Paulo Machava

Paulo Machava (1954/5 – 28 August 2015) was a Mozambican journalist.

Paulo Machava
Born	1954/5
Died	28 August 2015 Maputo, Mozambique
Cause of death	Assassination
Occupation	Journalist

Life

Machava started his career as a journalist at Mozambique's public radio station, Rádio Moçambique in the 1980s. He presented a radio show called Onda Matinal ("Morning Wave"), in which he talked about Maputo's organised crime. Following Mozambique's transition to democracy and the introduction of the multi-party system, Machava joined Savana, a weekly newspaper known for being critical of the government, and became its editor-in-chief. In this position, he investigated the scandal around the privatisation of the state-owned Banco Comercial de Moçambique.^[1]

Later, he briefly worked at the weekly newspaper Zambeze, before moving to the publishing house of Ericino de Salema. There, he founded the electronic newspaper Diário de Notícias and Embondeiro.^[2] Besides being a journalist, he also worked as a consultant for Maputo's gated community "Kaya Kwanga".^[1]

On the morning of 28 August 2015, Machava was on his way back to his home from his morning exercise in the centre of Maputo at the corner Avenida Vladimir Lenine / Avenida Augustinho Neto, when he was shot four times by an assailant in a passing car. Machava died at the scene.^[3][4][5]