Samora Machel

Samora Machel

Born September 29, 1933
Chilembene, Mozambique
Died October 19, 1986
Mbuzini, Lemombo Mountains, South Africa

Independence leader and first president of Mozambique

Samora Machel, who became president of Mozambique in 1975, attempted to raise the country’s standard of living by nationalizing (putting into government ownership) industries and land, and providing free education and health care. His program never had a chance to succeed, however, as the nation came under attack by a South African-backed, counterrevolutionary armed force. Machel died in a plane crash near the South African border in 1986; many people continue to suspect the South African government of sabotage in the incident.

Reared in region with history of rebellion

Samora Machel (pronounced ma-SHELL) was born in 1933 in the Mozambican village of Chilembene. That village, in the Gaza Province, was the site of an armed uprising against the Portuguese army in the 1890s. Although the army had crushed the force of local warriors, the spirit of resistance in the province had survived.

Machel’s parents were highly respected community leaders and farmers. They achieved a measure of success with their farming operation despite the oppressive rules of the colonial government. (Colonialism is the policy by which one nation exerts control over another nation or territory.) Machel’s parents, being native African farmers, received lower prices for their crops than did white farmers.

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