Mozambique's Covid-19 Death Toll Now Over 50

 Maputo — Mozambique's National Director of Public Health, Rosa Marlene, on Thursday reported two more deaths from the Covid-19 respiratory disease, bringing the death toll in Mozambique since the start of the pandemic to 51.

Speaking at a Maputo press conference, Marlene said the two latest victims were Mozambican men, one aged 38 and the other 81 years old. Both were hospitalised in Maputo, and tested positive for the coronavirus that causes Covid-19 on 13 and 18 September. Their condition continued to deteriorate, and the younger man died on Wednesday. On Thursday morning the older man also died

.Of the 51 known coronavirus deaths, 34 (two thirds) have occurred in Maputo city, and three in Maputo province. The other deaths have occurred in Nampula (five), Tete (two), Manica (two), Gaza (two), Cabo Delgado (one), Zambezia (one) and Sofala (one).

The pace of the Covid-19 epidemic in Mozambique picked up sharply in September. Marlene said that there has been an average of one death, five hospitalisations and 145 new cases of the disease every day this month. And in the last seven days, 12 deaths were reported.

Marlene said that, since the first case was diagnosed on 22 March, 130,060 people have been tested for the coronavirus, 1,255 of them in the previous 24 hours. 870 of the tests were administered in public facilities and 385 in private laboratories.

Of the samples tested, 615 were from Maputo city, 180 from Cabo Delgado, 142 from Maputo province, 122 from Nampula, 48 from Sofala, 42 from Manica, 41 from Zambezia, 40 from Tete, 22 from Gaza and three from Inhambane.1,118 of these tests gave negative results, and 137 people tested positive for the coronavirus, bringing the total number of positive cases to 7,399. 131 of the new cases are Mozambicans and six are Indian nationals. 66 are men or boys and 61 are women or girls. Ten are children under 15 years of age, and three are over 65 years old.

The great majority of the new cases are from Maputo city (96) and Maputo province (18), thus confirming once more that the current epicenter of the Mozambican epidemic is in the far south of the country. There were also ten cases from Tete, six from Gaza, two from Sofala, and one each from Nampula, Zambezia and Inhambane.

In line with standard Ministry of Health procedure, all the new cases are in home isolation and their contacts are being traced.

Over the same 24 hour period, Marlene said, two Covid-19 patients have been discharged from hospital, one in Maputo city and one in Gaza. But nine others were admitted, all of them in Maputo. Currently 52 patients are under medical care in the Covid-19 isolation wards. 51 of them are in Maputo city and one is in Zambezia.Marlene added that a further 208 people have made a full recovery from Covid-19 - 178 in Maputo city, 24 in Maputo province, three in Zambezia, two in Gaza and one in Tete. The total number of recoveries is now 4,558 - 61.6 per cent of all people who have tested positive for the coronavirus.

As of Thursday, the geographical breakdown of all 7,399 positive cases, by the provinces where they were diagnosed, was as follows: Maputo city, 3.182; Maputo province, 1,323; Cabo Delgado, 696; Nampula, 579; Zambezia, 376; Gaza, 313; Tete, 256; Sofala, 211; Niassa, 191; Inhambane, 167; Manica, 105.

The main Covid-19 statistics for Mozambique are now: 7,399 confirmed cases, of whom 4,558 have made a complete recovery, and 2,786 are active cases. 78.5 per cent of all the active cases are from Maputo city and province. 55 Covid-19 patients have died, 51 from the disease and four from other causes.

As Mozambique enters the summer months (summer began officially on Wednesday), the Health Ministry is openly alarmed at the prospect of large crowds gathering on the country's beaches, which reopened a fortnight ago.

Because Friday is a public holiday (the anniversary of the launch of the national liberation struggle), this will be a three day weekend, and temperatures are soaring. The maximum temperature in Maputo on Saturday is forecast to reach 38 degrees Celsius, and during the weekend maximum temperatures in Gaza and Inhambane might reach 42 degrees.

