to hurt him." Don't Shoot, Don't Shoot." The people of Libya dished out the justice on him by hitting him with their shoes and beat the bloody coward into a pulp and then one bullet to the head and one to the gut. You love this asshole. That makes you an asshole as well. Your great buddy is just a bloody coward just like you. I asked you to be at certain places at certain times to settle a score and every time you bloody chickened out like the coward you are. Full of bloody excuses. You know something even if you were on fire I wouldn't piss on you.
"Hey Taki-Garden-boy..."
GW,
As I said a few days ago, our little display of mutual respect wouldn't last, with this idiotic post by you, my prediction comes true.
It is totally stupid for you to try to portray a brave freedom fighter like Takunya_Ndebvu and Col. Kadafi, a man who faced his powerful enemies to the end, as cowards. Both of them are just the opposite and nothing you can say will change that.
If, in fact, Mr. Kadafi had fled the country, as he had many opportunities to do so, perhaps you would have some basis for making your childish claim of "coward" but he didn't and faced his enemies to the bloody end as he said he would. The real cowards are the ones who sent their planes, bombs and drones to attack a small African country which had given up arming themselves with the weapons needed to protect themselves from those trying to steal their resources.
I suppose those who send their bombs and drones to attack from the air people on the ground with inadequate arms are heroes, and those who face their better-armed enemies straight up are cowards, right? This says something about how screwed-up your mind deals with reality. And to support your argument you use the western-planted lie about "don't shoot". How pathetic!
DJ, I stand by what I said to you. You have every right to stick up for your buddy Takunya. What I said to him does not mean I said that to you. My argument with Takunya is not the argument with you. You know I'd rather talk to you than Takunya. Takunya and I go back a long time, he clashed with my brother and told lie after lie. Awt-Indapendent listed more than 50 of his lies. My brother James listed many lies of his as well.
Go well .
See All Comments