Tensions were rising on November 7, 2024 in Mozambique’s capital Maputo as police fired tear gas to disperse protesters gathered after the main opposition leader called to demonstrate election results. (Photo by ALFREDO ZUNIGA/AFP via Getty Images)
South Africa on Thursday once more closed the Lebombo border crossing with Mozambique as post-election violence continued to sweep the country.
“It was reopened but we have closed it again as threats on the grounds increased,” Border Management Authority (BMA) spokesperson Mmemme Mogotsi said.
She added that the border authority was helping South Africans who wanted to leave Mozambique to return home.
“Some of them have been there since long before the elections and we are helping them to safety.”
The border was temporarily closed on Tuesday after protesters torched trucks and destroyed infrastructure on the Mozambican side.
The BMA confirmed that several Mozambican officials had requested refuge on the South African side.
The Mozambican defence minister Cristóvão Chume has reportedly threatened to deploy the military to restore calm, saying the constitutional order was under threat.
At least 11 people have been killed since violence broke out after Frelimo, the party that has been in power since independence in 1975, won the 24 and 25 October elections by a landslide. The opposition claims the poll was rigged to give Frelimo’s Daniel Chapo more than 70% of the vote.
Charismatic Podemo candidate Venâncio Mondlane, who defected from the main opposition Renamo, polled around 20%. He has been in hiding since before the results were declared and said his lawyer and a close aide were murdered while preparing to challenge the outcome.
The department of international relations and cooperation on Wednesday issued a travel warning on Mozambique.
“Given the current security situation in Mozambique, the department of international relations and cooperation encourages all South Africans to postpone non-essential visits to the country until further notice,” it said.
International Relations Minister Ronald Lamola has spoken with his Mozambican counterpart Veronica Macamo and “reflected on the security situation in Mozambique”, his office said.
“South Africa expresses concern at the outbreak of post-electoral violence and regrets the loss of lives and destruction of property.
“We once again reiterate the obvious call made by various leaders in Mozambique to law-enforcement agencies to speedily investigate these incidents and bring the perpetrators to justice,” it said.
Lamola appealed for calm to allow the electoral process to conclude and to give Mozambique’s constitutional court time to validate the results.
Des Erasmus
mg.co.za
