Governance
Human Rights
The British High Commission works closely with other European Union missions in Maputo to implement the EU Human Rights Defenders strategy.
We have also supported the work of civil society organisations to promote and protect child rights. In 2008 we helped Rede de Criança and the Islamic Council of Mozambique (CISLAMO) establish a child protection network in Nampula province. The two organisations introduced religious, community and political leaders to Mozambican legislation on child rights issues and encouraged them to pass on their knowledge to the communities they work with and to start monitoring how well the legislation is implemented. This work is especially important in the run-up to the World Cup in neighbouring South Africa in 2010 as there are fears that child trafficking will increase. Our Vice-Consul opened one of the workshops in Nampula with this speech.
People with disabilities are a particularly vulnerable group in Mozambique. The Government of Mozambique has not yet ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It does have an ambitious National Action Plan but has not yet implemented it in full. On 3 December 2008, our Deputy High Commissioner celebrated International Disabilities Day with a group of disabled people and made this speech.
Every member state of the United Nations is obliged to report on its implementation of the UN human rights conventions to which it is a signatory (known as treaty body reporting). The United Kingdom’s performance in reporting on these conventions can be found here.
Mozambique’s performance can be found here.
In November 2008 we funded a workshop given by the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights (OHCHR) workshop in Maputo where Mozambican government officials were trained in how to report on implementation. The High Commissioner gave a speech at the opening of the workshop. In September 2009, the Mozambican government will report to the UN’s Committee on the Rights of the Child in Geneva.
Illegal killings and torture are two issues that are of great concern to the British government. In 2008, Amnesty International released a report on illegal killings in Mozambique. Need language from John’s letter... We have supported the Liga dos Direitos Humanos to monitor the conditions of prisons in Manica, Tete and Niassa provinces and in November 2007 we funded a training workshop for prison directors on human rights in prisons based on this manual. Mozambique has not yet signed the UN’s Optional Protocol of the Convention against Torture (OPCAT)
Governance and democracy
Municipal elections were held in Mozambique in November 2008. British High Commission staff were part of the International Observer Mission and observed the elections in Beira, Nacala (first and second round), Angoche, Maputo and Matola. You can see some photos of the voting here. The International Observer Mission’s report is generally positive but identifies some areas where the electoral process can be improved. With colleagues from the European Union and other diplomatic missions in Maputo, we will encourage the Mozambican government, political parties and electoral institutions to act on these recommendations. Presidential, parliamentary and provincial elections are due to take place in 2009.
Since November 2007 we have supported a consortium of NGOs and religious organisations, co-ordinated by CEDE (Centro de Estudos de Democracia e Desenvolvimento), who are involved in peace-building in areas where there is a high degree of political tension caused by elections such as Montepuez and Moçimboa da Praia.
The media always have a vital role to play in elections. We supported a workshop run by MISA in September 2008 where Mozambican media organisations agreed a Code of Conduct for elections. DFID Mozambique provided support to two other important initiatives – the political process bulletin produced by AWEPA/CIP and the Observatorio Eleitoral’s observation and parallel vote count.
Zimbabwe
As an influential country in SADC (the Southern African Development Community), Mozambique has an important role to play in promoting good governance, stability and a respect for human rights in Zimbabwe. Since July 2008, Mozambique’s role has increased as it has been the Deputy Chair of SADC’s Organ on Politics, Defence and Security. From July 2009, Mozambique will chair the SADC Organ. We have a regular dialogue with the Mozambican government about Zimbabwe.
In 2008 we also supported three workshops held by CEMO (the Centro de Estudos Mocambicanos e Internacionais ) where the issue of Zimbabwe was discussed by a range of Mozambican academics, journalists and policy-makers.
