On July 7, the former commander-general of the Mozambican police, Bernardino Rafael, whom the President dismissed in January 2025, appeared before the Office of the Attorney General (Procuradoria-Geral da República) for a hearing about the police’s involvement in the killing of about 400 people during the civil unrest that followed last year’s elections.
The attorney general had already announced the opening of 31 criminal proceedings against members of the Mozambican police implicated in the violent repression of those postelection protests.
The protests erupted in response to allegations of electoral fraud and were led by opposition candidate Venâncio Mondlane. They lasted for more than four months. Civil society organizations, including Plataforma Decide, estimate that approximately 400 demonstrators were shot dead and about 600 injured as a result of excessive police force. A previous Human Rights Watch report documented the killings of at least 10 prominent opposition party officials from October 2024 to March 2025.
Human Rights Watch has previously documented how the police used excessive force against protesters, including by indiscriminately firing tear gas and using rubber bullets and live ammunitions, sometimes in residential areas. In a case we documented in November 2024, a mother was preparing lunch for her 5-year-old son when her house was filled with teargas which the police were using to disperse the protesters.
The Attorney General’s Office has stated that the proceedings’ aim is to establish criminal responsibility of those responsible for unlawful abuses.
While the hearing has not yet resulted in formal charges or precautionary measures, the Mozambican government taking concrete steps to address police violence, launching multiple investigations, and hearing the testimony of senior figures is a step in the right direction for the national inclusive dialogue, which was established to discuss constitutional and political reforms following the postelection violence in October 2024. Although still in preliminary stages, these proceedings reinforce Mozambique’s stated commitment to justice and accountability for human rights violations.
To ensure that this process delivers, the government should ensure it remains independent and impartial, and that those responsible for serious violations are criminally charged. It should also embark on urgently needed security sector reforms and trainings that would bring it into better alignment with national and international standards regarding regulating peaceful protests.