Reeducation camps in Mozambique: the fictionalization of history and memory in ‘Campo de trânsito'

Abstract

Campo de Trânsito (2007), novel by the Mozambican author João Paulo Borges Coelho, fictionalizes the facts and abuses lived in the feared “reeducation camps”, institutionalized in the post-independence by the Mozambican State, aiming to withdraw from the society those who were not prepared to be a part of the new nation system and reeducate them so they could become productive citizens aligned with the government model of socialist Marxist-Leninist orientation. This text goes from fictional to the History of Mozambique, tracking the abuses committed against citizens, such as the denial of the fundamental rights of the human being, restricting the freedom from a good part of the civilians, creating a society divided by fear, in the implementation of a totalitarian regime. From what they called “Cleaning Operation”, the ideal of liberty for all that was defended in the anti-colonial struggle was postponed, giving place to a fearful nation, frightened by the ghost of the so called reeducation camps. The memory issue is emphasized in the rebuilding of the social structure transposed to the fictional, reflecting, on the historical past, the present postcolonial time.