Marlene urged citizens to resist the temptation to go to the beaches "because these places are potential foci for transmission of the disease".

Anyone who did choose to go to the beach, she added, "should scrupulously observe the preventive measures against Covid-19". These include wearing face masks, and social distancing of at least 1.5 metres between individuals.

Marlene warned that the government has specifically banned collective sports and concerts on the beaches, as well as the sale and consumption of alcoholic drinks. Source ALLAFRICA.com

Mozambique: Defence Forces Repel Terrorist Attack Against Bilibiza

 Maputo — Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi on Friday announced that, on the previous day, the defence and security forces had repelled a terrorist attack against the small town of Bilibiza in the northern province of Cabo Delgado.

Speaking at the Monument to the Mozambican Heroes in Maputo, at a ceremony to mark the 56th anniversary of the launch of the independence war against Portuguese colonial rule, on 25 September 1964, Nyusi said "I want to dedicate a word of appreciation for the young men who right now are in the theatres of operation in the north and centre of the country, and who yesterday drove back an attack on Bilibiza. These men, from all ethnicities, tribes and races, without any political or religious colours, have shown a high sense of patriotism, courage and valour in defence of our sovereignty".Islamist bandits have attacked Bilibiza before, notably in January, when they burnt down many houses and vandalised public buildings, including the Bilibiza Agricultural Institute, the local health centre and the administrative post secretariat.

Nyusi said that, facing adverse circumstances, and with the same determination as the fighters in the liberation struggle, the defence and security forces of today are aware that their mission is to fight a different sort of war, a fight against terrorism, "which requires still more capacity for re-invention in order to secure success".

"Our young men do not vacillate and are aware of their mission to fight terrorism and defend our sovereignty", he declared. "That's how it was with the youths of 25 September 1964, that's how it is with the youths who comprises our defence and security forces, and that's how it will be in future generations".

The Mozambican Armed Forces (FADM), Nyusi continued, are "the faithful guardians of the gains of the Mozambican people".

The defence forces of the past "had the duty to free the country from Portuguese colonialism. Today, with the advent of globalization, the threats are more diffuse and unpredictable, which demands other forms of flexibility and combat readiness."

"Terrorism, transnational crime, piracy, cybercrime and humanitarian missions are some of the challenges which our defence and security forces must also be prepared to face", said Nyusi.

The terrorism in Cabo Delgado, and the attacks by the self-styled "Renamo Military Junta" in the central provinces of Manica and Sofala "are affronts to our national independence, territorial integrity and peace", he declared.

"As Commander-in-Chief", Nyusi said, "I reiterate my promise to remain open to dialogue and to bring together all the forces of society who want to contribute to the affirmation of the great destination that we are building. To this end, I am counting on the dedication of the defence and security forces".

At the ceremony, Nyusi also decorated 30 people for outstanding achievements in various spheres of the nation's life. They were among 1,546 people decorated across the country, most of them in ceremonies guided by the provincial secretaries of state.

The war against islamist terrorism is creating new heroes. One of those whom Nyusi decorated posthumously, with the Medal of Military Merit, was naval captain Horacio Charles, who gave his life fighting the terrorist attack on the town of Mocimboa da Praia in JuneSource- ALLAFRICA

Cholera vaccination in northern Mozambique

"For this campaign to reach the desired objectives, the participation and active involvement of all of us is necessary, each one must be a mobilizing agent in order to have greater adhesion of the population", said the minister, during the campaign launching ceremony in Pemba , capital of Cabo Delgado, northern province of the country.

 According to Carlos Agostinho do Rosário, the campaign will reach a total of 366,750 people from five provincial districts affected by cholera, namely Metuge, Ibo, Macomia, Mocímboa da Praia and Pemba. The cholera vaccination campaign will take place in two phases, the first starting today until 25 September and the second taking place from 12 to 17 October, said the official

 "The only real purpose of this campaign is to improve the health status of our fellow citizens in this region of the country and nothing else. A vaccinated person is protected from cholera and in this way reduces the risk of transmitting the disease to others," he added. The campaign will involve 119 health teams and, this year, the action will take the teams to the families, to avoid crowds in health units and fight the spread of the new coronavirus.

