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The Peace Process in Mozambique
1984-1992
Dossier MZ-0772
7. Slowdown to Deadlock and Stalemate;
September-October 1989
After the relatively high hopes of July, the progress made in September and October was deeply disappointing, but perhaps not entirely unexpected, given the gulf between the positions held by the government and the MNR, and the weak mandate of the group of religious leaders (all of whom were Christians). According to some leaked reports, the religiosos were irritated by the behaviour of the MNR representatives and by their intransigence. A settlement of any kind still seemed a long way off.
Posturing and jockeying for position continued. A Portuguese radio report, also carried by the conservative Johannesburg weekly O Século de Joanesburgo, repeated a propaganda claim by the MNR’s Lisbon representation that Cuban soldiers were arriving in Mozambique. President Chissano stated that power-sharing or altering the constitution were not on the agenda.
Above: A general view of the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, where the initial talks with the MNR were held in mid-1989.
It was becoming obvious that the religious leaders, although they had opened the door to talks, lacked the political mandate and the gravitas to carry the process any further, and for about a month and a half nothing much was happening. The presidents of Kenya and Zimbabwe then attempted to pick up the ball and run with it, with the two talking in Nairobi in late September, and discreetly holding a series of meetings with MNR and government representatives throughout October in an attempt to find a way forward. At the end of the month Chissano also announced what appeared to be a concession: former MNR members would be allowed to run in elections, although the mechanisms for this remained unclear.
Navigation for the «Peace Process» Pages
There will be an estimated 46 or 47 pages on the MHN website dedicated to the peace process, from 1984 up to November 1992. They are ordered chronologically. Click on the green button below to jump directly to the page covering the period that you are interested in. Note: at present only pages 1-12 are available, that is, up to January 1990. New pages will be posted regularly in the coming weeks.
MHN Resources
◊ September 1989
Mozambico: speranza di pace. Nigrizia [Verona] (September 1989), p.51. In Italian. Click here to download a PDF file, size 111 kb.
◊ September 1989
Religious leaders meet with the MNR. Mozambiquefile [Maputo] (September 1989). In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 286 kb. A summary of the events of August 1989.
◊ September 1989-31 October 1989
Karl Maier. A program for peace. Africa Report [New York] (September 1989-31 October 1989), p.55-58. In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 1.6 Mb. «Although Frelimo’s ideological turnaround grabbed headlines during the party’s fifth congress, a mandate to seek a negotiated solution to the war against Renamo was the meeting’s most significant outcome. With Presidents Mugabe and Moi acting as intermediaries, efforts are underway to find common ground with the rebels in order to end the long and brutal conflict.»
◊ 1 September 1989
Church leaders set for Nairobi talks with MNR. Southscan [London] (1 September 1989). In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 21 kb.
◊ 2 September 1989
Mozambique: fresh contact. Indian Ocean Newsletter [Paris] (2 September 1989). In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 30 kb.
◊ 2 September 1989
Mozambique: MNR reports arrival of Cuban troops. Manuel Frank of the MNR’s Lisbon office claims that Cuban troops are arriving in Maputo, according to a broadcast by Radiodifusão Portuguesa in Lisbon on 2 September 1989 reported in the Summary of World Broadcasts [London]. In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 19 kb.
◊ 2 September 1989
Opponents favourable to dialogue. Indian Ocean Newsletter [Paris] (2 September 1989). In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 40 kb. Reports that a newly-formed political organisation, UPOMO (the União Política Moçambicana), has requested a seat at the Nairobi talks.
◊ 4 September 1989
In brief. Africa Economic Digest [London] (4 September 1989). In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 18 kb.
◊ 4 September 1989
Renamo diz que Moçambique está a receber Cubanos. Século de Joanesburgo [Johannesburg] (4 September 1989). In Portuguese. Click here to download a PDF file, size 25 kb. Repeats the claim by Manuel Frank in Lisbon that 595 Cuban soldiers arrived in Maputo on 25 and 28 August and more will probably disembark on 9-10 September; this is cited as evidence that the government does not really want peace.
◊ 5 September 1989
Mozambique: Chissano rules out sharing power with the MNR. Speaking to a NAM summit in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, Chissano says that the talks in Nairobi do not cover possible power-sharing, according to a Radio Mozambique broadcast on 5 September 1989 reported by the Summary of World Broadcasts [London]. In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 16 kb.
◊ 8 September 1989
ANC secretary-general supports Mozambican government peace initiatives. Broadcast by Radio Mozambique on 8 September 1989, reported by Summary of World Broadcasts [London]. In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 23 kb.
