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PRESS CONFERENCE
by Filip Johannes Madzodzere
The Situation in the Portuguese Prisons in
; MOZAMBIQUE
I.
I wish to congratulate the Tanganyika Government and the People
of Tanganyika for their victory over the colonialist and imperialist
domination.
And I thank the Tanganyika Government for their cooperation and
hospitality to allow the downtrodden Africans of Mozambique a chance
to mobilize and to unite politically under the name of the Mozambique
Liberation Front.  I believe their assistance shall continue till we
achieve a complete liberation of our motherland - MOZAMBIQUE.
II.  The Arrest
I believe that some of you heard about my arrest, and some
wondered how and why 1 was arrested.
When I v/as in Southern Rhodesia in I960, I joined a Mozambique
African burial society for the benefit of Africans of MOZAMBIQUE.
It was an organization to help Mozambicans who were working in
Southern Rhodesia.
In 1961 I was elected the Chairman of this organization; it
was called THE PORTUGUESE EaST aFRICa SOCIETY.  Under my leadership
the organization was running magnificently, carrying on its aims,
objectives, principles and programmes which were laid down in its
constitution approved by the Southern Rhodesian Government.
But on the  9th February 1962, when I was working in the office
of the defunct federal Prime Minister as Sir Roy Wellensky's personal
messenger, two white policemen came in plain clothes:  one was a
Portuguese PILE agent and the other was Mr. R. Evans of the Federal
Immigration Department v/ho is also acting as a PIDE agent in Salisbury.
They arrested me at 3:20 p.m. on Friday, the 9th February 1962.
After they had handcuffed me I asked to know the reason why they
arrested me.  They told me that they would tell me when they arrived
at the Police Station.
I was taken to Hatfield Police Station where I was detained for
twelve hours until the foliov/ing morning.  I took a plane at 7:00 a.m.
accompanied by R. Evans to Beira (MOZAMBIQUE).  A forgery plane
ticket was issued to me in the name of J. Copley. (Exhibit.)
When I arrived in Beira at 9:00a.m.;  at about 5:30 p.m. I took
a Portuguese Air Force plane to Lourenco Marques with other 34
(thirty-four) political prisoners who were arrested in Beira, among
them was Mr. ALFREDO ROBERTO de aIvIaRGO, a male nurse in Beira working in the Capitania do Porto de Beira (Health Service in the Beira
Harbour) who was also involved in my case.
When I arrived in Lourenco Marques, I v/as received by PIDE
Inspector named C. ROCHA and his assistant SOUSa BRITO and greeted
me just as people v/hen greeting a snake trying to enter in someone's
house.  For a couple of minutes in PIDE headquarters they started
to ask me about Mozambique political underground movements which
they said were affiliated to P. E. A. Society.
I told them that the Society had nothing to do with politics,
and I advised them to prove it through its constitution.