Misa Moçambique, a non-governmental organization (NGO) that defends press freedom, says that 2024 was certainly one of the worst years for journalists, as there were a wide variety of violations of press freedom. 

Misa's report on the State of Press Freedom and Disinformation in Mozambique-2024, presented yesterday, points to the registration of a total of 32 cases linked to violations of Press Freedom during 2024, with 22 cases linked to the general elections.

The document presented in Maputo states that the violations include cutting off the internet, threats to media professionals, physical violations, intimidation, confiscation of material, shootings, expulsion (involving international journalists), a disappearance, among others, recorded in all the country's provinces, especially with the intentional shutdown of the internet on October 25 and 30, 2024.

Misa says the figure represents four more cases compared to 2023, when the local elections also intensified attacks against media professionals, leading to a total of 28 cases (compared to 11 in 2022).

However, says the report, "more than the numbers, it was the seriousness of the situations that made 2024 a difficult year for media professionals in this country. Although no murders were recorded in 2024, unlike in 2023, when journalist João Chamusse was murdered, many journalists were deliberately targeted by the police, and some were even injured."

Of all the cases, the most significant violations of press freedom were directly related to the elections and the post-election crisis.