MaputocTypeface:> Two days after the announcement of the election result in Mozambique, the situation in the south-eastern African country is escalating.
At least 56 people have died and 380 more have been injured in protests since Monday, the civil society organization Plataforme Decide said on Wednesday.
The capital Maputo, as well as the cities of Beira and Nampula, are particularly affected, it said.
Mozambique’s interior minister had spoken of 21 dead and 25 injured on Tuesday evening.
The unrest began after the Constitutional Council confirmed on Monday that Daniel Chapo, the candidate of the Mozambique Liberation Front (FRELIMO) party, which has been in power for 49 years, won the presidency with 65% of the vote.
Opposition leader Venâncio Mondlane, who reportedly received 24% of the votes, rejected the result as manipulated. He announced in a speech via Facebook that he would declare himself president on January 15. He has been abroad since the unrest began after the election in October.
Chaos in the capital Maputo In Maputo and other cities, shops were looted, vehicles and buildings, including police stations and FRELIMO party headquarters, were set on fire. (DPA)