could mean that the proposed law would be unconstitutional. ARMED CONFLICTS WORSEN PLIGHT OF JOURNALISTS The draft also seeks to limit the number of foreign correspondents a media house can deploy in Mozambique to just two and this poses a serious threat to media freedom. Besides, the draft laws Mozambique has several laws in its statue books that need immediate amendment or repeal for the country to be considered compliant when it comes to respect for press freedom. MEDIA PLURALISM AND DIVERSITY By Ernesto Nhanale INTRODUCTION O VER the last 10 years, press freedom has been on a decline in Mozambique owing to a rise in armed conflicts and government intolerance to criticism. Throughout this period, MISA Mozambique and other international organisations have been reporting about cases of violence against journalists ranging from killings, kidnappings and disappearances, illegal detentions, seizure of journalists’ equipment, physical and psychological torture, restrictions on access to relevant news, assaults and arson against organisations and as well as frivolous lawsuits to intimidate independent journalists, among other forms of intimidation. LEGAL AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORK In 2021, the government showed its concrete intentions to restrict press freedoms. After being forced to repeal Decree 40/2018, which put various restrictions on operations of the media, the government still tried to put together instruments to limit press freedom. (1) The government has shown its intention to create a body to oversee the media sector and there are real fears that the authorities want to curtail freedoms enjoyed by journalists. Mozambique’s draft press law that was first debated in Parliament in 2021 proposes a new regulatory body, which would be essentially controlled by the government. Critics say there is no need for such a body as the Higher Mass Media Council, a creature of the country’s Constitution, is already doing the job and this Mozambique’s media sector has been growing exponentially since the adoption of a new Constitution in 1990 and the end of a brutal civil war in 1992. Despite a tough operating environment characterised by armed conflict in some parts of the country, legal restrictions on press freedom and economic difficulties, there has been a marked growth in the privately owned media sector. Some of the recently established privately owned media companies include O Escorpião, O Magazine Independente, and the first free newspaper, A Verdade. There are also private broadcast companies such as Miramar Communication Network and SOICO TV (STV). On the other hand, State-run media outlets have been doing well to stick to their public service role and community radio stations are serving the rural areas. However, there remains a need to improve the legal framework and business STATE OF PRESS FREEDOM IN SOUTHERN AFRICA REPORT 2021 43 MOZAMBIQUE