Mozambique: on the eve of the SADC summit, President Nyusi sets limits
Thousands of displaced people in Pemba on April 2, 2021, evacuated from the city of Palma after the jihadist attack on March 24.
Alfredo Zuniga AFP
Text by: RFI Follow
4 min
On the eve of the extraordinary summit of the regional organization SADC on the humanitarian and security crisis in Cabo Delgado, the President of Mozambique, Filipe Nyusi spoke on Wednesday April 7 in a speech broadcast on television.
Publicity
Read more
“
Those who will come from abroad will not be there to replace us, they will come in support.
It is not a question of any pride, but of sovereignty,
”declared the Mozambican president.
By his words, President Nyusi recalls his position since the beginning of the crisis: no foreign boots on our soil.
The only support accepted so far is that of helicopters from private South African security companies or the training of special forces by foreign partners, such as the United States or Portugal.
Since the first attacks in 2017, the Mozambican president has always sought to put the scale of the crisis in the province of Cabo Delgado into perspective.
Speaking of a situation under control.
In the opinion of several experts, for Maputo, recognizing its inability to face alone a local rebellion that has become an ultra violent group claiming to be international jihad is against nature.
But after the takeover of Mocímboa da Praia last August by the insurgents and the attack on Palma at the end of March, regional and international pressure became too strong, Filipe Nyusi had no choice but to accept this summit that he welcomes this Thursday.
His neighbors are waiting for an explanation.
He should, according to analysts, do everything to prevent outsiders from landing too closely on an opaque area, the scene of many trafficking.
See also Mozambique: jihadists took the city of Palma, in the northeast of the country
A local insurgency that has become a regional threat in less than four years
The jihadist attack on Palma, in the north of the country, on March 24, caught the eye of the whole world.
The port city is located near a gas mega-project piloted by Total, a project of international scope now on hold for an indefinite time.
Palma, a city with 75,000 inhabitants and 40,000 displaced persons, was ransacked, the number of victims is still uncertain, but the survivors tell of scenes of great violence.
Attack claimed by the Islamic State organization.
The number of displaced persons, warns the UNHCR, could reach one million in June if the violence continues.
An unprecedented situation for SADC, a regional organization under pressure.
Read also: Attack in Mozambique: the authorities claim to regain control
SADC facing an unprecedented crisis
SADC finds itself with the crisis in Cabo Delgado facing an unprecedented challenge for the organization more accustomed to managing crises of political legitimacy
For several days, the President of Botswana has been touring the capitals to prepare for this summit.
Through the history of the countries that make it up, SADC is very attached to the principle of sovereignty, seeking as much as possible not to interfere in the internal affairs of its member countries.
But the pressure has grown too strong, the African Union called for an urgent regional response.
NGOs have long advocated for SADC to intervene.
The Palma attack accelerated things.
Tanzania and South Africa concerned about instability in region
Two countries in particular are very concerned about the situation.
First, Tanzania, neighboring the province of Cabo Delgado.
Cooperation between late President John Magufuli and Filipe Nyussi was non-existent.
The challenge today will be to see what position the new Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan adopts.
Another neighbor very worried about a possible jihadist contamination: South Africa, which as a regional power must show its ability to stabilize the area.
The most optimistic observers are now hoping for a concrete announcement, with an assessment mission and an intervention force to secure citizens, allow residents to return home and investors to resume their activities.
If such a decision is made, it would take at least several months for it to materialize.
Newsletter
Receive all international news directly in your mailbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
google-play-badge_FR
Mozambique