John
09-01-2010, 08:29 PM
Four people died and dozens were wounded on Wednesday when police opened fire on demonstrators protesting rising prices in and around the Mozambique capital Maputo, officials said.
One of the dead was a 12-year-old boy who was shot in the head. He was found with a school textbook resting beside him and empty bullet casings nearby, an AFP correspondent said.
"Four people died, 142 were arrested and 27 were wounded, including two police officers," police spokesman Pedro Cossa said.
"Police will continue to patrol the streets," he added.
He also denied that police had used live rounds, saying "our officers always use rubber bullets."
The country's main opposition party Renamo said six people had died in the protests and condemned the government's response.
"For a crime one would never be shot as happened with the six that are dead," party spokesman Fernando Mazanga told AFP.
"The government never allows protests. They always respond to protests with violence."
A witness said the dead boy had been walking toward demonstrators when police opened fire on the crowd and hit him.
"We all saw it, all of us participating in the strike. We want justice here," said 18-year-old Eunici Antonia Kiove.
Six Red Cross rescue teams working around the capital and the suburb of Matola said the demonstrators were killed during separate protests over rising fuel and food prices.
Maputo Central Hospital reported 42 patients were admitted after being wounded during the protests. One, a student, died from her injuries, the hospital said.
"We have had 42 cases at the hospital. Twenty-three were wounded by gunshots. Two are being operated on at the moment. Nineteen have wounds from physical attacks. One died," Antonio Assis da Costa, director of emergency services, told AFP.
Demonstrators chanted slogans against President Armando Guebuza, whose ruling Frelimo party won a 75-percent landslide in elections last year but who has faced mounting criticism over soaring prices in the impoverished southern African country.
"Guebuza only wants us for our votes, where is he now?" an angry protester shouted, as the crowd chanted "Down with Guebuza!"
Interior Minister Jose Pacheco called the demonstrators "outlaws and criminals" in an interview on state television.
The unrest broke out as thousands took to the streets in poor neighbourhoods in and around the city to protest against the rising prices of fuel, wheat, bread, water and electricity.
They burned tyres to block major roads to the airport and the city's largest suburb, Matola, as mini-bus taxi drivers went on strike and some schools closed.
State-owned Radio Mozambique reported three dead in the town of Benfica, about 15 minutes' drive from the capital.
The broadcaster said rioters had set alight cars outside a branch of the national energy company Electricidade de Mocambique. Looters were also ransacking businesses, the radio station said.
"We are monitoring the situation, we sent out police," Maputo police spokeswoman Silvia Mahumane told AFP without further comment.
Mozambique has seen prices climb in recent months as the value of its currency, the metical, slumped against the South African rand.
The exchange rate is currently five meticals to the rand, down from a rate of 3.5 this time last year, according to data from South Africa's Standard Bank.
The currency slide has taken a toll on import-dependent Mozambique.
Electricidade de Mocambique on Wednesday implemented a 13.4 percent rate increase, while the state water supplier has also raised prices in and around the capital, state newspaper Noticias said.
In 2008, six people were killed in protests against a public transport fare increase.
Source - Yahoo News.
One of the dead was a 12-year-old boy who was shot in the head. He was found with a school textbook resting beside him and empty bullet casings nearby, an AFP correspondent said.
"Four people died, 142 were arrested and 27 were wounded, including two police officers," police spokesman Pedro Cossa said.
"Police will continue to patrol the streets," he added.
He also denied that police had used live rounds, saying "our officers always use rubber bullets."
The country's main opposition party Renamo said six people had died in the protests and condemned the government's response.
"For a crime one would never be shot as happened with the six that are dead," party spokesman Fernando Mazanga told AFP.
"The government never allows protests. They always respond to protests with violence."
A witness said the dead boy had been walking toward demonstrators when police opened fire on the crowd and hit him.
"We all saw it, all of us participating in the strike. We want justice here," said 18-year-old Eunici Antonia Kiove.
Six Red Cross rescue teams working around the capital and the suburb of Matola said the demonstrators were killed during separate protests over rising fuel and food prices.
Maputo Central Hospital reported 42 patients were admitted after being wounded during the protests. One, a student, died from her injuries, the hospital said.
"We have had 42 cases at the hospital. Twenty-three were wounded by gunshots. Two are being operated on at the moment. Nineteen have wounds from physical attacks. One died," Antonio Assis da Costa, director of emergency services, told AFP.
Demonstrators chanted slogans against President Armando Guebuza, whose ruling Frelimo party won a 75-percent landslide in elections last year but who has faced mounting criticism over soaring prices in the impoverished southern African country.
"Guebuza only wants us for our votes, where is he now?" an angry protester shouted, as the crowd chanted "Down with Guebuza!"
Interior Minister Jose Pacheco called the demonstrators "outlaws and criminals" in an interview on state television.
The unrest broke out as thousands took to the streets in poor neighbourhoods in and around the city to protest against the rising prices of fuel, wheat, bread, water and electricity.
They burned tyres to block major roads to the airport and the city's largest suburb, Matola, as mini-bus taxi drivers went on strike and some schools closed.
State-owned Radio Mozambique reported three dead in the town of Benfica, about 15 minutes' drive from the capital.
The broadcaster said rioters had set alight cars outside a branch of the national energy company Electricidade de Mocambique. Looters were also ransacking businesses, the radio station said.
"We are monitoring the situation, we sent out police," Maputo police spokeswoman Silvia Mahumane told AFP without further comment.
Mozambique has seen prices climb in recent months as the value of its currency, the metical, slumped against the South African rand.
The exchange rate is currently five meticals to the rand, down from a rate of 3.5 this time last year, according to data from South Africa's Standard Bank.
The currency slide has taken a toll on import-dependent Mozambique.
Electricidade de Mocambique on Wednesday implemented a 13.4 percent rate increase, while the state water supplier has also raised prices in and around the capital, state newspaper Noticias said.
In 2008, six people were killed in protests against a public transport fare increase.
Source - Yahoo News.