MOZAMBIQUE, FLAG OF

national flag consisting of horizontal stripes of green, black, and yellow separated by two narrow white stripes; a red hoist triangle bears a yellow star and other symbols. The width-to-length ratio of the flag is approximately 2 to 3. One of the early leaders in the struggle for independence from Portuguese rule was the Democratic National Union of Mozambique (Udenamo), whose flag was adopted in November 1961. It had a diagonally divided field of green (for the country's forested mountains and plains) and black (for the majority population). Its white central disk suggested the rivers and the Indian Ocean, and its central red star indicated the common blood of all struggling for liberation. A gold wreath on the disk was said to stand for peace and the mineral resources of the land. The same colours and symbolism were adopted by the Mozambique Liberation Front, or Frelimo, in 1962 when Udenamo united with another party. Perhaps influenced by the national flag of Tanganyika (now Tanzania), where the party operated in exile, Frelimo leaders chose for their new flag green-black-yellow horizontal stripes separated by narrower white stripes; at the hoist was a red triangle. For a short period after September 1974, the Frelimo flag flew side by side with the flag of Portugal throughout Mozambique. At the time of independence on June 25, 1975, a new flag was hoisted. This was in turn replaced in April 1983 by a modified version of the Frelimo party flag. A yellow star was added to the red triangle, surmounted by an open book and a crossed hoe and assault rifle, standing, respectively, for education, the peasantry, and defense of the native country. Whitney Smith