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TITLE: MOZAMBIQUE HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES, 1993
DATE: JANUARY 31, 1994
AUTHOR: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
MOZAMBIQUE
In 1993 Mozambique continued to be governed by President
Joaquim Chissano and the Ruling National Front for the
Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO). The multiparty elections
called for in the 1990 Constitution, and initially set for 1
year from the October 4, 1992 signing in Rome of the General
Peace Accord of Mozambique, marking the end of the civil war,
were delayed until October 1994. The Rome Accord addressed
political party registration, organization of the electoral
system, the size of the military, political amnesty, and
oversight of the state intelligence service. Approximately 16
unarmed political parties were active in 1993, 11 of which met
the registration criteria set by the Government. FRELIMO and
the Mozambican National Union (UNAMO) were registered by the
end of 1992. The former insurgents, the Mozambican National
Resistance (RENAMO), had acquired political party status as a
result of the peace accord.
The presence of a United Nations peacekeeping force (ONUMOZ) of
approximately 7,000 was fully operational by June and undertook
responsibility for helping the people of Mozambique to achieve
peace and democracy in their country. Although RENAMO agreed
that Mozambique would continue to be governed by the Chissano
Government until multiparty elections were held, RENAMO
continued to assert the right to control certain areas they
claimed to have occupied prior to the signing of the Rome
Accord.
Estimates of the size of the government security forces varied
from 60,000 to 92,000. These figures included the Armed Forces
of Mozambique (FAM), a territorial force, and a people's
militia. RENAMO claims a force of 21,000. The State
Information and Security Service (SISE) replaced the Mozambican
National Security Service (SNASP) in 1991. SISE is to be
placed under the supervision of a 21-member monitoring
committee made up of representatives of the Government, RENAMO,
and independent citizens. In an agreement reached between
RENAMO's President Dhlakama and President Chissano in August,
ONUMOZ is to have responsibility for overseeing the Mozambican
police force. SISE, unlike the former SNASP, does not have the
power to arrest and detain suspects, and there were no reported
incidents of abuses by SISE in 1993.
Under the terms of the peace agreement, the Government and
RENAMO are to merge their armies into a new national force of
30,000 soldiers to be known as the Mozambique Armed Defense
Force (FADM). Those soldiers on both sides not chosen for the
new force are to be demobilized. RENAMO and the Government
began sending soldiers to Nyanga, Zimbabwe, to start FADM
training in August. Demobilization of troops on both sides
began on December 1 at 20 assembly areas under U.N.
supervision, but initially proceeded slowly and unevenly,
especially on the RENAMO side. As the month progressed, the
rate of demobilization picked up, and additional assembly areas
were opened. At year's end, 35 areas were open, and ONUMOZ
reported that a total of 7,949 government soldiers (19 percent
of those expected at these areas) and 3,764 Renamo soldiers (36
percent of those expected) had checked in.
The Mozambique economy remained heavily dependent on foreign
aid. The country continued to move towards a market economy.
The gross domestic product declined over 2 percent in 1992,
though the International Monetary Fund forecast a 4-percent
growth in 1993. The return of rain after the worst drought on
record in 1992 and continuing peace meant that many Mozambicans
were able to farm their lands again, making them less dependent
on food aid. Approximately 80 percent of the population is
employed in agriculture, mostly on a small-scale, subsistence
level. Major exports are shrimp and cashew nuts.
Blatant human rights abuses in 1993 included the continuing use
of access to humanitarian relief as an instrument of political
control and RENAMO's continuing efforts to limit freedom of
movement into and within zones over which it claimed control.
Access to humanitarian relief improved as a result of
complaints submitted to the Cease-Fire and Control Commission.
Both sides frequently attempted to use control over the
distribution of food aid for their own purposes. RENAMO used
it as a political weapon for partisan ends, often refusing to
cooperate with relief efforts while demanding more assistance.
