Maputo, July 21, 2025 (Lusa) - The director-general of the Mozambican National Migration Service (Senami) explained on Monday that the country denied entry to three comedians, including Gilmário Vemba, because they tried to enter on tourist visas while planning to perform a show.
“They came to the country, and the criteria for their visit required a different visa. They intended to present a show, a performance.” It is a cultural activity,” said Director-General Zainedine Danane, whom Lusa questioned on the sidelines of the event marking Senami’s 50th anniversary in Maputo today.
He added that the group - in addition to Angolan Gilmário Vemba, also included Portuguese Hugo Sousa, Brazilian Murilo Couto and a Portuguese producer of the show - arrived at Maputo International Airport on Sunday intending to enter the country on a tourist visa, which immigration officials issue at the border after assessment, as required by Mozambican law since 2023. This type of entry permit authorises only non-paid activities, as detected during Senami’s checks.
A source linked to the production of the event explained to Lusa that the show, which sold out, was by the group “Tons de Comédia”, featuring the three comedians, and was scheduled for 5 p.m. local time (4 p.m. in Lisbon) on Sunday at the China Moçambique Cultural Centre in Maputo.
“We have secured another opportunity to present the show at a later date,” said Gilmário Vemba in a live broadcast on Instagram from the airport on Sunday evening, explaining that the three had been waiting since 2 p.m. (1 p.m. in Lisbon) to enter the country, unaware of the reason and confirming the rescheduling of the show and the refund of tickets.
According to the director-general of Senami, the group left the country this morning on a TAP flight.
Zainedine Danane added that the promoter of the event in question should have “requested” a credential for the show from the competent Mozambican authorities, which would then be used to apply for a cultural visa to enter the country.
"So, since you requested this accreditation, this activity exists. And you can put on a show because the people who should, perhaps, authorise it are aware of it."I am referring to legal issues,” stressed the director-general of Senami, citing changes to the migration law for the issuance of visas for cultural activities made in 2022.
This accreditation, he said, would fall under the responsibility of the Mozambican Ministry of Culture.
In the case of Brazilian Murilo Couto, the head of Mozambican migration revealed that on 15 June he submitted a business visa application for entry into Mozambique on the electronic platform. Three days later the authorities requested missing documents, which he did not send, emphasising that even if this visa were to be granted, it would permit him to enter only for activities other than performing the show.
‘The citizen needs to meet the requirements and respond to the rejection, and he is here in Mozambique (...). There are rules. Every country requires you to comply with its entry criteria before you can enter,’ he pointed out, saying that the authorities applied no “administrative measure” in this case, only compliance with the law.
“The business visa, cultural activity visa and tourist visa did not require any documentation. So how were they going to enter the country (...). Everything follows the law. We rely entirely on established regulations. The wheel has already been invented. You can consult the law,” said Zainedine Danane.
Gilmário Vemba had already performed in Mozambique in the past, maintaining an incident-free record.
Dinis Tivane, advisor to politician and former presidential candidate Venâncio Mondlane, who contests the results of the 9 October general elections in Mozambique, stated early on Sunday evening on his Facebook account that Mozambican authorities “prevented Gilmário Vemba from entering Mozambique for expressing his opinions”.
On 8 July, Venâncio Mondlane and Gilmário Vemba publicly shared a meeting in Lisbon, praising ‘Anamalala’, which in the Macua language spoken in northern Mozambique means ‘a conclusion is near’ - an expression used by the politician during the campaign for the general elections of 9 October 2024 and which became popular in the protests he called in the following months - an acronym for the party he is trying to legalise: National Alliance for a Free and Autonomous Mozambique (Anamalala).
Since the October elections, Mozambique has been experiencing a climate of intense social energy, with demonstrations and strikes called by Mondlane, who maintains that the election results favoring Daniel Chapo, supported by the ruling Frelimo party, do not reflect the people’s will.
According to non-governmental organisations monitoring the electoral process, around 400 people died as a result of clashes with the police, which ended after a meeting between Mondlane and Chapo on 23 March, repeated on 20 May, to pacify the country.
PVJ/ADB // ADB.
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