Attacks: Analysts advocate independent investigation into allegations of abuse

"We hope that the State will respond as soon as possible because there are conditions to appoint an independent, credible, serious and multi-stakeholder commission to verify what has happened and what is happening in Cabo Delgado", defended the director of the Center for Democracy and Development (CDD), Mozambican civil society organization, Adriano Nuvunga.

 The European Commission found on Thursday “extremely shocking” the recent report by Amnesty International (AI) on human rights violations in northern Mozambique that the organization attributes to the Defense and Security Forces (SDS), calling for a “transparent investigation” and effective ”. The Government leaves the door open for inquiries, but has said that the videos on which the allegations are based are "propaganda" of the insurgents facing Mozambique. "The pressure is increasing, we hope and call on the State to respond positively and create conditions as soon as possible," said Nuvunga

. Speaking to the Moza Eye, the journalist and analyst Fernando Lima said that the Mozambican state "can only gain" from the investigation, as this will allow "the suspicions and pressure" of national and international organizations to be removed. “If the State wants to distance itself seriously and in practice, it must allow an investigation”, underlined Lima. Borges Nhamire, a researcher at the Center for Public Integrity (CIP), considers that the investigations carried out by the Government “do nothing”, recalling other cases that occurred in the country, and that, according to Nhamire, “had no results”

. “This country is full of investigations that have no results. To get concrete information out there has to be an independent investigation ”, he reiterated. For analysts, there is increasing evidence and reports of human rights violations resulting from the armed conflict in Cabo Delgado, calling for conditions to be created to clarify them “once and for all”. "The only way to clarify this is to pave the way for an independent investigation into this type of situation, to dispel all possible doubts", defended the president of the National Commission for Human Rights (CNDH) of Mozambique, Luís Bitone. 

 Cabo Delgado is the northernmost coastal province of Mozambique, home of mega-projects for natural gas exploration and facing a humanitarian crisis with more than 1,000 dead and 250,000 internally displaced - the result of three years of armed conflict between Mozambican and rebel forces, whose attacks have already been claimed by the Islamic State 'jihadist' group, but whose origin remains unclear. AI and Human Rights Watch (HRW) are among the organizations that have called for an investigation into the acts captured on video that show alleged members of Mozambican forces torturing and even executing others on the war stage in Cabo Delgado. 

 The Mozambican government has already repudiated the images and declared itself open to investigating the circumstances, classifying the videos as propaganda for the "terrorist" forces that reach the northern province and use the FDS uniforms to record them. On Tuesday, the Mozambican Interior Minister, Amade Miquidade, said that the government suspects that there is a nucleus that produces disinformation to denigrate the SDS and said that an investigation is underway to find out "where is the nucleus for preparing these videos" .

PR participates in the virtual week of the 75th session of the UN General Assembly

 The President of the Republic, Filipe Nyusi, participates, from September 21 to October 2, in the high-level virtual week of the 75th session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, under the motto “The future we want, the United Nations we need - reaffirming our collective commitment to multilateralism ”.

At the meeting, the Head of State will contribute to the general debate with an intervention, from Maputo, scheduled for 23 September, where he will transmit a message that highlights the commitment to “celebrate the 75 years of the United Nations, making it the most relevant to the challenges of peace and security, combating COVID-19 and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, taking into account the 45 years of national independence and cooperation between the Republic of Mozambique and the United Nations ”.

According to a statement from the Presidency of the Republic, sent to “the Moza Eye”, during the virtual week, Filipe Nyusi will also participate in the high-level meeting to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the United Nations; Biodiversity Summit; high-level virtual meeting on financing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in the Era and post-COVID-19.

The note also indicates that the Head of State will participate in the high-level meeting of the 25th anniversary of the 4th World Conference on Women and in the high-level meeting for the celebration and promotion of the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.

