The Media Institute of Southern Africa and the National Union of Mozambican Journalists (SNJ) condemned today (18) violence against journalists during an attempt to prevent an Anamola party march in Quelimane, in Zambezia province, central Mozambique.
In a joint statement released today, the SNJ and MISA Mozambique condemned, “in the strongest terms,” any action that puts the physical safety or lives of journalists at risk while they are legitimately and lawfully carrying out their professional duties.
The violence involved the Mozambique Republic Police (PRM), which attempted to prevent a march held Saturday to mark the first anniversary of the National Alliance for a Free and Autonomous Mozambique (Anamola), led by politician Venâncio Mondlane. Several people were injured in the incident in Quelimane.
MISA Mozambique and the SNJ stressed that journalism is an activity of recognized public interest and that journalists cannot, “under any circumstances,” be treated as targets or obstacles by the Defense and Security Forces, particularly when they are properly identified and carrying out their role of informing the public.
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“Our organizations express their deep solidarity with all journalists affected by this incident, particularly the three professionals who were injured,” the statement said.
The organizations that work to protect journalists also reiterated their readiness to provide the necessary assistance, including institutional support in dealing with the relevant authorities, to safeguard the rights and well-being of the journalists involved.
The two organizations said their response followed a meeting with the provincial commander of the PRM, during which they detailed what had happened, expressed deep concern about the safety of media professionals and called for greater protection for journalists covering demonstrations, rallies and other high-risk situations.
In response to statements by the PRM spokesperson in Zambezia, Venâncio Mondlane said today that the party had not been informed in advance that the march could not take place and rejected the police account that his supporters had engaged in acts of defiance.
Police said today that organizers had been warned that there were insufficient security conditions because a local festival was taking place at the same time. They also alleged that the dispersal occurred after acts of defiance against authorities and the stoning of a police vehicle. The PRM denied using live ammunition, saying it only fired tear gas for about five minutes.
Plataforma Decide, a Mozambican nongovernmental organization that monitored Saturday’s events in Quelimane, preliminarily counted at least nine people affected during the police intervention, including two injured participants, three journalists and two children affected by tear gas. The organization called for an independent investigation into the incident.
Mozambique recorded 15 violations of journalistic activity in 2025, half as many as in 2024, according to a MISA report cited by Lusa on May 4. The report identified the state as one of the main violators of press freedom in the country.
