Last modified: 2005-12-17 by bruce berry
Keywords: mozambique | star | book | gun | hoe |
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National Flag. CSW/CSW 2:3
I'll jump over description directly to the construction details given
in Album: (10+1+10+1+10):(21+27).
This image has smaller emblem in the triangle then the one in Album,
where it seems somewhat like inscribed in a circle of 13 units or so (meaning
the diameter of the circle circumscribing the star).
This flag superseded not only the national flag of 1975,
but also the red war flag
And now the notes. Graham Bartram
has the flag in ratio 5:8, while Album 2000
has it as 2:3. [vdv00] agrees with Album.
I guess that 5:8 might be a "relict" from previous flag, which is in [smi82]
given as ratio 5:8~.
Following the construction details given in Album for the width of stripes,
I have gained a flag image that has white fimbriations considerably thinner
then I was expecting to. unless I have messed up something, it seems that
no vexillological book has the fimbriations as thin as 1/10 of stripes. It's hard
to measure such small sizes in Album 2000, but even there the white stripes
seem to be wider then 1/10 of the, say, black stripe.
Željko Heimer, 1 Jul 2002
At the Mozambique embassy in Lisbon (Portugal) one can clearly see the
lower stripe in regular yellow, almost without contrast with the nearby
white stripe.
António MARTINS-Tuválkin, 30 Nov 2003
This is an article from today's New York Times about discussions in
Mozambique concerning retaining or eliminating the gun on the
national flag.
Maputo Journal: Symbols Are Important. So What Does a Gun Symbolize?
By MICHAEL WINES
Mozambique is holding a competition to redesign its flag and national
emblem, which date from the civil-war days.
Albert S Kirsch, 07 Oct 2005
From the article:
"Critics of the symbols have no complaint about the book, the
stripes, the corn or the hoe. But to Renamo's supporters, who were
virulent reactionaries during their counter revolutionary past, the
gun and star hark back too painfully to Frelimo's own days as a party
of revolutionary Marxists."
Well, as a vexillologist, *I* have an issue with any tiny pictures.
But is it true they have no objection to the stripes? I thought those
were the party colors.
"Frelimo advocates say the critics are overreaching. The Kalashnikov,
they say, is but a coincidentally Russian symbol of Mozambicans'
determination to defend their land; the star merely signifies
solidarity with Africans. (The horizontal black stripe is supposed to
symbolize Africa, too.)"
A solution: Change it to an M-16!
"If Mozambique's single star were to symbolize Communism, Joaquim
Chissano, the nation's president for 19 years, said, the Stars and
Stripes would place the United States among the world's most leftist
nations."
I completely disagree with his point, but this is one of the funniest
flag-related things I've ever seen.
"If it goes to a vote, it's obvious that Frelimo will smash Renamo,
and the symbols will remain the same. But for the sake of democracy,
they're saying, 'Let's vote.' "
Well, for the sake of democracy, then, maybe they better put off a
vote for a while. Just my two cents.
Nathan Lamn, 07 Oct 2005
The Mozambique star is yellow (on a red field), which is another
recognized "communist star" colour (see USSR, China, Vietnam)
David Kendall, 08 Oct 2005