Nyusi will also participate in the parallel meeting entitled “High Level Virtual Roundtable promoted by the US Chamber of Commerce and the US Africa Business Center”, as well as in bilateral bilateral meetings, the statement we have been quoting refers to.

The delegation of President Nyusi is made up of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Verónica Macamo; Industry and Commerce, Carlos Mesquita; Gender, Children and Social Action, Nyeleti Mondlane and Land and Environment, Ivete Maibasse.

The Governor of the Bank of Mozambique, Rogério Zandamela, also accompanies the Head of State; the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary and Permanent Representative of the Republic of Mozambique to the United Nations, Pedro Comissário; Mozambican ambassador to Washington (USA), Carlos dos Santos; cadres of the Presidency of the Republic and other State institutions.

 

Mozambique / Attacks: NGO considers security agreement with French Total to be discriminatory

 On August 24, Total announced a review of the Memorandum of Understanding with the Mozambican Government for the operation of a joint force for the security of the natural gas project of the Area 1 consortium in the Rovuma basin, northern Mozambique.

In an analysis of the agreement, CIP understands that the Mozambican executive and Total ignored the impact of the armed conflict elsewhere in the province of Cabo Delgado, by focusing geographically on the understanding in Area 1 - Afungi, district of Palma.

"As this is an important document that provides for measures in the face of the conflict in Cabo Delgado, with a view to protecting the investments made in that province and guaranteeing the benefits of the exploitation of resources in general, it would be expected that it would involve other companies that also operate in that part of the country ", defends the CIP.

On the other hand, the text continues, the districts and localities plagued by the action of armed groups are interconnected, a situation that requires greater coverage of security strategies in the face of armed violence.

"It is also important to emphasize that the memorandum of understanding [between Government and Total] will have a direct impact on the lives of local communities, the provincial business community, on the inspection capacity of the National Petroleum Institute [INP], of the National Institute of Mines [Inami] and in the lives of Mozambicans, in general ", observes the CIP.

The organization also points out that the agreement affects Mozambique's national sovereignty, because it dellegates national security matters to a company that pursues strictly private interests.

CIP emphasizes that the expenses resulting from the agreement must be regulated, taking into account that the costs will encumber the investments of the consortium project and lower the tax revenues of the Mozambican State.

"The fact that the memorandum of understanding is kept as a confidential document makes it even more difficult for the regulator to monitor recoverable costs," says the CIP analysis.

The organization considers Total's concerns about the security of its enterprise in the Rovuma basin understandable in the face of armed attacks in the region, but stresses that any initiative in this area must be "comprehensive".

In this sense, he continues, the approach to security must deserve greater coordination between state institutions and companies in the extractive sector, namely in the response through "joint force".Following the agreement in August, in clarifications to Lusa, the French oil company said that "the revision of the safety memorandum reflects the increase in activities during the construction phase and the mobilization of a larger workforce".

The province of Cabo Delgado has been the scene of armed attacks for three years by forces classified as terrorists.

The violence caused a humanitarian crisis with more than a thousand deaths and about 365,000 internally displaced persons.

E Chang: Why Extradited to SA

South Africa had to make a very uncomfortable political decision. It either had to seriously ruin its historical relationship with its African neighbour and comrade, Frelimo, by extraditing the former Mozambican finance minister and MP, Manuel Chang, to the United States, or do exactly the opposite — please Frelimo but irritate the US and disappoint the majority of Mozambicans — who totally distrust the ruling party’s willingness and honesty to fight corruption, especially in this particular high-level and politically sensitive case.
But whatever the implications of such a decision are or will be for the future of South African diplomatic relations with the two countries, the former minister of justice and correctional services, Michael Masutha, had already decided: the winner was Mozambique.
While South Africans and the world were focused on the developments of the Zondo commission into state capture domestically, and the country was still recovering from the “political balabaza” of the May election outcome, Masutha was deliberating in favour of extraditing the Frelimo cadre to face “justice” back at home, rather than in the US.
Both countries had filed extradition requests in South Africa for the very same person. First the Americans, under an existing US-SA extradition treaty and later the Mozambicans, under the South African Development Community (SADC) protocol on extradition.
But what is this case actually about? This Hollywood-like corruption case was first made public early in 2016 when The Wall Street Journal revealed that the Mozambican government had a hidden debt that was later confirmed to amount to $2-billion.