On the government side, corruption and red tape, not political
maneuvering, were the most significant obstacles to relief
efforts.
Each side accused the other of cease-fire violations and
illegal military incursions and takeovers. Both sides
submitted their complaints to the Cease-Fire and Control
Commission. Laws guaranteeing individual human rights as
granted in the Constitution were not implemented. Other major
human rights problems included sexual violations of kidnaped
women and children in RENANO-controlled areas, harsh prison
conditions, incidents of military and police extortion and
harassment of civilians, and the inability of citizens to
change their government. In some areas, the country's human
rights' record improved. Press and other media criticized
official corruption and, to a lesser extent, government
policies, but there was no direct criticism of the President.
Because legislation in 1991 enabled labor unions to register
individually, three unions declared their independence, and the
FRELIMO-dominated Labor Federation Union sought ways to respond
more effectively to worker needs. Although hampered by lack of
funding, political parties spoke up freely throughout 1993 on
the economic and political situation in the country.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including
Freedom from:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
There were no known or suspected cases of Government forces
targeting persons for political killing in 1993. RENAMO was
accused by the family of Tiago Salgado of murdering him in
July. RENAMO admitted that Salgado, a former RENAMO official,
had been accused of being a FRELIMO spy but claimed he had been
killed trying to escape detention.
b. Disappearance
There were no reports of government-perpetrated
disappearances. However, thousands remained missing due to the
conflict, often as a result of kidnapings in areas affected by
the war. Although some missing children were identified for
family reunification, RENAMO was reluctant to release them and
in a few cases reportedly bartered the children's freedom for
material goods or money.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment
The Constitution expressly prohibits torture. However, during
the prosecution of the war both government and RENAMO forces
tortured prisoners and civilians, and there have been
occasional allegations of torture since the war. In 1993 there
were charges that RENAMO had tortured apparent defector Tiago
Salgado before his death (See section 1.b.), as well as a
Nampula police sergeant detained in December after an alleged
attempt on the life of Afonso Dhlakama. While similar highly
publicized allegations were not known to have been directed at
the Government in 1993, the suspicion that it too continues to
employ torture remains widespread.
Prison conditions throughout the country remain poor. Medical
and food supplies are often insufficient, and overcrowding is a
serious problem. Machava Prison on the outskirts of Maputo,
the largest in Mozambique, holds over twice the number of
inmates for which it was built. On July 26, inmates rioted at
the Maputo City Jail, demanding that the guards remove the body
of a prisoner who had died in his cell. The prisoners
complained that the deceased, Moises Eduardo Mapuro, had been
sick for 5 days but had received no medical attention. In
September inmates at Beira Prison in Sofala Province went on a
hunger strike to demand better living conditions and an end to
treatment that they felt violated their constitutional rights.
Police ended the strike by force, causing injuries among the
inmates.
Since 1988 the Government has allowed international human
rights groups access to prisons where national security
prisoners (mainly RENAMO soldiers and sympathisers) were held.
In 1992 the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) was
also given access to prisoners held in military prisons. This
access continued through 1993.
Reliable evidence accumulated that RENAMO continued to hold
women and children, about 5,000 of the latter, against their
will. They lived in abysmally poor conditions and were used as
porters, personal servants, and guards in RENAMO camps. There
were credible reports that kidnaped women were used for sex, as
were some of the children.
In 1993 there were no reports of detention of prisoners for
national security reasons.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
The law requires that most detainees be charged or released
within 30 days. However, persons accused of the most serious
crimes, i.e., security offenses or other offenses requiring a
sentence of more than 8 years, may be detained for up to 84
days without being formally charged. With court approval, such
detainees may be held for 2 additional periods of 84 days while
the police complete their investigation. The detainee's
constitutional right to counsel and to contact relatives or
friends is often not respected.
