Flag of Mozambique

The flag of Mozambique was adopted on May 1, 1983. It includes the image of an AK-47 and is the only national flag in the world to feature such a modern rifle.The original flag of the Frente da Libertaçao da Moçambique (FRELIMO), the leading political party in Mozambique, also had green, black, and yellow horizontal stripes separated by white fimbriations. In the hoist was a red triangle. The black, green, and yellow were derived from the flag of the African National Congress, used in South Africa. On independence the colors were rearranged to form the national flag, in rays emanating from the upper hoist. Over this was a white cogwheel containing the hoe, rifle, book, and star that appear on the present flag. The flag was altered in 1983; the colors were arranged in horizontal stripes, and the star of Marxism was made larger. It is likely that a new, non-partisan flag will be introduced. Green stands for the riches of the land, the white fimbriations signify peace, black represents the African continent, yellow symbolizes the country's minerals, and red represents the struggle for independence. The rifle stands for defense and vigilance, the open book symbolizes the importance of education, the hoe represents the country's agriculture, and the star symbolizes Marxism and internationalism.

The flag is based on the flag of the Mozambican Liberation Front (FRELIMO). The FRELIMO flag, used for a brief period after the country gained its independence from Portugal, looks like the current flag but lacking the emblem.

Flag symbolism

Green: The riches of the soil
Black: The African continent
Yellow: The mineral riches
White: The peace
Red: The country’s struggle for independence

"The Emblem":
Yellow star: The solidarity of the people and the socialistic beliefs of the country
Book: Education
Hoe: Peasants and agriculture
AK-47: The nation’s determination to protect its freedom

New flag?

In 2005, a competition was held to design a new flag for Mozambique. 119 entries were received and a winning flag was selected, but to this day the flag remains the same. This came in the context of a drive to create a new crest and anthem for the country. Mozambique's parliamentary opposition would specifically like to see removed from the flag the image of the Kalashnikov assault rifle, which symbolizes the nation's struggle for independence, according to press reports. This drive to change these national symbols has met great resistance from public opinion.

The proposition of a new flag was rejected by the FRELIMO-dominated parliament in December 2005. 169 proposed flags were turned down, including the current flag without the rifle. [cite news |author= |title=Mozambique: Parliament Keeps Gun In National Flag |url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E01E4D71730F933A15751C1A9639C8B63 |work=New York Times |date=2005-12-20 |accessdate=2007-11-14 ]

Historical flags

References

*FOTW|id=mz|title=Mozambique