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Statement on Malawi-killings, detentions and repression reach alarming levels: SADC to act now on Malawi
Southern African Development Community - Council of Non-Governmental Organisations
July 25, 2011

Use of lethal force by Malawian Police, in a direct contravention of the United Nations Basic Principles on the use of force and fire arms by law enforcement agencies, has resulted in the death of 18 innocent civilians during demonstrations against economic hardships and bad governance by the Malawi government. Hundreds others were wounded and hospitalized.

The Southern African Development Community- Council of Non Governmental Organizations (SADC-CNGO) condemns the killings and heavy-handedness of the Mutharika government's response to the riots that paralyzed nearly the entire country especially on the 20th and 21st of July 2011. The beatings and all manner of torture and inhuman treatment that civil society leaders, journalists and innocent civilians have suffered and continue to suffer at the hands of the Malawian police should be condemned in the strongest possible terms.

SADC-CNGO has also learnt with grave concern from its counterpart, the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) that the Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA) has issued a ban stopping all private radio stations from live broadcasting of the demonstrations that are taking place in the country.

Malawians were demonstrating against increasing human rights violations, repression and failure by the government to solve the deepening socio-economic crisis characterized by fuel and foreign currency shortages, high cost of living, massive unemployment and highly constrained fiscal space. Britain, Malawi's biggest donor, recently froze its aid to Malawi following a diplomatic row over a leaked cable that referred to president Mutharika as "autocratic and intolerant of criticism". The cable led to the expulsion of Britain's ambassador from Malawi. In response, Britain not only suspended its aid, resulting in a huge budget deficit, but also expelled Malawi's representative in London.

The governance and human rights trends in Malawi are worrisome. SADC-CNGO therefore calls upon SADC to review the governance, peace and human security situation in that country and act now to prevent further deterioration of the situation, killings of innocent civilians and reversal of the modest gains that the SADC region had made in trying to promote good governance, peace and stability in the region. We also call upon the Malawi government, particularly the law enforcement agents to refrain from use of force and fire arms against peaceful demonstrators.

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