(Bloomberg) -- Soldiers of Mozambique's former rebel National Resistance Army, or Renamo, will be integrated into the southern African country's armed forces as part of a deal signed with the government to resolve issues that have stalled a permanent peace agreement.
A commission will be established to receive weapons from the fighters, Renamo interim leader Ossufo Momade told reporters by phone from his hideout in Gorongosa, more than 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) north of the capital, Maputo. No agreement has been reached yet on combining Renamo's fighters with the police force, said Momade, who took the reins of the main opposition after the May death of Afonso Dhlakama, its leader of almost four decades.
In the military, Renamo fighters will be appointed into positions of command, he said, without providing any timeline.
“We hope that the agreement will be implemented,” said Momade.
Renamo fought the government in a 16-year civil war that ended in 1992 and left as many as one million people dead. Last month, parliament passed new legislation that gives more powers to political parties that win the majority of votes in provinces, as the nation prepares for local polls in October.
--With assistance from Matthew Hill.
To contact the reporter on this story: Borges Nhamire in Maputo at bnhamire@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Hilton Shone at hshone@bloomberg.net, Jacqueline Mackenzie
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