In some cases, detainees may be released from prison while the
investigation proceeds, but the bail system in Mozambique
remains ill defined. The law provides that, if the prescribed
period for investigation has been completed and no charges have
been brought, the detainee must be released. In practice,
however, this law is often ignored, in part because of the
severe lack of administrative personnel and trained lawyers to
monitor the judicial system (see Section 1. e.), and in part
because citizens are often unaware of their rights,
particularly those granted under the 1990 Constitution, and do
not demand them. As a result, throughout 1993 there continued
to be a large backlog of prisoners awaiting trial. Detainees
often spend many months, even years, in pretrial status.
The 1990 Constitution's prohibition of exile or the expulsion
of any Mozambican citizen was honored in 1993.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
Mozambique has two complementary formal justice systems: the
civil/criminal, which includes customary courts; and the
military justice system. The Ministry of Justice administers
the civil/criminal system and shares the administration of the
military courts with the Ministry of Defense. At the apex of
the system is the Supreme Court, to which appeals, including
military cases, may be made. Local customary courts handle
matters such as estate and divorce cases. In these courts,
proceedings are usually conducted in public by a trained
representative of the Ministry of Justice, assisted by two to
four popularly elected lay judges.
The entire judicial process suffers severely from a shortage of
trained personnel and the Government's inability to reduce a
large backlog of cases. The Government, with international
assistance, continued to develop a comprehensive plan for
improving the professional level and efficiency of the
judiciary. However, no actions have been taken to put this
plan into effect. As a result, there were no changes in the
legal system in 1993; it continued to be weak and inefficient.
Although all accused persons are in theory presumed innocent
and have the right to legal counsel and the right of appeal,
these rights are not always honored. Prisoners who were poor
and without formal education could remain in detention awaiting
arraignment beyond the 30 days allowed by law, usually without
access to legal counsel.
The 1990 Constitution formally established an independent
judiciary and provided for the selection of judges by other
jurists, replacing the prior system of administratively
appointed justices. However, the President still appoints the
members of the most important tribunal, the Supreme Court, and
the FRELIMO-controlled Assembly appoints "lay judges" to that
Court.
Since the establishment of the Supreme Court in 1988 and the
abolition of the Revolutionary Military Tribunal, persons
accused of crimes against the State are tried in common
civilian courts under standard criminal judicial procedures. A
judge may order a trial closed because of national security
interests or to protect the privacy of the plaintiff in cases
concerning rape.
In 1993 the Government claimed that there were no national
security prisoners. At the beginning of 1992 it was reported
by credible sources that the Government held an estimated
400-550 national security prisoners, most of whom were accused
of sympathizing with, or committing crimes on behalf of,
RENAMO. The Rome Accord provided for the release of such
prisoners, and an amnesty was passed allowing for the release
of over 300 prisoners. All credible reports indicate that the
Government no longer detained national security prisoners in
1993.
RENAMO continued to administer the areas under its control
through a rudimentary form of civil administration. Reports
continued that RENAMO relied on traditional courts in these
areas, with military commanders sometimes acting as judges. On
September 10, RENAMO announced that the authority of the
Constitution did not extend to areas under its control, a
controversial position at variance with the 1992 peace
agreement.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
Correspondence
The 1990 Constitution provides for privacy. During the war,
police and security forces entered homes at will, but after the
signing of the Rome Accord such activity abated. Many persons
were forcibly resettled during the war by both RENAMO and the
Government. With the end of the war, persons in
government-controlled territory have been generally free to
return to their homes. Persons under RENAMO's control have not
always had the same freedom to return to their homes (see
Section 1. b.).
Throughout 1993 there were credible reports that RENAMO was
forcing individuals in areas under its control to join it. In
Manica Province, RENAMO was accused of confiscating FRELIMO
membership cards. A report from Zambezia Province claimed that
RENAMO insisted that individuals join it before they could
recover their property in RENAMO-controlled areas. RENAMO made
similar accusations concerning government political activity,
particularly in Nampula Province. While the accusations are
credible, coercive activity by government authorities is not
systematic.
