European Union observers flag irregularities and 'alteration of results' in Mozambique election

JOHANNESBURG — European Union election observers have flagged irregularities in Mozambique's election as the country awaits the announcement of official results this week amid protests by opposition supporters and the recent killing of two prominent opposition figures.

The EU observer mission said Tuesday that some of its 179 election observers deployed to the country had been prevented from observing tabulation processes in some districts, provinces and at national level.

The mission also noted ''unjustified alteration'' of election results at some polling stations.

"The EU EOM (election observer mission) has continued to observe the electoral process, although EU observers were prevented to observe tabulation processes in some districts and provinces, as well as at the national level.

''To date, the EU EOM has noted irregularities during counting and unjustified alteration of election results at polling station and district level,'' chief observer Laura Ballarín said in a statement on Tuesday.

Ballarin called on electoral bodies in the country to conduct the tabulation process in a transparent way to ensure the credibility of the election results.

''The publication of disaggregated results by polling stations is not only a matter of good practice, but also a strong safeguard for the integrity of results," Ballarin said.

Tensions around the country's election escalated after the killing of two prominent opposition figures last Friday, followed by protests by opposition supporters on Monday, which were quelled by police firing tear gas at protesters.

Elvino Dias, a lawyer and adviser to opposition presidential candidate Venancio Mondlane, was killed when gunmen riddled his car with bullets in the capital, Maputo.

Paulo Guambe, the spokesperson for the PODEMOS opposition party that is backing Mondlane, was also in the car and was killed.

Mondlane this week called for nationwide protests, alleging that the governing Frelimo party was rigging the election and his supporters faced off with security forces, raising concerns about further election violence once official results have been released.

The U.S State Department on Monday condemned the killing of both men and called for a thorough investigation, while urging those aggrieved by election results to file their complaints through official channels.

"We urge all state institutions, political leaders, citizens and stakeholders to resolve electoral disputes peacefully and lawfully, rejecting violence and inflammatory rhetoric.

''We also call on all Mozambicans to turn to peaceful means of filing electoral grievances and reject violence and violent rhetoric,'' it said.

The election results are expected to be announced this week before being validated by the country's Constitutional Council, which will validate them after handling all the disputes raised by political parties.

The governing Frelimo party's candidate, Daniel Chapo, is expected to succeed President Filipe Nyusi as the party leads the polls so far and is expected to extend its 49-year rule.

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This story has been corrected to show that the first name of the candidate in the last paragraph is Daniel, not David.