Mozambican Interior Minister Pascoal Ronda expressed concern in Parliament this Wednesday about the temporary release of defendants allegedly involved in kidnapping crimes and called for reflection on the handling of this type of crime in the country.
“We are concerned about the fact that often some detainees are subject to a change in the degree of coercion, that is, they are released on temporary release on bail or under the conditions of identification and residence,” said Rhonda, speaking at the Assembly of the Republic in response to accusations from the Mozambican National Resistance (Renamo ), the main opposition party, for the government’s “powerlessness” in combating kidnappings and kidnappings.
The minister advocated “new thinking involving all actors, namely the legislature, the executive and the judiciary, to address the problem in a more adequate, appropriate and effective manner.”
The government, he said, has stepped up preventive and combative actions, “which has led to a reduction in the number of criminal cases of this kind and an increase in the number of criminals detained.”
In parallel with domestic efforts to combat organized crime, cooperation with countries in the region through the exchange of information and joint and simultaneous operations is a priority, he continued.
Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi today acknowledged the need to strengthen the competence of the Mozambican police and that citizens should be able to carry out their activities in “total security” without fear of kidnapping or kidnapping.
“We want citizens to be able to carry out their productive activities in a completely safe environment, and investors to feel safe in launching their entrepreneurial initiative without fear of the risk of robbery, kidnapping, kidnapping or loss of their property,” Nyusi said after presiding over the opening of the coordination Council of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
The city of Maputo has been experiencing a new wave of kidnappings for several weeks, especially of businessmen: last month, two Portuguese of Mozambican origin were targeted, and agents linked to the police investigation were also suspected of being involved in this type of crime.
The Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MNE) confirmed to Lusa that the Consulate General of Maputo is monitoring the attempted kidnapping of a Portuguese-Mozambican national that occurred on Monday, the second case 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.
A Portuguese-Mozambican businessman was wounded by unknown assailants who tried to kidnap him on Monday in the center of Maputo. The crime was prevented thanks to the intervention of the population, a spokesman for the capital’s police said. Mozambique Leonel Muchina.
In another case, a group of three armed men kidnapped a 26-year-old girl of Portuguese and Mozambican origin on the morning of November 1 as she left her home in Maputo, the same official told Lusa.
This situation is “being monitored through diplomatic and consular posts in Maputo, which are in contact with the family,” a Foreign Ministry source previously told Lusa.
However, the young Portuguese-Mozambican woman will remain in captivity until this Wednesday.
Last week, six people were arrested for their suspected involvement in the attempted kidnapping of Mozambican businessman Junid Lalji on November 8, as previously reported by the National Criminal Investigation Service (Sernik).
On the 17th of this month, a Mozambican businessman associated with the automotive sector was kidnapped by unknown assailants in the city of Maputo.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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