It is widely assumed that government forces employ surveillance
devices to monitor local and international telecommunications
systems and that they periodically inspect mail, even though
the new Constitution expressly prohibits such surveillance.
g. Use of Excessive Force and Violations of Humanitarian
Law in Internal Conflicts
The Rome Accord ended the fighting that had marked the brutal
17-year civil war, although violations of the cease-fire
continued to occur in 1993. Although neither the Government
nor RENAMO officially opposed access to humanitarian aid during
implementation of the peace process, RENAMO was credibly
accused of hindering distribution of humanitarian relief in
areas under its control. For example, an international
nongovernmental organization (NGO) reported in September that
malnutrition and medical shortages existed in some
RENAMO-controlled areas in Zambezia Province due to RENAMO
reluctance to allow access to relief organizations. The same
month another international assistance organization reported
difficulties with RENAMO administrators who hindered
distribution of agricultural aid kits. There were also
numerous cases of unpaid, hungry soldiers extorting food from
NGO warehouses, including a late November incident in which
armed government soldiers invaded offices and residences of an
international NGO in Mutarrara in Tete province and seized
food. These incidents do not represent any systematic
government policy, however, but rather are an indication of its
inability to support and pay its forces.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
The Constitution, the 1991 press law, and the 1992 Rome Accord
provide for freedom of expression and the press, but with
restrictions in cases involving national defense
considerations. Legally, criticism of the President is not
prohibited; in practice, few news reports or editorial
commentaries critical of him appear. The 1991 press law holds
that in cases of defamation against the President, truth is not
a sufficient defense against libel. Through the end of 1993,
this law had not been tested in court, but its result was
considerable self-censorship.
On balance, freedom of the press continued to improve in 1993.
The media, particularly the private newssheet Mediafax,
television, and radio, reported objectively on controversial
topics, including disagreements between the Government and
RENAMO on peace agreement implementation, high-level military
corruption, internal unrest in the military, and political
opposition viewpoints. Several journalists continued to push
the boundaries of press freedom, and the National Organization
of Journalists maintained its strong support of an independent
media. For example, TV Mozambique aired a story in which the
President's late brother was accused of suspect real estate
dealings involving land of a psychiatric hospital. However,
even without formal prior press censorship, journalists in the
state-run media were often implicitly held to unwritten and
vague guidelines by their directors (who are appointed by the
Government). There is ample evidence that journalists in the
state-run media continue to be under strong pressure to avoid
any investigative reporting that could expose high-level
corruption.
During the 1993 multiparty conference on the electoral law,
opposition politicians received almost daily coverage of their
statements and views on the proceedings. RENAMO complained
that it was consistently mistreated in the government-run
media, whose bias was evident in skewed stories and emphasis on
the negative. While the import of speeches and attendance at
RENAMO rallies was routinely downplayed, for example, RENAMO
defections or alleged hindrances to the peace process were
blown out of proportion to their true significance.
Nonetheless, RENAMO received wide coverage in media organs, and
the party began to publish its periodical, Novos Tempos, in
Maputo instead of Portugal.
In early 1993, a reporter for radio Mozambique was denied
access to RENAMO areas in Manica Province. As a result, the
head of Mozambique's National Union of Journalists accused
RENAMO of refusing to allow free press coverage in areas under
its administration. RENAMO responded that all journalists
would need specific authorization to enter areas under its
control. In practice, RENAMO territory is not freely
accessible to journalists, or any other outsiders, and a few
Mozambican journalists, who had given no advance notice of
their trips, were turned away at the borders of
RENAMO-controlled areas. For most journalists, this has not
been an issue because they have been primarily interested in
visiting RENAMO headquarters at Maringue, a trip which for
purely logistical reasons requires advance preparation. RENAMO
was generally cooperative in arranging such visits.
