African Media Barometer MOZAMBIQUE 2014 Summary The fifth round of the African Media Barometer (AMB) for Mozambique took place on Novebmer 08 and 09, at Chidenguele, in Gaza Province, and was attended by panelists from media institutions, civil society, teaching and research organizations ,with a particular interest in Media matters in Mozambique. Following the application of the methodlogies suggested for the carrying out of the Panel, based on the discussion and scoring of the various indicators comprising the AMB, it was concluded that, in Mozambique, the media operates within a Legal Context characterized by freedom of the press and freedom of expression, although matters of its practice will be relative, due to the political and professional context within which the press falls. From the constitutional point of view, Mozambique is a Democratic State which, since 1990, was founded on a constitution based on the separation of powers, pluralism of expression, inter-party organization and the respect for and guarantees of the fundamental rights and freedoms of citizens. This 1990 Constitution precedes the period in which the Country was governed on the basis of a single party system, Frelimo, which was at the forefront of the process of the National Armed Liberation Struggles, which culminated in the country’s independence, in 1975. These precepts of pluralism and respect for fundamental freedoms have been preserved in the latest constitutional revision done, in 2004. As a result of opening up to a multi-party system, in 2014, the Country welcomed the Fifth General Elections (Presidential, Legislative and Provincial Assemblies), after the first ones were held in 1994. These elections will establish a new political cycle in the Country, with the election of a new President of the Republic, Filipe Jacinto Nyusi, replacing Armando Emílio Guebuza, both elected by the Frelimo Party. At Parliamentary level, after a Parliament totally dominated by Frelimo, in the 2009 elections, with 191 members of the 250, as against 51 for Renamo and 8 for the Democratic Movement of Mozambique (MDM); in the 2014 elections, Renamo and the MDM managed to win a considerable number of seats, with 144 members of 250, as against 89 for Renamo and 17 for MDM. The exercising of freedom of expression and freedom of the press, as well as ther Right to Information, are guaranteed by the Constitution of the Republic of Mozambique (CRM), as set down in Article 48, above all its number 1 which states that “All citizens have the right to freedom of expression, freedom of the press, as well as the right to information”. 62 AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER MOZAMBIQUE 2014