At the time this constituted 18% of the country’s gross domestic product. After strong rejections and apparent inertia, firstly to accept and secondly to investigate this case, Frelimo was forced to accept an independent audit into state-guaranteed loans for three companies. Among other findings, the audit established that out of the $2-billion debt, $500-million was nowhere to be found. It was also concluded that the entire process involving these loans was unconstitutional. Although a case was opened by Mozambique’s attorney general when these findings were revealed, no one was arrested then.

Things began to emerge into the light when on December 29 last year, at the request of US judicial authorities, Chang, the head of the finance portfolio when these loans were contracted, was arrested at OR Tambo International Airport, in transit to Dubai. Chang and others — allegedly more Mozambicans — are wanted by the US justice department for conspiring to commit fraud, among other serious criminal allegations.

After a relatively long court process, the Kempton Park magistrate’s court concluded that Chang was extraditable both to the US (the first applicant) and to Mozambique (the second applicant). But because under South African legislation the final say had to come from the minister of justice, it was Masutha who sealed the fate of Chang.
In deciding in favour of extradition to Mozambique rather than the US, Masutha considered the nationality of the accused; the place where the offences were committed; the offended country (Mozambique); and the request by Chang himself to be sent back home and not to face justice in the US.
One can only speculate whether Masutha’s decision was based on achieving justice or servicing a historical comradeship and, more broadly, the South African pan-Africanist agenda. Or perhaps Masutha was merely acting in the interest of the South African economy and national security.
While a jail cell and court case await Chang in the US, where the Americans say they have enough evidence against him — more than 1 000 pages and audio recordings — it is widely known that, because of his prevailing immunity as an MP in Mozambique, even after years of alleged investigation by the Mozambican authorities, Chang cannot be arrested at home.
In such a situation Masutha’s decision is questionable, since he knew Chang would be happily digesting Mozambique’s delicious seafood immediately after crossing the border. This would definitely result in embarrassment for the South African justice system in a context where the country is trying to show a strong intolerance for corruption.

But it is undeniable that extraditing an African comrade to face justice in the US and not in Africa, apart from seriously embarrassing “a comrade country”, wouldn’t be well interpreted by other African countries with whom South Africa needs to have a good relationship.
South Africa would be considered by its peers, especially by those who do not usually show a strong stand against corruption, as being lapdogs of American imperialism, rather than pursuing a pan-Africanist agenda, regardless of what the case was about. It’s probably this logic that governed South Africa’s attitude towards former Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir, who was wanted by the International Criminal Court, and former Zimbabwean first lady Grace Mugabe, who walked free when she was expected to be arrested by the authorities for assault.

Masutha’s decision may also reflect an internal security concern of South Africa. Mozambique is, among all its neighbouring countries, the one which poses the most challenges to South Africa’s internal security because of its geographic location on the Indian Ocean, its internal political dynamics and conflicts, and its fragile state capacities.
When this case was first revealed, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the US and other bilateral partners of Mozambique immediately suspended their much-needed contributions to the country’s budget — which represented about a quarter of it — pushing the country close to bankruptcy.
Allowing the Americans to be in possession of the so-called “mastermind” of this case would have had serious implications for Frelimo, because of the information which would potentially have been exposed to the public. This would likely have led to a serious crisis within Frelimo, the government and the state. A stable Frelimo is a stable Mozambique, which poses less of a threat to South Africa.
In the end, if the Americans do not appeal this decision, Chang will certainly go back home and South Africa’s services to justice will be judged by how the comrades on the other side deal with his case: Chang will receive real justice, a slap on the wrist or enjoy total impunity.

Fredson Guilenge works for the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung in Johannesburg. These are his own views