The gypsy songs of Singano and their dark abduction

Paulo Vilanculo"

Historically the gypsies, refer to nomadic people from a community in constant mobility who cross borders, in a torment of institutional rejection, of resistance to social exclusion, in a strong attachment to cultural orality, seeking a space of dignity and their identity. A "gypsy life" describes an unstable existence, marked by forced displacements, lack of security and a constant search for belonging, although surrounded by the strength of resilience and the desire for freedom. In many cases, it is a historical response to the persecution, marginalization and prejudice faced for centuries.

While gypsies travel across lands in search of acceptance and freedom, not out of mere whim, but due to the historical rejection imposed by the established powers, Singano also moved to the city of Beira. Far from representing just a geographical displacement, it illustrates a journey full of mystery in which, instead of moving as a free politician, Singano's presence in Beira was monitored, in a country where the line between crime and political persecution is increasingly visible, especially where for those who dare to think differently, the State, instead of responding in the realm of ideas, seems to opt for obscure mechanisms of dissuasion, detention, imprisonment or disappearance, loaded with vague suspicions in a historical pattern of criminalization of opponents outside the traditional axis. It is nothing new in Mozambique that new parties and citizen movements that escape the control of traditional logic are persecuted.

Singano is known for his non-aligned speeches, in a country where the power of words is feared more than that of bullets, his voice has become unbearable for some. Since he announced himself as a voice of opposition, with provocative rhetoric, challenging both the status quo and the pacts of silence within the Mozambican political system, Singano has come to be seen more as a threat than a legitimate competitor. His inflammatory but reasoned speeches have touched raw nerves about corruption, impunity, nepotism and the dismantling of real democracy in Mozambique. To a certain extent, his chants, both in the form of speeches and social metaphors, are threatening precisely because they speak a language that the people understand as raw, direct and straightforward.

After his unusual arrest during an “official” arrest in prison, in the episode of his detention in a confusing context, which already left in the air the feeling that undeclared forces were working to neutralize his influence, Singano, as a visible and combative face, became a symbolic and strategic target. The most recent, even darker chapter, which only reinforces the specter of a country willing to do anything to silence uncomfortable voices in its destiny, resulted in his kidnapping. This kidnapping can be interpreted as a message against Singano’s audacity, given the way it happened, the authorities’ lack of readiness to clarify the case, without a convincing public explanation, and with complicit silence from the authorities, the absence of press conferences and the deafening silence of the historical parties aggravate the feeling of complicity or, at the very least, calculated negligence, pointing to an act with political connotations. This is not a simple kidnapping, but rather a clear attempt to intimidate, silence and demobilize Singano's project. More than an attack on the individual, it may be a warning to those who dare to challenge the pacts of silence and corruption.

Singano’s trajectory reveals a country where thinking outside the box is dangerous. Where democracy is more of a ritual than a practice. Where songs of hope need to be whispered so as not to awaken the ghosts of repression. The price for dreaming out loud in Mozambique continues to be a danger. Singano now pays with his own disappearance, perhaps tortured for an indefinite period, perhaps silenced. Singano is going viral not only as a politician. He is becoming a symbol of nonconformity that escapes the rigid models of other opponents who, in their struggle, manifest themselves in alliances with the government. However, even with his kidnapping, Singano’s gypsy songs persist, on the walls, on social media, in the clandestine conversations of the alleys and lanes, where it is suspected that freedom is just a campaign slogan.

2025/12/3