Mozambique seeks access to Portuguese military archives

Mozambican Minister of Combatants Nyeleti Mondlane has requested access to Portuguese military archives to investigate the shared history of the national liberation struggle. Mondlane noted that a significant portion of documentation regarding military operations, personnel, detention sites, and political decisions from that era is currently held in Portugal. She emphasized that without this access, the history of the liberation struggle remains incomplete, as it is currently being written from only one perspective.

The request follows the signing of a memorandum of understanding in Maputo between Mondlane and Portuguese Defense Minister Nuno Melo. This agreement outlines Portuguese support for the recovery, digitization, conservation, and study of military archival heritage located within Mozambique. While the memorandum focuses on technical support for archives in Mozambique, Mondlane clarified that the Mozambican objective is broader, seeking to allow researchers to access historical military records in Portugal to confirm combatant identities, locate graves, and provide closure to families.

Portuguese Defense Minister Nuno Melo expressed support for the concept of reconciliation, stating that history must be written with truth through access to archives for researchers.