Luso-Mozambican rescued after 50 days in captivity

The Mozambican police announced this Thursday the rescue, during a police operation, of a 26-year-old Portuguese-Mozambican national who had been in captivity for 50 days.

According to a source at the National Criminal Investigation Service (Sernik), the operation “ended with the neutralization of two male individuals.”

The victim was abducted near his home in central Maputo on November 1 by three armed men.

“The situation is being monitored through diplomatic and consular posts in Maputo, who are in contact with the family,” a Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MNE) source previously told Lusa, with the young Portuguese-Mozambican woman remaining in captivity until Thursday. -fair.

The Portuguese MNE previously confirmed to Lusa that the Consulate General in Maputo was following up on the attempted kidnapping of another Portuguese and Mozambican national on November 27, the second such incident in a month.

“The Consulate General in Maputo is monitoring the situation regarding the attempted kidnapping of a Portuguese-Mozambican citizen. The Mozambican authorities have taken responsibility for the incident,” an official source told MNE in response to Lusa’s question.

This is a Portuguese-Mozambican businessman who was shot dead by unknown assailants who were trying to kidnap him in the center of Maputo, a crime that was prevented thanks to the intervention of the population.

Almost 400 people signed an online petition in the 24 hours before Wednesday, calling for the “unconditional” release of Mozambican and Portuguese-Mozambican citizens held captive in Mozambique and against kidnappings affecting the country.

“Kidnapping is a heinous crime that has devastated Mozambican society for several years. Mozambican society urgently needs to rise up against what is happening in the country,” says the online petition “Against Kidnappings in Mozambique”, which received 379 signatures in the first 24 hours.

“The signatories of this petition call for the unconditional release of Portuguese-Mozambicans and Mozambicans in captivity. To this end, the signatories of this petition call on the Mozambican authorities to make every effort to attempt their rescue, and also to the Portuguese authorities to provide the necessary and unconditional support, within the framework of the usual cooperation between the two states, in this process,” says the document addressed to the governments of the two countries.

For several weeks now, Maputo has been experiencing a new wave of kidnappings, especially of businessmen: two Portuguese of Mozambican origin have been targeted since November, and there are also suspicions that agents connected to the police investigation are involved in this type of crime.

There are no official figures on the number of people currently in captivity in Mozambique who have been kidnapped, but on November 17, another Mozambican businessman with ties to the automotive sector was kidnapped by unknown assailants, also in the city of Maputo.

“Don’t let these victims fall into oblivion,” the citizens of Portugal and Mozambique who signed the petition also urge.

Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi acknowledged in parliament on Wednesday that despite improvements in the fight against crime, concerns remain over kidnapping crimes that continue to plague the country.

“Despite these achievements, kidnapping cases continue to plague us, even with a decline of six cases from the 12 cases reported during the same period in 2022,” the head of state said in his routine annual State of the Nation address. , at the Assembly of the Republic in Maputo.

“And of these cases, four related to kidnappings were clarified, 31 people were arrested, the same ones who participated in previous kidnappings, and a director in the Republic of South Africa was arrested as part of judicial cooperation between the authorities of the two countries,” she added. Newsy.

The Confederation of Economic Associations (CTA), the country’s largest employers’ association, in early November advocated “harsher” prison sentences for kidnappers and no bail in the face of this new wave of cases. stop these crimes. .

Mozambican Prime Minister Adriano Maleian announced in parliament last May that agents who will work in a special unit to combat kidnappings affecting the country have already been selected.

According to the balance sheet presented by the head of government, 28 cases of kidnapping have been registered since 2021, of which “15 have been fully clarified.”