Category: Judicial

Luanda – Felix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo was elected Wednesday as Acting President of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) during the 42nd summit of the SADC Heads of State held in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

According to the communiqué of the summit that reached ANGOP, the President of the Democratic Republic of Congo will lead SADC for a year to be further replaced by the President of Angola as part of the rotational presidency of the community.

The event was attended by Angola that was represented by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Téte António, the Head of State of Namibia, Hage G. Geingob, who was elected chairperson of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation.

During the summit, the Heads of State and Government of the community received the report of the outgoing Chairperson of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation, South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa, having congratulated him for his exemplary leadership and continued efforts in finding solutions to address threats to peace and security along the year, despite the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The participants also received the briefing report from the SADC facilitator for the Kingdom of Lesotho, President Cyril Ramaphosa, on the implementation of the decisions regarding the Kingdom of Lesotho and noted the progress made.

The Lesotho government was urged to accelerate the completion of ongoing reforms, proceed with the peace process, application of transitional justice and reconciliation to promote national unity and coexistence.

Those present hailed the SADC facilitator and facilitation team for their leadership and role in supporting the government and People of the Kingdom of Lesotho, the national multisectoral dialogue process and the adoption of the comprehensive reform proposals.

The summit approved the establishment of an Oversight Committee, consisting of the Panel of Elders (PoA) and the SADC Mediation Reference Group (MRG) to ensure continuity and oversight the reforms implementation in the Kingdom of Lesotho.

Regarding the security situation in Cabo Delgado Province, northern Mozambique, the summit approved the extension of the mandate of the SADC Mission in Mozambique (SAMIM) and the relevant related processes.

The meeting commended the countries assisting the SADC Mission in Mozambique “SAMIN” for their solidarity and sacrifice in supporting the Mission and expressed condolences to the governments and families of the nine SAMIM personnel who lost their lives in action.

The summit was attended by Heads of State and Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini, DRCongo, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Kingdom of Lesotho, Angola, Union of the Comoros and Madagascar.

Source: Angola Press News Agency

The UN Population Fund (UNFPA) in Malawi has hailed the launch of the Parliamentary Caucus on Population and Sustainable Development saying the initiative is a strategic entry point in engaging with parliamentarians and their constituencies on population dynamics and sustainable development.

Speaking during the event in Lilongwe on 12th August 2022, UNFPA Representative a.i, Ms. Miranda Tabifor said the launch is timely as Malawi is still grappling with many problems that require the Caucus to undertake necessary advocacy to ensure concrete action is taken to address these issues.

Citing the Government of Malawi’s commitment to accelerate the implementation of the ICPD25, she underscored that Malawi is making good progress in some commitments, and progress has stagnated in other areas, “For example, while the country is making good progress in reducing preventable maternal deaths from the maternal mortality ratio of 439 to 329 per 100,000 live births currently, the country needs to step up its efforts to achieve the target of 110 per 100,000 live births by 2030.”

Ms. Tabifor added that the national commitment to end child marriages is another key area that requires the Caucus’s attention. The Malawi Parliament enacted a law to increase the minimum age at marriage from 15 to 18 years. However, the country still has high rates of child marriage with 38 percent of girls getting married before the age of 18.

“With the Caucus now in place, attention should now shift to enforcement of the law,” she said.

Guest of Honour at the function and Speaker of Parliament, Hon. Catherine Gotani Hara said the launch marks a beginning of a new chapter as Parliament, in the past, was largely ignored by development partners’ despite being a critical player in policy formulation.

“We have 193 Members of Parliament in the House who represent the 19 million and plus population in Malawi,” she said. “So, let’s work together, invest in us, build our capacity so that we are not left out in policy development.”

Initially, the Parliamentary Caucus on Population and Sustainable Development was launched in 2017. With the relaunch, there are high hopes that the Caucus will play a central role in steering critical sustainable development issues outlined in Malawi Vision 2063.

Chairperson of the Parliamentary Caucus on Population and Sustainable Development, Hon. Abel Kayembe explained that the Caucus will not only champion and advocate for policy reforms on population management but also support policy formulation to enable development at parliamentary level.

“It’s also important for MPs to know the dynamics of population management,” he said. “Sometimes, it’s the parliamentarians who are encouraging their constituents to have many children so that they can have many votes. But we should not focus on the numbers, but the quality of life of the people who we represent.”

Source: United Nations Population Fund

Cholera and Floods – Humanitarian Situation in numbers, 31 July 2022

• 1,003 cholera cases in 10 districts with 40 deaths

• 7 camps for displaced persons are still active in Chikwawa

• 87,410 COVID-19 cases with 2,665 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic

HIGHLIGHTS

• Cholera cases continue to rise in 10 districts in the southern region with 1,003 cases registered as of 31 July 2022.

• 416,982 people reached with hygiene promotion, positive behaviour messages on handwashing, water usage, and proper use of latrines in UNICEF targeted districts.

• 8,969 people have gained access to safe water in Karonga and Chitipa districts.

• 1, 473,664 people are fully immunized with COVID-19 vaccines representing 10 per cent of the target population.

Source: UN Children’s Fund

Until last year, the students at Eliya Chimthengo Primary School in Dedza had never heard of digital learning. Their studies were conducted with one or two old and worn textbooks that were shared amongst a class of 60. Often, there would be only 3 or 4 in a class. Teaching is basic, with teachers instructing on a chalk board without visual prompts or the stimulation of creative teaching material.