The Higher Council of Social Communications (CSCS), created by
the 1991 press law, met for the first time in 1993. Its stated
mission is to arbitrate disputes, hear complaints, and set
guidelines on media issues. At year's end, it was uncertain
what influence the CSCS might have.
Until 1992, almost all media were government owned or
government operated. In 1992 Mozambique's first privately
owned daily news bulletin, Mediafax, began publication, and in
1993 Mediacoop, Mediafax's parent cooperative, planned to
begin publication of a weekly news journal, Savana, but
complained that publication was being delayed by government
interference and the levy of excessive taxes. These charges
appeared to be well grounded. Also in 1993, Mozambique's first
independent television station, Radio Televisao Klint (RTK),
began broadcasting in Maputo. Two opposition political
parties, the National Convention Party (PCN) and the Social
Liberal and Democratic Party (SOL), began publication of
periodic newssheets. An independent media cooperative,
Coopartes, received funding to begin a new weekly, although
publication had not begun by year's end.
In mid-1993, the government-run Noticias group of newspapers
announced plans to privatize their operation, although the
State directly and through the Bank of Mozambique will continue
to have majority control after contracts are awarded.
No formal restrictions on academic freedom exist, but in
practice teachers routinely adhere to self-censorship since
their employment depends on the State.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
The Constitution provides for freedom of assembly and
association. Legislation enacted in 1991 set up guidelines for
registering as a political party and for holding public
demonstrations. During 1993 political groups were free to hold
congresses and press conferences and to travel in areas under
the Government's control. RENAMO, however, limited access to
areas under its control and in September announced that it
would not permit political parties to campaign in its areas.
Under legislation approved in October 1992, a legally
recognized political party must demonstrate that it has no
racial, ethnic, or religious exclusiveness and secure at least
2,000 signatures of support. By the end of 1993, 10 parties,
including FRELIMO, were registered. In September the
registration application of one party, the Federal Party of
Mozambique-Democratic Federalist (PAFEMO-DP), was denied by the
Ministry of Justice because the use of the term "federalist" in
its party name was deemed contradictory to the unitarist
definition of the Mozambican State as set forth in the
Constitution. Under the Rome Accord, RENAMO received political
party status without having to meet registration requirements
in advance.
No groups were known to be have been denied permission to hold
public marches in 1993.
c. Freedom of Religion
The Constitution mandates strict separation of church and state
and provides for the freedom to "practice or not practice a
religion." The Government does not require religious
organizations or missionaries to register, and foreign
missionaries are readily granted visas. The Constitution gives
religious institutions the right to own property and to operate
schools. Relations between the Government and religious
organizations, tense in the early years after independence,
began to improve by 1992 and improved further in 1993.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign
Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
The Constitution provides for freedom of travel within the
country and abroad. The Government no longer requires citizens
to obtain permits from local authorities in order to travel
within the country.
The civil war and the 1992 drought caused massive internal
migrations in search of food, water, and safety. With the end
of the civil war and the return of the rains, 3.6 million
internally displaced people were free to return home, as were
the almost 2 million refugees who had sought safety in
neighboring countries. Under the auspices of United Nations
High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International
Organization of Migration, the displaced and refugee
populations began to return. Although numbers were difficult
to gauge, it was estimated that by the end of 1993 over 450,000
refugees had returned to Mozambique. Involuntary repatriation
from South Africa continued well into 1993. An agreement
between the UNHCR and South Africa was concluded in September
to allow UNHCR access to Mozambicans who had fled into South
Africa. In October South Africa, Mozambique, and the UNHCR
signed a tripartite agreement governing the return of the
Mozambican refugees from South Africa.
Reports from credible sources, including international
organizations, indicated that in 1993 RENAMO prevented the free
movement of people and goods throughout its regions. RENAMO
officials were requiring travel documents, "Guias da Marcha",
to allow people to enter areas under its control or to move
within those zones. In June RENAMO detained a Member of
Parliament, Aurelio Fernando Manhica, and his party of 18 in
the Salamanga region of Maputo Province. RENAMO claimed that
the party had been hunting in RENAMO territory without
permission. Despite the intervention of the U.N. peacekeeping
force, RENAMO held the detainees for almost 3 weeks.
