Lubango - The Attorney General of Mozambique, Beatriz Buchili, expressed this Wednesday, in southern Huila Province’s capital, Lubango, interest in the experience of the Angolan Prosecution Department, in defence, protection of mineral resources and prevention of damage to the environment.
Speaking during a one-day visit to Huíla, the magistrate stated that due to the nature of the province, where mineral resources are prospected, it is important to see the Prosecution Department’s challenges in combating crimes in this segment.
She declared that the illegal exploitation of mining resources is one of the areas that must be intervened to protect a country's wealth, due to the financing of terrorism, money laundering, among other evils that harm the population.
“We want to see how local prosecutors intervene in these areas, with agriculture and other investments also thriving, a task that requires strengthening the protection of these resources, through judicial intervention to provide legal security to investors”, she explained.
She mentioned that in her country one of the challenges faced by the Prosecution Department - in its duty of controlling legality, where it is often violated, by the granting of illegal licences for the exploration of mineral resources - involves the commitment to capacity building and training of its magistrates.
She stressed that the visit to the province, in addition to seeing the experience of the Angolan MP in the defence and protection of these mineral resources and the violation of the environment, also makes a contribution to Mozambique, which has problems of the kind.
Beatriz Buchili said that she had the challenge of opening the Court of Auditors and is counting on Angola to help in the preparation of the legislative component and in the training of judges.
When talking about the intervention of the Attorney General's Office in such crimes in Angola, the Attorney General of Angola, Hélder Pitta Gróz, referred that the first level of intervention has to be local authorities and security bodies and when this fails, then the Public Prosecution steps in.
“We think we cannot go to extremes. We want to strengthen the intervention of municipalities at the level of administrations and security bodies”, he said.
He considered Huíla an example of good governance in the country, over the last few years, which is why they made the visit with their counterpart from Mozambique.
He stressed that the relationship between the two institutions is old and they have taken the opportunity to train new Angolan magistrates in Mozambique and vice-versa.
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