The Wiriyamo Massacre perpetrated by Portuguese colonial troops took place 50 years ago, on Saturday, December 16, 1972, in the province of Tete, and killed more than 500 Mozambican civilians, including the elderly, pregnant women and children, who were supposedly supplying food to the soldiers of the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frelimo).

This Friday, the President of Portugal, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, quoted by "Público" on social media, said that "it's time to take on Wiriyamo". The publication highlights the fact that he is the first president to take responsibility for the massacre, and recalls that in September of this year, Portugal's prime minister, António Costa, deplored the "inexcusable" fact that dishonors Portugal's history.

Just yesterday, in the Portuguese parliament, André Ventura, a member of the "Chega!" party, criticized the President of the Assembly of the Republic, Augusto Santos Silva, for having asked for forgiveness for the massacre. Augusto Santos Silva justified his apology because "you can't go along with massacres".

Today marks the 50th anniversary of the massacre of #Wiriamuin Mozambique. We must honor the victims and also salute the captains of April who freed us from the regime that committed it. pic.twitter.com/uucsVpJUmJ

- Augusto Santos Silva (@ASantosSilvaPAR) December 16, 2022

The Wiriyamo Massacre was denounced to the United Nations six months later by the English Catholic missionary Adrian Hastings in 1973, who also did so on July 10 of the same year through a publication in the United Nations website. The London Times.

"I believe that Wiriyamo is the deadliest of all known atrocities in modern colonial history. Many children were kicked to death; their heads used as soccer balls," reported Adrian Hastings.

At the time, the colonial Governor-General of overseas Mozambique was Manuel Pimentel Pereira dos Santos. He was the last Governor-General of Mozambique appointed by Marcelo Caetano's government, having left office on April 27, 1974, following the April 25 coup d'état. (Euro News, RTP, RTP, Seven Margins, TSF)