Hundreds of people fled Maputo prison amid election protests
More than 1,500 prisoners have escaped from a prison in Mozambique, taking advantage of ongoing political unrest sparked by disputed election results, police say.
Police Chief Bernardino Rafael said in a press conference that 33 people were killed and 15 injured in clashes with security forces.
He added that about 150 fugitives have been recaptured.
Protests broke out on Monday against Mozambique’s highest court confirming that the ruling Frelimo party, in power since 1975, won October’s presidential election.
Mr. Rafael said groups of anti-government protesters approached the prison in the capital Maputo on Wednesday. The prisoners took advantage of the unrest to tear down a wall and escape, he said.
Mozambique has been rocked by unrest since a controversial election in October. Official results showed the presidential candidate of the ruling Frelimo party, Daniel Chapo, winning.
New protests broke out on Monday, when the constitutional court ruled that Chapo had won the election, and adjusted his margin of victory downward.
Initial results in October had Daniel Chapo winning 71% of the vote compared to his main rival Venâncio Mondlane’s 20%. The court has now ruled that he won 65% compared to Mondlane’s 24%.
ONE BBC reporter found it Maputo resembled a ghost town on Christmas Eve, with most businesses closed and people staying home to avoid being caught up in the worst unrest in the city since Frelimo first took hold. took power in 1975.
Frelimo offices, police stations, banks and factories were looted, vandalized and burned across the country. Since Monday, at least 21 people have been killed in the unrest, the interior minister said.
Mondlane, who has since fled Mozambique, called on his supporters to protest against what he said was a fraudulent vote.
In a message on social media over the weekend, he said there could be a “new popular uprising” if the results were not overturned.
About 150 people have died in the three months of protests since the election.
