Maputo — The Mozambican Bar Association (OAM) has called on the state authorities to take criminal proceedings against the military and police officers involved in the running down of a young woman who was participating in the demonstrations called by the presidential candidate Venancio Mondlane in order to protest against the allegedly fraudulent results of the elections held on 9 October.
The tragedy took place last Wednesday, on Eduardo Mondlane Avenue, in central Maputo, when an armoured car knocked down and drove over a woman who was participating in demonstrations.
In a letter sent to the Ministries of Defence and the Interior, to the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces and to the General Commander of the Police, the Bar Association says that those who committed the crime must not escape responsibility.
"It is manifestly clear that the conduct of the defence and security forces is criminal and did not comply with the requirements of necessity, eligibility and, above all, proportionality and weighting, given the events of the moment', reads the note.
In a letter, which also was addressed to the Attorney-General's Office (PGR), the OAM claims that the conduct of the defence and security forces was criminal and cannot be covered up by the legitimacy of their role, "because we are clearly dealing with violence, embodied in a profound and unacceptable abuse of power. In these cases, all legal limits and the boundaries of decency have been crossed.'
The Bar Association promises to provide legal assistance to the victims and their families in order to minimize their pain.
"The state's responsibility for this disproportionate and reprehensible use of state force shows its complete lack of preparation and means to deal with demonstrations. It has become clear that it is the defence and security forces that are the main promoters of violence. Nothing, nothing at all, justifies these barbaric and repugnant acts', reads the document.
According to the note, the right to demonstrate is constitutional and it is a serious mistake to think of attributing as a favour what the law grants as a right.
"Reducing those who demand rights to the status of hooligans is always an error of self-aggrandizement of an unbridled vanity, which shows a real distancing of leaders, not only from the people, but above all, from the obligatory mission to serve. The power of the state must not be used to commit crimes, intimidate and restrict constitutional rights, always under the guise of an Authority', reads the note.
Last week, the Defence Ministry issued a statement admitting that the armoured car belongs to the Mozambican armed forces (FADM) but claimed that running over the demonstrator was "accidental'.