In July RENAMO detained 17 timber workers and confiscated 2
tractors in Sofala Province because they were doing forestry
work in a RENAMO area without its permission. In August RENAMO
refused to allow road repairs in areas under its control. Both
cases were symptomatic of the extremely contentious issue of
administrative control in disputed areas.
Mozambique hosted few refugees from other countries. At the
end of 1993, there were 80 refugees from other countries under
the protection of the UNHCR and another 250 asylum seekers
awaiting determination of their status. There were no reported
cases in which refugees were forced to return to countries
where they might have a well-founded fear of persecution.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens
to Change Their Government
In 1993 citizens could not change their government by
democratic means. Though the 1990 Constitution officially
ended FRELIMO's status as the sole legal political party and
permitted the creation of other parties, the President, the
FRELIMO Political Commission, and the Council of Ministers
continued to control policymaking and implementation and were
set to remain in office pending future elections, scheduled for
October 1994.
The Rome Accord established an election timetable and an
independent monitoring system to ensure their fairness.
Multiparty elections decreed by the Constitution were to be
held within a year of the October 4, 1992 signing of the
Accord. However, because of delays in the implementation of
the peace process, all parties agreed to postpone elections
until October 1994. Balloting is to be secret, and an
electoral commission made up of members of FRELIMO, RENAMO, and
the political parties is to organize and direct the election
process. The Accord specified that the Government, in
consultation with RENAMO and other opposition parties, should
enact an election law. A multiparty conference on the draft
law ended after prolonged debate failed to produce results.
However, the Government continued to consult with RENAMO and
the opposition parties in bilateral meetings to produce a final
document which was submitted to the National Assembly and
ratified on December 9. The peace agreement allows for
international election observers to be supervised by the United
Nations.
Under the Rome Accord, RENAMO is to be an equal partner in
supervising and monitoring the electoral process, the
cease-fire, and demobilization of the armed forces. The
agreement accorded RENAMO the right to participate in the civil
administration of areas it nominally controlled at the time of
the agreement. A summit meeting in Maputo in August between
President Chissano and RENAMO's President Dhlakama produced
agreement that RENAMO was to appoint advisors to the provincial
governors. A few days later RENAMO partially pulled back from
the agreement and declared that the Government's Constitution
would not be effective in areas under its control, nor would
RENAMO permit political parties to campaign in its zones.
There were no women ministers in the Government at year's end.
There was one vice minister (of foreign affairs). A few women
are active in the leadership of nongovernmental organizations.
While there are no legal restrictions hindering women's
involvement in government, cultural factors have inhibited
their political advancement.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
of Human Rights
There are no legal obstacles to the formation of local human
rights groups. The Mozambican League for Human Rights became
active in late 1993, holding several public meetings in Maputo
and developing plans for education and monitoring programs to
be started in 1994.
Human rights organizations with more defined constituencies and
goals have been effective. Two groups, the Association of
Women, Law, and Development (MULEIDE) and the Association of
Mozambican Disabled (ADEMO), were established chiefly to
address the legal rights of the groups they represent (see
Section 5.). Another group, the Movement for Peace in
Mozambique, announced its formation in 1993. It aimed to
involve all sectors of Mozambican society to safeguard the
peace process.
The Government remained receptive to international human rights
monitoring groups and is responsive to inquiries on human
rights issues. In 1992 the New York-based Africa Watch was
allowed to visit and interview prisoners, and it publicly
praised the Government for its cooperation. The only access by
an international human rights monitoring group to RENAMO areas
during 1993 was a trip by the Africa Watch rapporteur early in
the year. It should be noted, however, that his visit was
primarily concerned with investigating the mine-clearing issue,
not the human rights situation.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
Disability, Language, or Social Status
The Constitution prohibits discrimination based on race, sex,
religion, or disability.
