A Discussion with Titos Macie, Christian Council of Mozambique, on Reconciliation in Mozambique

May 28, 2009

Background: As part of the Peacebuilding Practitioners Interview Series, Ilan Cooper interviewed Titos Macie, who has worked for the Christian Council of Mozambique (CCM) since 1987. In this interview, Macie speaks about the specific challenges faced in Mozambique with reconciliation. He also discusses the historical role of religious communities in Mozambican society.
Can you discuss your life and the role of religion in it?

I am a staff administrator for the CCM. I am responsible for all their resources including the finances. I have worked for them for 22 years, and I worked for them throughout the Mozambican civil war. I began working for them in September 198,7 and since then I have held several positions. First I was the provincial coordinator of their operations in the Nampula province. In fact I was the first staff member of CCM in this province, and I helped establish our office there. I then was promoted to the national logistics officer for relief programs of the CCM based in Maputo. This primarily focused on assisting those displaced by the civil war. At this time there were very few civil society organizations, and thus our work was largely unique. I was then promoted to become the national relief and rehabilitation officer, which I did for three years. Finally, in 1998, I was promoted again to my current job. I have climbed within the organization and this is as high as I will reach, as the only position above me is that of the general secretary, and that is reserved for ordained people.

Can you discuss CCM and the way religion has affected this organization's work?

CCM is a religious organization of a Christian faith as the name indicates. CCM was founded in 1948 at approximately the same time as the World Council of Churches. CCM was founded by missionaries. It was initially a fellowship organization. It was a means of survival—because the Portuguese authorities did not allow any other churches than the Roman Catholic Church. It was a survival means for the Protestants. We now have 22 Protestant churches and two associations, so our constituency is 24. The state church during colonial times did not allow Protestant churches to operate freely (the fact is the Catholic Church took the advantage of being favored by the Portuguese rulers). So we founded CCM to protect our churches. It is harder for the state to ban a whole group than a single church.

Then in 1975 came independence. The same problems continued for a time. The survival issue was still important under the Marxist FRELIMO party. We banded together to ensure that the churches were allowed. We tried to get everyone to collaborate. Then in 1982 President Samora Machel called a whole week conference with church leaders and other religious leaders. At this meeting he acknowledged the role that religious communities played and had to play in Mozambican society. We decided to consolidate in what unites us—a motto for the relationship between the religions and the state was approved saying: “let’s consolidate what unites us.”

We enlarged the scope of our work. We got involved in multi-disciplinary interventions in the country. We decided that we must not have a strictly religious mission, but rather we should get involved in socioeconomic missions too.

We are now a country-wide organization. We have offices in all nine provinces of Mozambique, and in some provinces we have offices at the district level. Our headquarters are located in Maputo. We have 260 staff members. We have administrative people and also people involved in community development.

We have many areas of intervention. We are involved in education. In this area we provide infrastructure and equipment such as classrooms of permanent kind and desks so that people can learn better. We also have a health component where we provide resources and medicines including infrastructures to local communities. For example in Beira in Sofala we have a clinic. We are also involved in agriculture. We provide tools and seeds and other resources. In addition we provide “extension work” for the communities and introduce crops (such as drought-resistant crops) in order to increase the income of the community and ensure self reliance. Another example of our work would be in a village divided by a river, we might intervene and build a bridge. We also have an advocacy/lobbying role. It depends on what issues are at hand, but we often get involved and lobby the government, the political parties, and other institutions and other influential individualities. Our most important component is our role in peacebuilding.

This started a long time ago when we got involved in the civil war and tried to persuade the two sides to meet. We eventually after much work persuaded the FRELIMO government that they must talk to RENAMO. The problem then arose over who they should talk to. We went all over the world and found RENAMO leaders so that a dialogue could occur. For example, some were in Nairobi, some in Europe and some in the United States. We convinced both sides that they must talk. They then went to Rome and an agreement was achieved. We also facilitated the provision of this agreement. We did not lead in negotiations; we quietly facilitated in the background. While the talks were happening in Rome it became clear that peace was going to be the result. Thus we implemented a civic education program for peace. We needed to prepare the people for peace and find ways to help them come together. In our war families, or at least communities, were often torn apart—with different members fighting for different sides. In the new peaceful environment these people had to come and sit together and we needed a way to avoid issues of revenge. We implemented the peace treaty and peace.

One of our main programs is the “turning swords into ploughshares” program. This comes from the Bible and the book of Isaiah chapter two, verse four. In Portuguese we call this program the TAE program. The T stands for transformation, the A for guns, and the E for hoes. Thus we helped create peace. This idea came to us when we were implementing a civic education program. A woman stood up and said, "But what will we do with all the guns spread all over the country?" Our leaders and our community had no answer. So we prayed and thought about this issue. Because at the moment peace started there was a UN peacekeeping force in Mozambique and a program of disarmament, but it was clear this would not be as comprehensive as we would have liked. For example, it was believed that RENAMO had not disclosed completely their armories, and FRELIMO had given many weapons to militias and vigilantes for self-defense purpose.

