Both men were wreathed in smiles and the end of the meeting, which lasted for two and a half hours, and Dhlakama told reporters repeatedly that he was “very satisfied” with the discussions.
One immediate consequence of the meeting will be the end of the Renamo parliamentary boycott. None of the 89 Renamo deputies elected in the general elections of 15 October attended the opening session of the Assembly on 12 January, and none of the 294 Renamo members elected to the ten provincial assemblies showed up either. This meant that in four of the Assemblies (in Sofala, Zambezia, Tete and Nampula) there was no quorum (50 per cent plus one of the members) to elect the chairperson.
But after his meeting with Nyusi, Dhlakama announced “the deputies will take their seats soon”. He did not give a specific date, but the Assembly is meeting again, in an extraordinary sitting, next Thursday. Any deputies who fail to take their seats by then risk losing them under the terms of the Assembly’s standing orders.
“This is the first meeting we have held”, Dhlakama said, “We discussed many things, pending issues, matters that are being dealt with in the Joaquim Chissano Conference Centre, and new matters”.
The mention of the Conference Centre refers to the long running dialogue between the government and Renamo, normally held there once a week. The dialogue is currently deadlocked over the integration of members of the Renamo militia into the armed forces (FADM) and the police. Renamo is still demanding that it should have the right to appoint 50 per cent of all senior military and police positions, a demand which the government has repeatedly rejected.
“In this meeting a lot was discussed”, Dhlakama said, “including agreements signed with the previous President (Armando Guebuza) that were not implemented”. Dhlakama could only have been referring to the agreement on the cessation of military hostilities, which he signed with Guebuza on 5 September. He did not state which clauses of the agreement he believed had not been implemented.
Dhlakama said his call for a separatist “Republic of Central and Northern Mozambique”, or “autonomous regions” (his terminology has not been consistent) was one of the matters discussed. “It was raised here, and I was listened to”, he said.
He declined to go into further details, on the grounds that both he and Nyusi needed to consult with members of their respective parties before the next meeting. He said that the second meeting would be held within a few days “to go into matters in more depth”.
“This meeting was held for us to reach solutions”, Dhlakama added. He was confident that “we will find solutions as Mozambicans, as brothers”.
Nyusi did not speak to the press after the meeting.
Post published in: Africa News