(MISA/IFEX) – “A court in the northern Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado has found a local police commander guilty of illegally detaining reporter Fernando Quinova in December 1998, and has sentenced the commander to six months imprisonment, reports the Mozambican News Agency, AIM.” **Updates IFEX alerts of 11 May, 12 April, 10 March, 9 March, […]
(MISA/IFEX) – “A court in the northern
Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado has found a local police commander
guilty of illegally detaining reporter Fernando Quinova in December 1998,
and has sentenced the commander to six months imprisonment, reports the
Mozambican News Agency, AIM.”
**Updates IFEX alerts of 11 May, 12 April, 10 March, 9 March, 8 March, 5
March, 3 February and 28 January 1999**
At the trial in the Cabo Delgado provincial court, sitting in Pemba, the
police commander, Severino Charles, admitted to the court that the detention
of Quinova was illegal. He said he was “under pressure” from other policemen
who were indignant at Quinova’s story about the death in detention of an
alleged thief.
AIM reports that Charles will not have to spend any time in prison, because
his jail sentence can be converted into a fine at the rate of 3,000 meticais
(approx. US $.25) a day. This is a total fine of 546,000 meticais (approx.
US $44).
In addition, Charles must pay 400,000 meticais (approx. US $33) in legal
costs, and was ordered to pay three million meticais (approx. US $240
dollars) in compensation to Quinova.
In handing the sentence on 31 May 1999, the judge said he had taken into
account
extenuating circumstances, such as Charles’ previously unblemished record,
and the fact that he had confessed to the crime. Charles also admitted the
possibility that one policeman had indeed contributed to the death in
detention of the alleged suspect. On the provincial attorney’s instructions,
this man (whose name was not released) has been charged with homicide, and
is awaiting trial.
Background Information
Quinova, who works for the publicly-owned Mass Communication Centre (ICS) in
the Cabo Delgado district of Chiure, was arrested around the middle of
December 1998 shortly after Radio Mozambique ran his story about the death
of the alleged thief in police custody. He was held in the Chiure police
cells without charge for twenty-three days but managed to escape and walked
through the bush for two weeks until he reached the provincial capital,
Pemba.
He and the local ICS delegate, Luisa Lourenco, then complained to the
provincial police command, who admitted that the Chiure police had behaved
illegally and promised an inquiry. Despite this, Quinova was re-arrested on
15 February when he returned to Chiure. He was then charged with slandering
the police, and “leaking information”. However, neither of the charges
against Quinova existed in the Mozambican legal order.
Quinova was released from detention on 6 March.