◊ 8 September 1989
War hots up in midst of Nairobi talks with rebels. Southscan [London] vol.4 no.33 (8 September 1989), p.254. In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 54 kb.
As the talks continued, so did the war. Above: the partially-destroyed sede or offices of the Frelimo party in Pebane district, Zambézia Province, after an MNR raid. Social and political infrastructure was a favourite target during such attacks. Note also the semi-collapsed building in the background.
◊ 15 September 1989
Mozambique: Kenya peace talks. Africa Research Bulletin [Political, Social, and Cultural Series] [Exeter] vol.26 no.8 (15 September 1989). In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 81 kb. A summary of reports from various sources, with a map.
◊ 18 September 1989
Chissano diz que há um preço-limite para a paz. Século de Joanesburgo [Johannesburg] (18 September 1989). In Portuguese. Click here to download a PDF file, size 59 kb.
◊ 18 September 1989
Renamo pretende reconciliação. Século de Joanesburgo [Johannesburg] (18 September 1989). In Portuguese. Click here to download a PDF file, size 43 kb.
◊ 22 September 1989
Moi e Mugabe debatem guerra em Moçambique. Notícias [Maputo] (22 September 1989). In Portuguese. Click here to download a PDF file, size 142 kb.
◊ 23 September 1989
Mozambique: stalemate? Indian Ocean Newsletter [Paris] (23 September 1989). In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 57 kb. Reports that Archbishop dos Santos’s secretary (and the President’s cousin), Joaquim Mabuianga, has criticised Renamo in an interview published in Notícias; the author hypothesises that this may be an attempt to up the ante.
◊ 28 September 1989
Dossier on the peace process in Mozambique. MIO News Review [London] no.163-164 (28 September 1989), p.1-21. In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 1.5 Mb. Consists of a collection of AIM reports from the President’s news conference of 17 June up to his remarks at the parade celebrating the 25th anniversary of the launching of the independence struggle.
◊ October 1989
Church leaders in bid for peace in Mozambique. Seek [Kimberley] (October 1989). In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 76 kb.
◊ October 1989-30 November 1989
Mozambique: still no relief from the killings. EDICESA News [Harare] vol.2 no.6 (October 1989-30 November 1989), p.8-9. In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 181 kb. Reports that despite the opening of preliminary talks in Nairobi, Renamo attacks on unprotected village populations still continue.
◊ 7 October 1989
Mozambique: efforts in vain. Indian Ocean Newsletter [Paris] no.400 (7 October 1989). In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 55 kb. Reports that although secret meetings have continued, no progress is being made in the Nairobi talks; indeed, Archbishop dos Santos has allegedly described Dhlakama as behaving ‘like a child’.
◊ 14 October 1989
BA’s rejeitam proposta de paz, revela Presidente Joaquim Chissano. Diário de Moçambique [Beira] (14 October 1989). In Portuguese. Click here to download a PDF file, size 79 kb.
◊ 20 October 1989
Maputo sends official delegation to talk to Dhlakama. Southscan [London] (20 October 1989). In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 38 kb. An unspecified «official delegation» has reportedly been sent to Nairobi, presumably in response to the lack of progress in the talks between church leaders and the MNR.
◊ 23 October 1989
Chissano makes concession to MNR. Africa Economic Digest [London] (23 October 1989). In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 66 kb. The concession referred to was that former MNR fighters would be allowed to stand for parliament in the scheduled 1991 legislativas.
◊ 27 October 1989
Mozambique peace talks continue. Herald [Harare] (27 October 1989 ). In English. Click here to download a PDF file, size 42 kb. Neither the government nor the MNR organisation are prepared to consider face-to-face talks yet, although the last meeting between church leaders and the rebel leadership took place six weeks ago. In the interim, Kenyan and Zimbabwean mediators have been attempting to speed the process up.
◊ 30 October 1989
Processo de paz em Moçambique: Quénia e Zimbabwé prosseguem contactos. Século de Joanesburgo [Johannesburg] (30 October 1989). In Portuguese. Click here to download a PDF file, size 40 kb.
◊ 30 October 1989
Protestantes reivindicam início do diálogo com dirigentes da Renamo. Século de Joanesburgo [Johannesburg] (30 October 1989). In Portuguese. Click here to download a PDF file, size 459 kb. The Anglican Bishop Dinis Sengulane says that the Conselho Cristão Moçambicano (which does not include the Catholic Church), initiated contacts with the MNR as early as February 1988, with a view to talking about peace.