Women
The Constitution forbids discrimination on the basis of sex and
mandates equal rights and responsibilities for women. In
practice, however, women continue to be underrepresented in the
professions and in educational institutions at all levels.
Over 80 percent of Mozambican women are peasant farmers, and
most have had little education or access to good health care.
Mozambique has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in
the world.
Although the Constitution upholds the equality of women in
society and before the law, practical implementation often
falls short of this ideal. Old civil and commercial legal
codes that predate independence and still exist deny women full
financial rights once they marry. The Justice Ministry, in
collaboration with MULEIDE (see Section 4), was tasked with
identifying these outdated laws which contradict rights granted
women by the 1990 Constitution. MULEIDE aims to promote and
defend the legal rights of women, particularly as they pertain
to improving social conditions and ensuring participation in
the development process.
According to medical and other sources, violence against women,
especially wife beating, is fairly widespread in Mozambique,
especially in rural areas. The police do not normally
intervene in domestic disputes, and cases are rarely brought
before the courts. The Government has not addressed the issue
specifically. A local women's group indicates that nondomestic
violence against women also has increased and that there has
been a rise in the number of rape cases in urban areas. Both
trends are concomitant with the overall rise in the national
crime rate.
Children
Children's rights and welfare have not been a priority of the
Government. For its part, RENAMO in 1993 continued to utilize
children taken from their homes during the war as soldiers and
porters. While RENAMO has not agreed to a full-scale program
aimed at resolving this problem, it cooperates on a
case-by-case basis with efforts to reunify these children with
their families.
Female genital mutilation is practiced in Mozambique, most
frequently in the Muslim northern part of the country.
National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities
There was no systematic persecution or discrimination on the
basis of race, but no whites and few mixed-race Mozambican and
Asians serve in the military. Moreover, the FRELIMO Government
includes at all levels a disproportionate number of
southerners, mostly from the Shangaan ethnic group. The
Government also includes white, Asian, and mixed-race
Mozambicans.
The leadership of RENAMO is predominately from the
Shona-speaking ethnic groups concentrated in the center of the
country. There is no indication that the conflict between the
Government and RENAMO was primarily motivated by ethnicity,
although ethnic and regional factors may have played some role,
and tribal factors may explain some of the violence during the
conflict. Historical accident appears to be responsible for
the ethnic composition of the RENAMO leadership; the Shona was
the group culturally and geographically most accessible to the
Southern Rhodesian intelligence organization, which established
the forerunner to RENAMO in the late 1970's. Since that time,
RENAMO recruited from all ethnic groups and never significantly
emphasized ethnic issues in its communiques or negotiating
positions. It has, however, criticized FRELIMO for being
dominated by southerners.
People with Disabilities
Although the Constitution expressly states that "disabled
citizens shall enjoy fully the rights enshrined in the
Constitution," reality often falls short of this ideal. In
1991 ADEMO (see Section 4) was created to address the social
and economic needs of the disabled. ADEMO provides training,
raises public awareness of the need fully to integrate the
disabled into society, and lobbies the Ministry of Labor to
initiate legislation to support the working rights of the
disabled. The Government has not legislated or otherwise
mandated access for the disabled to public buildings. No
special access facilities exist.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
The Constitution specifies that all workers are free to join or
refrain from joining a trade union. A labor law passed in
December 1991 further protects workers' rights to organize and
to engage in union activity at their place of employment. The
legislation gave existing unions--those created as appendages
of the FRELIMO-dominated Organization of Mozambican Workers
(OTM)--the right to register independently. During 1993 the
three unions that had broken away from the OTM announced their
intention either to reform OTM from within or, failing that, to
form their own association. Their activities resulted in OTM's
reexamination of its own constitution, structure, and policies
in representing workers. Late in the year, in the face of
threats by the independent unions to call a general strike, the
Government agreed to negotiate with these unions on the minimum
wage and other issues.
