TITLE:
A Short History of Human Rights in Africa: The Case of Mozambican Constitutions (1975-2018)
AUTHORS:
Laura António Nhaueleque
KEYWORDS:
Constitutional Transition, Fundamental Rights, Socialism, Democratic System, Separation of Powers
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Historical Studies,
Vol.14 No.5,
November
4,
2025
ABSTRACT: Despite the fact that a constitution protecting fundamental human rights has been in place since 1990, authorities in Mozambique have been and still are responsible for human rights violations. This article aims to explain these violations by analysing the three Mozambican constitutions that have been in force since the country gained independence from Portugal in 1975. It highlights the many contradictions that remain in the current constitution, adopted in 2004 and amended in 2018. Using an analytical, multidisciplinary approach and the theories of constitutional amendment and dismemberment, it emerges that Mozambique does not yet have an effective approach to protecting and respecting human rights. In particular, the large amount of power assigned to the President by the constitution hinders meaningful progress towards a higher level of human rights protection, as does the lack of juridical and political democratic culture, as evidenced by the electoral processes of 2023 and 2024.