There was no clear indication on how all these issues would be dealt with. So this was a huge threat to peace. The leadership of the CCM prayed and looked to the Bible. Eventually they realized, yes, there is a way. So the project began in 1995. We waited a year after the first general multiparty elections because we did not want our project to happen simultaneously with the official disarmament scheme and thereby confuse people as to their differences. So we began one year after the first general elections in Mozambique. We collected guns from people. We collected all guns, not just those remaining from the war. Then we destroyed them. Initially we wanted to melt them and turn them into tools of production, but we soon realized this was not feasible in Mozambique. So we decided to work with artists and take what we had destroyed and make it into art. Indeed, we collaborated with Christian AID during Africa week in 2005 to produce; for example, one piece was made to look like a tree. This is now exhibited at the British Museum right now. It weighs half a ton and is 3 meters high. The exhibition of much of the artwork from this project has toured the world, and some of the most beautiful pieces sit in the UN headquarters.

This work was combined with our civic education programs. This transformed the mindsets and the life of ordinary people. It turned criminals into productive members of society.

What was the role of the religious community during the colonial era and the build up to the civil war?

The role of the Protestants during colonialism was, as I said, one of fellowship and survival. However, this is not completely true. We were involved in building the capacity of the communities and providing some basic services. During the colonial times the churches also often ran schools. This provided basic education to everyone until grade four. We also worked in providing people with adequate healthcare. There were many missionary doctors and nurses. However, they also trained local people to be able to give health care. For example, the Anglican Church Mission trained matrons. My grandmother was illiterate. but she was trained by such a mission to become a matron. and she was very good at her job. She never even went to school. but she could provide high quality healthcare in assisting child birth.

We also did much extension work in agriculture. Additionally, the churches provided a chance to go to missionary school. These schools not only gave everyone basic education levels, but if they got scholarships they were often sent abroad. Many of our leaders in Africa today, and Mozambique is no exception, went in one way or another through this missionary system. Some even got scholarships. These schools opened their minds and their eyes. They gave them hope and allowed them to escape the cycles of poverty. This is what is what it was like in the colonial period.

It was harder after independence. However, we still continued our work, even through to today. We do many projects now in collaboration with the government. We do not have the capacity or the will to replace the government. We want to assist them. This is particularly true in areas where they cannot reach. We have people in every area, even the most remote rural community.

What was the role of religious actors during the transition?

I have already spoken a little bit about this, and it is well documented. There was from the early 1980s a continuous process to facilitate dialogue. The CCM has a committee on justice, peace and reconciliation. This is essentially the ears and eyes of the council. The church leaders are also part of this committee. This office transforms theory into programmatic reality. It runs a program of conflict management and transformation. It brings together different people and community members to unite them. It also brings in government officials at all levels and tells them what the problems are in each area. For example, during election times we make sure that they occur without any violence because this is a tense time in our country. We prepare the communities to learn to listen properly to politicians and vice versa. We also show the people how to vote, as in we educate them on what the issues are so they can make a real informed decision. We also tell the authorities that they must not incite violence during their campaigns. They must be very informative, not make false promises, and they must settle any differences in a peaceful manner.

We also have a “choose life” program which has been running for about two years now. This program started because of the high level of self-made or vigilante justice. This is mainly a result of the fact that people do not trust the authorities or the police. There is a problem with such vigilante justice, and people are sometimes beaten and even killed. Our program encourages an end to the impunity of criminals, but it also encourages people to seek justice through the agents of justice and not their own hands. We must choose the right way.

Do you think the transition is over in Mozambique?

We are getting there. We have also received much encouragement from the world that we are a model of a successful transition. But the peace and the democracy in our country are still weak. It is like a tree it needs nurture and watering. We cannot sit and relax; we must ensure that we keep toiling. There are still a lot of challenges to face. Our institutions need continued support as they are not that strong. We still face many socioeconomic challenges which could lead to conflicts. This is again where the issue of self-made justice comes in. We have huge issues with poverty, too. There are a growing number of both haves and have-nots, and the gap is widening.

This is a cooking pot of conflict, and we must ensure it does not erupt. We must monitor the situation and be careful. There has been a successful transition, yes, but there are still many challenges.

What was the role of the religious communities in the consolidation of democracy?

Mainly civic education programs. Our role has been largely to get acquainted with the processes. If resources allowed we would do this on a continuous basis. We must continue to act within these processes and strengthen the democracy of this fragile country. We must make the people participate. We need the full participation of the people to become a reality.

What is the relationship between the religious communities and the government?

There is a dual role of collaboration and complementarity. The collaboration role is that religious institutions and the government have the same aim of the well-being of the people. But the religious communities not only look at the material well-being, but also they consider the spiritual well-being. This is a whole separate component of society and one the government does not focus on. We inform the authorities and pay attention to issues that they overlook.

What are the problems that Mozambique faces in the future, and what should be the role of the religious community?

The primary issue is that one must not live without a spiritual component of society. Religious institutions are very important for this. They continuously deal with this. At the same time we ask the authorities to deal with the materials aspects of life. So we assist human beings in the holistic component of their needs. Even if one is rich one can be sad, if one is not fulfilled spiritually. A rich man can often still commit suicide. Religious institutions are key for this component. They assist communities in their spiritual area. And they will, and must, do this forever. Even if the country becomes developed and rich they must still do this. It is important for us to know how to adjust our role over time.
Opens in a new window