Prominent Mozambican journalist’s devices returned following legal intervention
Global Climate Legal Defense (CliDef) welcomes the return of work equipment to a prominent Mozambican investigative journalist, Estacio Valoi, after authorities seized the devices from his home nearly three months ago.
The Judicial Court in Pemba, Mozambique dropped the order last Wednesday, citing a lack of justification for the seizure. CliDef and local legal partners challenged the device seizure.
Valoi reports on natural resources, environmental crimes, conflict, and corruption in the northernmost province of Cabo Delgado in Mozambique. He helped establish the daily newspaper Zambeze and is also a newsroom chief editor in Quelimane.
On June 16, 2026, authorities in Mozambique seized Valoi’s devices, including a laptop, two mobile phones, and a tablet, from his home in the Cabo Delgado province. In the process of the seizure, one of the three National Criminal Investigation Service (SERNIC) agents shared that the judge wanted his August 2025 report in an independent newspaper about illegal timber exports removed.
In December 2025, Valoi had voiced publicly that he was facing intimidation for his ongoing reporting on timber smuggling in the Quirimbas National Park in the region. Prior to the device seizure in June, Valoi was designated as an arguido, the Mozambican legal term for formal suspect. This followed a criminal defamation complaint by Safi Timber against Valoi for the August 2025 article. CliDef considers this complaint a SLAPP, or an abusive lawsuit intended to silence Valoi and his reporting.
“Environmental journalists must be able to investigate and report without fear, intimidation, or reprisal for telling the truth. Cabo Delgado not only faces threats of deforestation, but also massive LNG and coal developments that are happening behind a cloak from the public eye,” said Alfred Brownell, Founding President of Global Climate Legal Defense (CliDef). “Journalists, like Estacio Valoi, take on significant risk to share their investigative research about extractive industries with the world. At CliDef, we use legal interventions, like this court reversal, to help keep them safe and free to continue this vital reporting.”
“Despite the court ruling, I am deeply outraged at the way my work has been affected – that is, I have been without my equipment for three months, particularly as my work tools remained seized, which may contain sensitive professional information and protect my sources,” said Valoi.
Following the court’s order on Wednesday, CliDef and local legal partners will continue to ask the court to end the criminal defamation proceedings and drop a subpoena requiring access to Valoi’s device passwords.
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About Global Climate Legal Defense (CliDef)
Global Climate Legal Defense uses the law to keep climate defenders free to speak and act. We offer legal advice and strategy, coordination, and funds for legal defense. We build and strengthen a network of diverse lawyers and legal organizations to serve the climate movement. Learn more: www.climatelegaldefense.org