Internet cuts after Mozambique's disputed vote hit businesses

The shutdowns have affected a wide range of professionals from financial market operators, or traders, to website programmers, who generally work remotely.

Uber driver Rofino Fiel said the post-election protests that have convulsed Mozambique for weeks have been disastrous not only because of the running battles on the streets of Maputo - internet shutdowns are bleeding his business dry.

Like many working in small and medium-sized businesses, often in the informal sector, successive blackouts have cost him dear and there is little relief in sight as the protests over allegations of vote-rigging look set to continue.

"This is too much. We are having a very negative experience and per week it costs us a loss of 8,000 meticais ($126)," the 25-year-old told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

"Our activity has come to a complete halt."

Protests have escalated since election authorities said the Frelimo party had won the October 9 vote with a landslide victory, extending its 49-year rule. More than 56% of Mozambique's 17 million eligible voters abstained.

The results have been widely disputed, fuelling clashes between the police and protesters which rights groups and local hospitals say have killed at least 30 people. Many young people supported independent candidate Venancio Mondlane, who says the vote was rigged and has encouraged demonstrations.

Amnesty International has condemned the government's "violent and widespread crackdown on human rights", saying it is the worst suppression of protests in the country in years.