Hundreds of people filled the avenues of Maputo city on Saturday (18) in a march to demand the current prices of telecommunications in Mozambique.

"Companies have to negotiate with the people, with citizens. They can't impose their will on us, because the INCM doesn't want to see citizens on the internet, because that's silencing the people"

The prices of telephone service packages in the country were readjusted at the beginning of this month. The public outcry led civil society to hold two meetings with Mozambique's National Communications Institute (INCM). Misa Mozambique has also submitted a petition calling for the tariff to be revoked. Lawyer Custódio Duma, in his personal capacity, applied to the INCM for the "Suspension of the Effectiveness of the Norm".

"This is a way of getting our message of indignation across. This is just one part of the measures we're going to debate," said a social activist and one of the march's promoters.

According to Guirengane, the courts, the ombudsman's office and the National Human Rights Commission (CNDH) will all be called upon to act on the INCM's measure. But the activist also says that international institutions will be called upon to intervene in the situation.

"Today we're marching to the INCM, but tomorrow we're going to march to the person who gives orders to the INCM, which is the President of the Republic," he warned. "Good or bad, they'll listen to us because we're not talking about a simplistic issue of the lives of Mozambicans. We are saying that our pockets are feeling this pain."