Maputo — Unidentified individuals on Wednesday night attempted to assassinate Carlitos Cadangue, a prominent journalist of the independent Mozambican television station, STV.
The attack took place in Trangapasso neighbourhood, in the central city of Chimoio, as Cadangue and his son were driving home.
Cadangue said there were four members of the attacking group, all of them wearing masks.
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"It was thanks to the grace of God that we escaped', he declared. "I was returning from the city with my son. When we were almost at my house, we heard shots fired against my car. There were four people, all of them masked'.
"After the shots, the attackers fled, in a black Ford Ranger vehicle', Cadangue added. "Luckily we were not hit, but the car suffered'.
According to Ernesto Nhanale, the executive director of the Mozambican chapter of the regional press freedom body, the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA), Cadangue was attacked because of his persistent reports about environmental pollution in Manica, which forced the government to appoint an Interministerial Commission to investigate illegal gold mining in the province.
As a result, all mining in Manica was temporarily suspended. "Cadangue has been a very active voice, and we are witnessing the courage and impact of the work he has carried out in Manica. We, as a society, have followed how Cadangue's work has denounced the impacts of pollution caused by illegal mining in Manica', said Nhanale.
According to Nhanala, crimes against the environment are only possible if the people in power do not respect Mozambican laws.
Those who profit from illegal gold mining use toxic materials such as mercury, which destroy aquatic life, and damage attempts to grow crops by the banks of the major rivers.
MISA has called on the authorities to take a very firm stance in investigating the case and "punish in an exemplary manner those who tried to put Carlitos Cadangue's life at risk.'
"This act certainly puts to the test the actions of journalists in pursuing the mining dossier, which continues to yield new developments, since there are new seam of gold being developed, as Cadangue recently reported', Nhanale said.
MISA also believes that this attack was aimed at silencing the active voices of those who denounce non-compliance with mining laws.
"This is an attempt to weaken the entire investigation process', said Nhanale. "It targets those who have no protection, namely the journalists, because what we have been witnessing is that, effectively, the State does not protect journalists. We, as MISA, have been clamoring for a long time that there are weak mechanisms for protecting journalists'.
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For its part, the country's Network of Human Rights Defenders (RMDDH) strongly condemned the attack against Cadangue, warning that this "act constitutes a serious violation of press freedom, the right to information, and the fundamental principles of the rule of law.'
Attacks against journalists, the body said, represent direct threats to democracy and create an environment of fear and intimidation that compromises the free and independent exercise of journalism.
The RMDDH demanded a swift, independent, and transparent investigation into the attack.
The police have not yet commented on the attack.