The Constitution explicitly provides for the right to strike,
with the exception of government employees, police, military
personnel, and employees of other essential services (which
include sanitation, firefighting, air traffic control, health
care, water, electricity, fuel, post office, and
telecommunications). Nevertheless, strikes by soldiers to
protest the Government's failure to pay back wages continued in
1993. Wildcat strikes continued to occur elsewhere, mostly due
to the failure of pay rates to keep pace with inflation and
employers' failure to provide promised benefits. Maputo postal
workers went on strike for these reasons in August, returning
on September 1 after some of their demands were met. In
September workers at a marble factory in Cabo Delgado Province
successfully negotiated a 50-percent pay raise and better
working conditions after a 3-day strike.
The 1991 labor law forbids retribution against strikers, the
hiring of substitute workers, or lockouts by employers. There
were no known instances during 1993 in which employer
retribution against striking workers was an issue.
Most labor disputes continued to be arbitrated through ad hoc
workers' committees, formally recognized by the Government.
The development of the newly independent labor unions was
hindered by a lack of resources. However, their actions
influenced the OTM which called for a national labor congress
and began to address areas of dispute between the OTM and the
independent unions.
In August the OTM was highly critical of a government-announced
minimum pay raise, complaining that it was insufficient to meet
worker needs, and insisted that the OTM should have been
consulted prior to the announcement.
The Constitution and labor legislation guarantee unions the
right to join and participate in international bodies. The OTM
is a member of the Organization of African Trade Union Unity
and the Southern African Trade Union Coordinating Council.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively.
The labor law protects workers' rights to organize and engage
in collective bargaining. It expressly prohibits
discrimination against organized labor, although antiunion
discrimination has not been an issue since until recently
unions were government-controlled organizations. In late 1991,
the Government decreed that it would no longer set all salary
levels. Negotiating wage increases was left in the hands of
existing unions.
During 1993, workers continued to bargain with employers
through legally recognized ad hoc committees. The law requires
government arbitration if labor and management fail to reach
agreement. The majority of labor disputes dealt with
management's failure to meet salary and other contractual
obligations.
There are no export processing zones in Mozambique.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor.
Forced or compulsory labor is prohibited by law, and there have
been no reports of such labor practices by the Government.
There were cridible reports in 1993 that RENAMO continued to
hold and mistreat children and civilians, kidnaped prior to the
1992 Peace Accord, who were used for forced labor (see Section
1.c.).
d. Minimum Age For Employment of Children
Child labor is regulated by the Ministry of Labor. In the wage
economy, the minimum working age is 16. Because of high adult
unemployment, few children are in regular wage positions.
However, children commonly work on family farms or in the urban
informal sector, where they perform such tasks as guarding
cars, collecting scrap metal, and vending.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
The Government sets minimum wage rates administratively. The
minimum wage at year's end was approximately $13.75 (70,600
meticais) per month. The Ministry of Labor is responsible for
enforcing the minimum rates in the private sector, the Ministry
of Finance in the public sector. Violations of minimum wage
rates are usually investigated only after workers register a
complaint. It is customary for workers to receive benefits
such as transportation and food. The minimum wage is not
adequate to sustain an average urban worker's family. Workers
must turn to second jobs, if available, as well as work garden
plots, to survive. An estimated 80 percent of the work force
is engaged in subsistence agriculture and is not covered by
minimum wage legislation.
The standard legal workweek is 44 hours, with a 24-hour rest
period stipulated. In the small modern sector, the Government
has enacted health and environmental laws to protect workers.
On occasion, the Government has closed firms for noncompliance
with these laws, but enforcement by the Ministry of Labor has
been irregular, particularly in the poor economic conditions of
recent years.
[end of document]
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