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Amnesty International Report 2005 - Malawi

Covering events from January - December 2004

The May 2004 general election dominated the year. There were reports of excessive force against protesters by the police, and of the torture of suspects in police custody. The state-controlled news media overwhelmingly favoured the campaign of the ruling United Democratic Front (UDF). Prison conditions and the rate of prison deaths remained a significant concern.

Background

Observers found the polling at the presidential and parliamentary elections on 20 May to have been largely free and fair, but the overall process unfair. State-controlled radio and television gave by far the most airtime and the most favourable coverage to the ruling UDF's campaign and presidential candidate, Bingu wa Mutharika.

In August former human rights lawyer Ralph Kasambara was appointed Attorney General.

Police abuses

Reports continued of excessive force by the police to disperse protesters.

• On 22 February the police reportedly used excessive force to curtail a peaceful rally organized by the opposition coalition. Several people were injured when live ammunition was fired to disperse the crowd.

Police used live ammunition to quell rioting that followed the announcement of the result of the presidential elections.

• On 23 May, 10-year-old Epiphania Bonjesi was shot when police used live ammunition on demonstrators in Blantyre. She was admitted to hospital and died on 24 May. According to eyewitnesses, a police officer took aim and fired at her as she sat on her veranda. Five other people reportedly died from bullet wounds during the same disturbances. No independent inquiry into the deaths was carried out, and the findings of any police investigation were not made public. No action was known to have been taken against any officer. Requests for information by the Malawi Human Rights Commission and human rights groups received no response. Compensation of the equivalent to US$2,700 was reportedly paid by the authorities to the family of Epiphania Bonjesi.

The torture or ill-treatment of suspects and deaths in police custody were reported to continue.

Mabvuto Maguja died on 23 May, reportedly as a result of repeated beatings following his arrest the same day by Lilongwe police. The postmortem examination found that the cause of death was consistent with pressure on his chest from a blunt object such as a foot, and that injuries to his neck were consistent with strangulation. Wekha Maguja and Gift Chikani, arrested with him, were also allegedly beaten. During the course of the arrests, police officers were reported to have beaten Hannah Kapaluma with machetes and sexually assaulted her.

Prisons

More than 180 prisoners died in 2004 – up from 162 in 2003 – out of a prison population of 9,000. This rate of deaths required urgent remedial measures according to standards established by the International Committee of the Red Cross. Many of the deaths were HIV related; others were the result of preventable illnesses caused or exacerbated by overcrowding, poor diet, insanitary conditions and medical neglect.

Constitutional freedoms threatened

In June a presidential decree that no demonstration connected with the elections should take place was ruled unconstitutional by the High Court. Extensive political control of state media limited freedom of expression.

In July the President directed police to round-up women commercial sex-workers. However, the High Court subsequently ruled that the presidential decree was unconstitutional and in breach of the right of freedom of movement, as well as discriminatory on the basis of gender.