Ao contrário do que foi alegado por Sérgio Vieira, os presos políticos no campo de reeducação de M’telela não estavam à mercê do respectivo comandante - que por sua alta recreação os teria mandado executar - mas sob a alçada directa do Presidente Samora Machel, conforme deixa transparecer um telegrama «Confidencial» da Embaixada dos Estados Unidos em Maputo endereçado ao Secretário de Estado em Washington, D.C. Adiante as partes de relevância do telegrama datado de 19 de Janeiro de 1977.
CONFIDENTIAL
PAGE 01 MAPUTO 00068 191522Z
R 191035Z JAN 77
FM AMEMBASSY MAPUTO
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 5417
INFO AMEMBASSY DAR ES SALAAM
AMEMBASSY LUSAKA
AMEMBASSY PRETORIA
AMCONSUL CAPETOWN
AMEMBASSY LISBON
AMEMBASSY LILONGWE
AMEMBASSY LONDON
C O N F I D E N T I A L MAPUTO 68
CAPETOWN FOR EMBASSY
SUBJ: MOZAMBICAN OPPOSITION LEADER CLAIMS LAZARO KAVANDAME, JOANA SIMIAO, URIAH SIMANGO STILL IN PRISON CAMP
1. ANTONIO BASILIO CALISTO MACALUBE, 76 YEAR OLD FORMER MOZAMBICAN LIBERATION ACTIVIST AND CURRENT OPPONENT OF FRELIMO, HAS VISITED EMBASSY TWICE IN LAST WEEK AFTER BEING BROUGHT TO MAPUTO BY GPRM FROM A MOZAMBICAN "RE-EDUCATION"
CAMP. MACALUBE HAD BEEN HELD IN NTELELA CAMP NEAR LICHINGA (EX-VILA CABRAL) (13 18 5, 35 14E) IN NIASSA PROVINCE FOR ABOUT A YEAR, AFTER BEING KEPT AT THE NACHINGWEA CAMP IN SOUTHERN TANZANIA FOR THE PREVIOUS TWO YEARS. MACALUBE
WAS TAKEN FROM NTELELA NOVEMBER 28, 1976, TO LICHINGA FOR MEDICAL TREATMENT, AND WAS FLOWN TO MAPUTO IN LATE DECEMBER.
2. WHILE AT NTELELA, MACALUBE CLAIMED TO HAVE BEEN A "CELL MATE" OF LAZARO KAVANDAME, A FORMER LEADER OF RELIMO AND OLD POLITICAL FOE OF FRELIMO PRESIDENT SAMORA MACHEL. MACALUBE SAID KAVANDAME WAS STILL IN THE CAMP WHEN MACALUBE LEFT, AND DID NOT ESCAPE TO LEAD ANTI-FRELIMO DISSIDENTS ON RAIDS IN NORTHERN MOZAMBIQUE, AS HAS BEEN FREQUENTLY RUMORED. MACALUBE ALSO CLAIMED THAT FORMER GUMO AND COREMO LEADER JOANA SIMIAO IS HELD AT THE CAMP. ALTHOUGH SHE HAS BEEN ILL, SHE DID NOT DIE AS WAS REPORTED IN SOUTH AFRICAN PRESS. URIASH SIMANGO, WHOM MACALUBE TERMED "THE LEGAL PRESIDENT" OF FRELIMO, IS ALSO HELD AT THE CAMP.
3. MACALUBE SAID THAT HE HAD HEARD THAT JOANA SIMIAO MAY NOW BE IN MAPUTO, OR MIGHT BE BROUGHT DOWN FROM THE CAMP
SHORTLY. HE HAD BEEN ATTEMPTING TO FIND OUT DEFINITIVELY, BUT COULD NOT CONFIRM HER PRESENCE IN MAPUTO.
4. ON FIRST VISIT JANUARY 13, MACALUBE SAID HE WAS RENEWING CONTACTS AT THE EMBASSY, WHERE HE HAD SEVERAL FRIENDS AMONG LOCAL EMPLOYEES.HE ALSO ASKED ABOUT SEVERAL FSO'S WHO HAD SERVED HERE. ON FIRST VISIT, EMBOFF AND LOCALS COULD NOT DRAW HIM OUT ON HIS POLITICAL ACTIVITIES OR HIS IMPRESSIONS, BUT ON THE SECOND VISIT JANUARY 18, MACALUBE WAS MUCH MORE WILLING TO CONVERSE. HE CLAIMED THAT GPRM MAINTAINS FIVE "RE-EDUCATION CAMPS," AND SOME HAVE AS MANY AS 10,000 PRISONERS, INCLUDING WOMEN AND CHILDREN. HE STATED THAT HE AND OTHER "POLITICIANS" LISTED PARA 2 RECEIVED PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT IN THE CAMP, INCLUDING HAVEING THEIR LAUNDRY DONE FOR THEM (TO THE ENVY OF THE GUARDS WHO MUST DO THEIR OWN). MACALUBE
ALSO STATED THAT PRESIDENT MACHEL HAD DIRECT CONTROL OVER THE "POLITICIANS" WHO WERE HELD PRISONER AND THAT CAMP AUTHORITIES INCLUDING WOMEN AND CHILDREN. HE STATED THAT HE AND OTHER "POLITICIANS" LISTED PARA 2 RECEIVED PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT IN THE CAMP, INCLUDING HAVEING THEIR LAUNDRY DONE FOR THEM (TO THE ENVY OF THE GUARDS WHO MUST DO THEIR OWN). MACALUBE ALSO STATED THAT PRESIDENT MACHEL HAD DIRECT CONTROL OVER THE "POLITICIANS" WHO WERE HELD PRISONER AND THAT CAMP AUTHORITIES. WERE INSTRUCTED TO OBEY ONLY DIRECT ORDERS FROM MACHEL CONCERNING THEM.
