The Massacre at Homoíne
on Saturday, 18 July 1987

Dossier MZ-0178

Decoration

Homoine is a small rural town about 35 kilometres due west of Inhambane, the provincial capital, and 480 km. north of Maputo. At the height of fighting between the Mozambican government and the Renamo rebel movement, early in the morning of Saturday 18 July 1987, a group of several hundred armed men attacked the town. In the words of an eye-witness:

I thought they were probably [government] soldiers from Homoine because they had uniforms and were very well equipped. But they were shooting every person and building in sight.

What followed was to become known as one of the worst atrocities committed by the rebels during the MNR-government conflict. The attackers killed more or less everybody they could find who had not fled or hidden themselves, and the official death toll eventually reached 424 people, including women, children, and the hospitalised.

Subsequently, some attempts were by Renamo to claim that the massacre was committed by government troops, but these remain largely unconvincing. This dossier presently consists of a small number of contemporary press reports – which are unanimous in attributing responsibility to the MNR – from the Mozambican, Zimbabwean and US press, but it will be expanded to include more material at a later date.

MHN Resources

◊ 22 July 1987
Bandidos armados cometem massacre em Homoíne; 380 pessoas no sábado assassinadas; doentes internados no hospital entre as vítimas. Diário de Moçambique [Beira], 22 July 1987. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 314 kb.

◊ 22 July 1987
Massacre reported in Mozambique: South African-backed rebels kill 380 villagers, state says. Bangor Daily News [Bangor, Maine], 22 July 1987, p.17. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 72 kb.

◊ 22 July 1987
MNR massacres 380: attack follows on airdrop to bandits from S. Africa. Herald [Harare], 22 July 1987. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 152 kb.

◊ 23 July 1987
África do Sul responsável pelo massacre de Homoíne. Diário de Moçambique [Beira], 23 July 1987. Includes extracts from the communiqué of the Frelimo Bureau Político. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 346 kb.

◊ 23 July 1987
MNR murderers. Herald [Harare], 23 July 1987. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 141 kb.

◊ 23 July 1987
Mozambique says massacre victims buried. Bangor Daily News [Bangor, Maine], 23 July 1987. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 104 kb.

◊ 23 July 1987
Survivors recount the horror of Homoine massacre. Herald [Harare], 23 July 1987. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 94 kb.

◊ 24 July 1987
Victims of MNR massacre buried. Herald [Harare], 24 July 1987. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 88 kb.

◊ 25 July 1987
Boers não têm coração: Primeiro-Ministro Machungo ao falar do massacre de Homoíne. Diário de Moçambique [Beira], 25 July 1987. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 106 kb.

◊ 28 July 1987
Film makers record Homoine. Herald [Harare], 28 July 1987. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 45 kb.

◊ 29 July 1987
Homoine deaths 388. Herald [Harare], 29 July 1987. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 557 kb.

◊ 29 July 1987
Vietnam slams MNR massacre. Herald [Harare], 29 July 1987. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 30 kb.

◊ 30 July 1987
Foreign eye-witnesses to horror: US citizen testifies to MNR terror. MIO News Review [London], no.110, 30 July 1987. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 159 kb.

◊ 8 August 1987
Maputo, SA agree to probe massacre. Herald [Harare], 8 August 1987. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 87 kb.

◊ 13 August 1987
Massacre toll. Herald [Harare], 13 August 1987. Reports that the official death toll is now 424. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 675 kb.

◊ September 1987
Homoine massacre: MNR must pay for the crime. Zimbabwe News [Harare], September 1987, p.22-24. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 427 kb.

◊ September 1987
Carlos Pinto Santos. Homoíne: o maior massacre da Renamo. Cadernos do Terceiro Mundo [Rio de Janeiro], no.101, September 1987, p.24. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 247 kb.

◊ March 1988
Lars Gronseth. Terrorism in Mozambique. New Era [Cape Town], March 1988, p.24-25. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 833 kb.

◊ 8 September 1993
Massacre de Homoíne: FUMO exige inquérito. Diário de Moçambique [Beira], 8 September 1993. Click here to view or download a PDF, size 524 kb.

 

Decoration