The paper focuses exclusively and in great detail on the Naparama militia, the popular self-defence movement which operated across central Mozambique from 1989 onwards. She looks at the formation and diffusion of the movement, the reaction of the government, and the reaction of Renamo, as well as the co-optation of the militia by the government and the fragmentation of the movement. Based on extensive fieldwork and interviews, the author not only goes against a usual dichotomous reading of the war (looking solely at the government and Renamo), but also looks at the internal dynamics of Naparama, its fragmentation and internal competition – a fascinating case is made about the weak institutionalisation of the movement’s leadership and internal competition within the movement.