seem to be prepared to follow the
Mulatto-Assimilado political leadership retards the national liberation
struggle. They exclaim with anger that
this group cannot do them any good
for it has always been a collection of
Portuguese stooges who aim at retarding national progress towards total
freedom and independence.
Education
Discrimination in education is
worse than in all other spheres of life
in Mozambique.
Only Portuguese children can
acquire secondary and high school
education, with a small number of
Mulatto and Assimilado children
who must give an assurance before
they are admitted into schools that
they will act as Portuguese spies and
stooges after completing their studies.
Even as we write this, there is not a
single university graduate in Mozambique, with the exception of a few
Portuguese, Mulatto and Assimilado
children who have completed their
secondary school education.
Immediately after completing the
secondary or high school education,
these people are taken to Portugal
where they undergo a thorough
training as future Portuguese spies
and stooges in Mozambique.
Education for African children is
limited to Primary Catholic Mission
Schools where they are taught Portuguese language and catechism. In
1954 only 400,000 African children
were attending the mission schools.
Protestant missions produce better
results than the Catholic ones.
Assimilados and Mulattoes attend
their own private and separate
schools, and this arrangement again
is fraught with danger for the
ultimate aim is to bring about a
feeling of hostility and racial superiority and inferiority between the
African children on the one hand and
the Mulatto-Assimilado children on
the other. A Mulatto-Assimilado
pupil who has passed standard I is
far better than an African child who
has passed standard III. A Mulatto-
Assimilado child is not compelled
to do catechism at schools while
this rule is rigidly applied when it
comes to African children.
Most people have never understood the reason why our Party is
so solidly backed by all the oppressed
people of Mozambique.
The reason is simple. At the age
of 13 in 1952, I was already working
as a forced labourer. I worked with
about 700 senior forced labourers,
and as the only person who had
received little education, I used to
render them some assistance by
writing their letters and giving them
an idea of the colonial problems
confronting them.
As a result of this, I was thrashed
every single day and imprisoned on a
number of occasions. At one stage
I was sentenced to seven years
imprisonment, but the labourers
were able to raise a sum of £25 for
me which was paid to the goal guard
and I was released.
Two members of our Party's
National Executive have also worked
under the system of forced labour.
The Vice-President of our Party,
F.C. Mahluza, was at one time sold
to the South African Round Gold
Mines, while the Party's Publicity
Secretary J.R. Siguake was always
strictly policed by the Portuguese
authorities in Mozambique.
Immediately after the formation of
our Organisation, I received many
congratulatory messages from many
people thanking and admiring our
courage and determination for
having launched a Party under such
difficult conditions.
We got more help and messages of
solidarity from some of our old
friends who had seen our picture in
one newspaper. This resulted in
many people from Mozambique
itself giving tremendous support to
our Party.
From my own experience I have
realised that what the oppressed
people of Mozambique want is not
a highly educated leader but just a
determined and dedicated leader
armed with the principles of Pan-
African Nationalism, because the
political leadership of the Mulatto-
Assimilado group will never be
accepted by the people of Mozambique.
Nothing can shake us from the
conviction that the policy of Multi-
racialism would lead Mozambique
to a new form of colonialism, i.e.,
Neo-colonialism.
The dangers of neo-colonialism in
Mozambique became clear recently
when   a   Portuguese   Minister   of
so-called Overseas Provinces made
a declaration that all Africans in the
Portuguese colonies are citizens of
Portugal. This means that the same
stooges who have always been dominating the legislative Council will
still be regarded as the representatives of the oppressed people.
No Mozambican can be elected to
the Legislative Council if he is not a
Portuguese stooge. Like in all
colonial countries, all Mozambicans
who are backed by the majority of
people are declared traitors. Orders
of arrest are issued against them,
and if arrested they are sentenced to
long terms of imprisonment.
The National Democratic Union
of Mozambique rejects any 'type of
government or representation in the
Councils of State if such representatives were not democratically elected
by the majority of the people in the
country.
Our aim is immediate and unconditional national independence with
a government democratically elected
by the working class majority.
The National Democratic Union
of Mozambique draws tremendous
support from all Africans working
under forced labour conditions in
the country, i.e. mines, plantations,
farming industries, railways, manufacturing industry, and stevedoring
and dock workers.
We are determined to resort to
any measure which will result in the
overthrow of the Portuguese colonial
government, and which will result in
the country attaining national independence.
We make an open declaration to
all people that we are fundamentally
opposed to the system or policy of
multi-racialism.
It is not our aim, however, to
attack those who believe in multi-
racialism, despite the fact that
multi-racialists are instruments of
imperialism.
We will never allow racial representation in our national government; for we shall consider
individual merit as sufficient. A rule
by the majority is our only aim, and
individuals who become intolerant
to a rule by the majority will be dealt
with accordingly by our Immigration
Ministry.
We propose the name "Monomotapa" in the place of a colonial name
"Mozambique".
32   J   VOICE OF AFRICA