By Francis Ngahu

Quelimane , SEPTEMBER 4, 2026 (CISA) – Bishops in Mozambique have renewed their demand for truth and accountability in the murder of Bishop Osório Citora Afonso, IMC three months after the Bishop of Quelimane and Apostolic Administrator of Beira was shot dead at his residence, with no arrests made public and no motive confirmed.

The appeal came in a statement issued at the close of the Extraordinary Plenary Assembly of the Episcopal Conference of Mozambique (CEM), held from 2 to 4 September at St Augustine Interdiocesan Major Philosophical Seminary in Matola, in the Archdiocese of Maputo.

Addressing Christian communities and “all men and women of goodwill,” the bishops said the Church in Mozambique and beyond continued to grieve an unprecedented crime in the country’s history, and voiced frustration that authorities had yet to disclose the circumstances of the killing despite ongoing efforts to press for answers.

The bishops said fundamental questions remained unanswered three months on: who carried out the killing, who ordered or financed it, and what motive lay behind it.

The CEM called on judicial authorities to sustain the investigation, saying the search for truth must continue if Mozambique is to find a path toward healing, reconciliation and justice for what it described as a grievous wound on the nation.

The bishops also expressed solidarity with the Diocese of Quelimane and, acknowledging the pastoral weight now resting on it, said two bishops had been appointed to assist Bishop Estêvão Ângelo Fernando, who has served as Apostolic Administrator of Quelimane since 12 June.

Beyond the investigation, the bishops used the statement to reflect on the killing’s implications for the Church itself, saying it had exposed a fragility in human nature that calls the Church to ongoing renewal and honest self-examination.

They appealed to bishops, priests, religious and laypeople alike to root their lives and mission more firmly in a relationship with God, describing this as the foundation for building a Church and society oriented toward the common good.

Bishop Afonso, 54, was found shot in the chest in a corridor of his official residence in Quelimane on 6 June. Mozambique’s National Criminal Investigation Service (SERNIC) said the killing was carried out with an AKM-type firearm and that an investigation was under way, though no suspects have since been named publicly.