Social media down in Mozambique amid opposition protest call
Tensions heightened in the southern African nation after the ruling Frelimo party which has held power for 49 years won an October 9 vote that opposition parties and electoral observers said was flawed.
Picture: 123rf/Sahul Hameed
MAPUTO - Social media access in Mozambique was restricted for a second time in a week Thursday, a global internet watchdog said, as the opposition called for nationwide strikes over a disputed presidential election.
Tensions heightened in the southern African nation after the ruling Frelimo party which has held power for 49 years won an October 9 vote that opposition parties and electoral observers said was flawed.
"We can confirm social media restrictions have been imposed in Mozambique," London-based internet watchdog NetBlocks said, adding it affected Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.
Last Friday a temporary internet blackout was introduced, a day after election results were announced by the electoral commission and protests were violently suppressed.
NetBlocks said at the time that there was a "near-total disruption to mobile internet connectivity in Mozambique".
On October 24, Frelimo's Daniel Chapo, 47, was declared winner of the presidential election with almost 71 percent of votes.
Opposition leader Venancio Mondlane, 50, of the small Podemos party, came second with 20 percent.
After the announcement, police cracked down on opposition supporters who took to the streets.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) said that at least 11 people were killed by security forces and more than 50 others were injured on October 24 and 25.
Police did not respond to HRW's report but previously said that 20 people were injured in post-electoral violence and that two people had died, without giving details.
A police investigation was opened into Mondlane following the unrest and his whereabouts remain unknown.
But the former radio host turned politician, who has widely used social media to communicate with his supporters, rallying them to protest, again called for a nationwide strike from October 31 to November 7.
CALL TO 'PARALYSE' COUNTRY
t was unclear if his call to "paralyse" the country from northern Cabo Delgado to Maputo, more than 2,400 kilometres (about 1,500 miles) away would be heeded, but the capital was a ghost city on Thursday.
Police sent out text messages on Wednesday evening and Thursday morning, including to an AFP reporter, instructing residents not to participate in acts of "sabotage".
The public prosecutor also issued a statement saying that while it was a "fundamental right" to protest, "anyone who... causes material or personal damage shall be punished."
Podemos party president Albino Forquilha said Thursday he would "do everything to ensure that there is no violence" during the planned week-long strike "but we need to fight for justice".
Election observers, including from the European Union, have noted serious flaws before, during and after the vote.
Mondlane and his Podemos party, which overshadowed the main opposition party Renamo in the election, on Sunday appealed to the Constitutional Court for a ballot recount.
The judicial body has since requested results sheets and minutes of polling stations in six provinces and Maputo from the electoral commission, giving them eight days to produce the documents.