Calm returns to Mozambican capital after deadly riot

Calm returned to the Mozambican capital Maputo on Friday with business operations renewed following a violent protest against price hikes, which left seven people dead and 288 injured. The riot has caused economic losses of more than 3.3 million U. S. dollars, the government said.

Despite threats of a third-day riot, Maputo witnessed no signs of disturbance in the morning. Public transport is operating, and some offices are functioning in the capital and Matola, the city adjoining Maputo.

On Thursday night, there were still barricades of rubble and burning tyres in some outlying neighborhoods.

In the neighborhood of Hulene, rioters, some of whom clearly drunk, declared that disturbances would continue on Friday, and even Monday.

The protesters demand an immediate reduction of prices, especially those of bread, one of the Southern African country's staple foodstuffs. They also want the government to subsidize other basic foodstuffs.

The government has ruled out any further blanket subsidies, saying it is already doing so for fuel.

On Friday morning, citizens in Maputo formed long queues outside bread shops, some complaining that the price had soared to 10 meticals (26 U. S. cents) a loaf from the previous 6.5 meticals (17 cents).

Several of the recent price rises are beyond the government's control, according to the cabinet.

This is due to the strength of the South African currency, the rand, which has dictated a rise in prices denominated in the Mozambican currency, the metical, for all goods imported from neighboring South Africa.

Mozambican Trade and Industry Minister Antonio Fernando told state radio on Friday that the rise in the price of bread is the inevitable result of the relative shortage of wheat on the word market.

Among the factors pushing up the price of wheat were the catastrophic fires in Russia, which forced the Russian government to impose a ban on wheat exports.

Although there were no further disturbances, life in Maputo was far from normal on Friday morning.

Schools remained shut, although some banks and shops reopened.

The publicly-owned bus company, TPM, resumed operations on some of its routes, but there were very few of the private minibuses, known colloquially as "chapas", which provide much of the city's passenger transport.

The riots also led to the shutdown of the southern Mozambican rail network.

The turmoil began on Wednesday, when there were not only reports of casualties, but a looting of wagons containing maize and cement at a station in the city of Matola. The rail and port company CFM announced the suspension of all passenger and cargo trains in and out of Maputo.

The Mozambique News Agency(AIM) said Friday the suspension will remain in force until the CFM brigades have checked all the rail infrastructure in Maputo and Matola to ensure that it is safe.

The violent protest came in the culmination of days of strikes and demonstrations in the Portuguese-speaking country.

According to a decision made in early August, the Mozambican government began on Wednesday to lift the prices of bread by at least 30 percent. The price hikes for water and power, which took effect two weeks ago, reached more than 10 percent.

Source: Xinhua