MAPUTO - Mozambicans voiced hope Tuesday after opposition leader Venancio Mondlane said he and President Daniel Chapo had agreed to "end all violence" following months of deadly clashes over election results.
Mondlane met Chapo on Sunday and declared the following evening that the pair had started a "dialogue" and reached a consensus to end "all types of persecution, from both sides".
The southern African nation has been gripped by political turmoil ever since a disputed general election in October.
Shopping in downtown Maputo, where the streets were unusually bustling Tuesday afternoon, 31-year-old sales agent Isabel Mucavel said she already felt "a little safe".
"Everything really is calm. We can go out into the streets without even doubting whether we'll encounter any unpleasant surprises," she told AFP.
For 29-year-old Valter de Jesus, walking home from his job as a cleaner, the start of a dialogue means "hope for all Mozambicans".
A supporter of Mondlane, who is particularly popular with young people, he said he believed the opposition leader "hasn't betrayed his supporters".
"We were all expecting a dialogue," he said, visibly relaxed.
The European Union said it welcomed the overtures, describing the talks as a "positive step towards reconciliation" in the country of 33 million people.
- Talks about country -
Official results put Mondlane in second place in last year's presidential election and handed victory to Chapo of the Frelimo party, which has governed Mozambique since independence from Portugal in 1975.
Chapo was credited with 65 percent of the vote, compared to 24 percent for Mondlane.
But the latter claims he won 53 percent, and rallied his supporters in large-scale protests, which were suppressed. More than 360 people have died since October, according to a local civil society group.
"The dialogue between Venancio Mondlane and Daniel Chapo should have taken place a long time ago, because the face of the protests is Venancio Mondlane," human rights officer at the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) Andre Mulungo told AFP.
"This is about the stability of the country, it's about re-founding the state," he said.
Chapo took office in January and earlier this month signed a post-election deal with nine other parties. The deal, yet to be approved by parliament, aims to culminate with a review of the constitution.
Mondlane did not attend that dialogue.
The opposition leader nonetheless said Monday that he still rejected the election results.
"I continue saying that this government was put in place on the basis of electoral fraud," Mondlane said.
With no official confirmation from the government's side, the CDD's Mulungo said there remained a need for "transparency". "The ideal would be a joint communique from both sides," he said.