This changed in 2020 when the UN Joint Programmes on Girls’ Education, funded by the Royal Norwegian Embassy, launched a digital learning platform in the school. This e-learning aims to ensure that adolescent girls and boys at the school have access to sexual reproductive health and rights and can access information and available services crucial to their development into young adults.

Harmful traditions fuelling teen pregnancies

Like in much of Malawi, adolescent girls in Dedza district are negatively impacted by sociocultural norms and harmful traditional practices in their area, and the risk of harm is high. In Malawi, 25 percent of young girls aged 15 to 19 have children. A startling 40 percent will have given birth before reaching the age of 18.

This joint programme is working to reverse this threat. By engaging girls early, it is impacting on the decisions young girls make about their sexual and reproductive health and rights. Students from standard six to eight are now learning comprehensive sexuality education to protect them from dropping out of school due to early pregnancy and shield them from sexual and gender-based violence.

Digital devices helping teens access SRHR information

Access to digital content and devices has excited many students at the school. Cynthia Kachepa (12), is one of the students taking part in the sessions.

“From the information I got through the lessons, I am now able to make decisions about my life and my body,” she says. “In addition, I have also learnt much about how to take care of my body as I grow up and how to keep clean during my period.”

Esnart Lyton (16) also sings the praises of the digital learning forum. “For me, the most important thing I learnt is how to avoid unplanned pregnancies. I wish we had many girls in the area taking part in this course as the problem is very big in this community,” she says.

Apart from girls, many boys are also taking part in the digital learning classes. One of the boys is 16-year-old Macdonald Oliyeri.

“Some boys my age are already married. It could have been the same for me if it wasn’t for this course,” he says. “It has opened my eyes and helped me stay focused on my education.”

The early success of the pilot in 26 schools has led to plans to scale up the initiative to another 20 schools in 2022, when more young girls and boys will be able to access more information on their sexual and reproductive health and rights and access content that will help protect them from harmful practices that threaten their healthy development into adulthood.

Source: United Nations Population Fund

Malawian state prosecutors have added charges against a Chinese national who was already facing five counts for allegedly exploiting children. A BBC investigation found 26-year-old Lu Ke selling exploitative videos of Malawian children, officials said.

Malawi’s Senior State Advocate Serah Mwangonde told a court in Lilongwe on Thursday that the additional charges follow the completion of investigations into the matter.

She later briefed reporters outside the court.

“We have also added money laundering, procurement of children to perform in public and we have added a cybersecurity crime,” she said.

Mwangonde said the new charges are in addition to five counts of child trafficking which Lu Ke was charged with earlier in July after his extradition from Zambia in June.

Police arrested Lu Ke last month following his extradition from Zambia, where he fled after a British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) investigation reported he was recording young villagers in central Malawi and making them say racist things about themselves in Mandarin.

In one video, children, some as young as 9, are heard saying in Mandarin that they are a “black monster” and have a “low IQ.”

The BBC reported he was selling the videos at up to $70 apiece to a Chinese website. The children in the videos were paid about a half-dollar each.

Lu Ke’s lawyer, Andy Kaonga, told the court Thursday that he was yet to be served with the amended charge sheet and other documents or disclosures.

State prosecutor Mwangonde said her office was still perfecting the remaining documents.

Kaonga said the documents and new charge-sheet would help him know how best he could advise the suspect to properly take a plea.

This forced the presiding senior resident magistrate, James Mankhwazi, to adjourn the case to Aug. 19.

Lu Ke is currently at Maula prison after a court last month refused him bail, saying he could easily flee the country considering that he fled to Zambia where he was arrested and sent back to Malawi.

Source: Voice of America

            A Malawian rights activist has been found safe a day after his reported abduction led to the cancellation of an anti-government protest.

An eyewitness said five men abducted Sylvester Namiwa, the head of the Center for Democracy and Economic Development Initiatives (CDEDI), as he was leaving a press conference Wednesday.

He was found alive Thursday afternoon in a bush in the Nathenje area on the outskirts of Malawi’s capital, Lilongwe.

Edwin Mauluka is the spokesperson for the CDEDI.

“I was this morning with him as we escorted him to police. The issue is in the hands of police because we reported that matter to police, that Mr. Namiwa has found there at Nathenje,” said Mauluka.

Namiwa spoke to reporters after his re-appearance Thursday. He said he would not give details on his alleged abduction until he talked with his lawyers and family members.

However, he said he believed the abduction was a government ploy to silence dissenting views.

“I am betting my last drop on my blood to defend this democracy…. Chakwera and his Malawi Congress party are a threat to democracy but I will not be intimidated,” said Namiwa.

Police said Friday they have taken a statement from Namiwa and are conducting an investigation. Harry Namwaza is the deputy spokesperson for the Malawi Police Service.

“After taking a statement from him, there are other things we should do like visiting all scenes where he was allegedly taken to,” said Namwaza. “So, once we are done with our investigation, we can give an update in terms of what we found and what will be the way forward because we also have to identify those behind these abductions.”

The abduction of Namiwa ignited a war of words in parliament Thursday.

The minister of Homeland Security accused the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) of carrying out the abduction to tarnish the image of the government.

DPP lawmakers accused the government of abducting Namiwa to foil an anti-government protest that was planned for Thursday.

The protest was canceled in Lilongwe but demonstrations went forward in other areas, where police fired teargas to disperse people who allegedly wanted to loot shops and vandalize property.

Source: Voice of America