MALAWI: Shot down at work labeled as a criminal

  1. Posted on Wednesday 27 July 2011 - 14:04
    Chancy Namadzunda
    Image of Chancy Namadzunda
    Chancy Namadzunda, AfricaNews reporter in Lilongwe, Malawi
    It was early in the morning of July 21, when George Thekere, a builder from Kaliyeka in Malawi's capital city of Lilongwe, told his wife that he was going to do a piece of work, just close to his neighborhood. Apparently, that was his last day on earth as he met his untimely death as a result of the political unrest in the southern African country.
    George Thekere, victim of Malawi demonstration
    “I warned him not to do so following the demonstrations that had just happened the other day which cost the lives of innocent Malawians after the police used live bullets. I told him to be indoors as it was the case on July 20, but he insisted that the demonstrations were over.

    “He needed to find food for the family as he was the bread winner of the family. I dint know that those were the last words to speak to me,” narrated a resentful Mrs Thekere before leaving for Chiradzulu- an eight-hour journey from the capital, where her husband was to be laid to rest.

    According to a family member who pleaded for anonymity, people from the surrounding areas had started gathering along the Chilinde road, in the same vicinity, as rumors had it that people are also planning to demonstrate after noting the country’s president Bingu wa Mutharika had delivered an empty speech during his public lecture on the same day of the demonstrations.

    “Our relation was happily building a house in a fence along the same road, perhaps not knowing what is happening outside. But despite that people were not even demonstrating or rooting, the police who had come to disperse them started shooting. It was later transpired that once trigger-happy officer climbed a fence which was at the opposite direction and shot George through the mouth and died on the spot,” he
    said.

    He said upon hearing the news, family members took the body to Kawale police station.

    “We were shocked that at first, the Officer-in-Charge (OC) told us that George was shot by a Malawi Defense Force (MDF) officer but when we mentioned the name of the suspected killer and that we have the shell of a bullet which was used, he backtracked. They then wrote us a letter to go to the hospital where he was pronounced dead at Kamuzu Central,” he said.

    According to the source, more drama followed at the hospital as police officers told the family members not to report the case to human rights bodies saying, ‘the government will take care of anything needed for the burial.’

    “Their panic shocked us all. Just imagine that within minutes they provided a Toyota Hillux to cart the body from Lilongwe to Chiradzulu and we were also told that they have already called a Member of Parliament from that area to assist in other logistics,” said the source, adding that the government gave them K30 000 (about USD 200) and bought a coffin to seal their lips.

    Then later, the innocent George was laid to rest at his home village, Valala in Traditional Authority Likoswe in Chiradzulu district, leaving behind three young children.

    bullet

    Labeled a criminal

    A visit to Lilongwe Central region police found that the file on the deceased had a sentence which reads, ‘In Chilinde, one criminal George Thekere was shot dead.’

    Central Region Police spokesperson, John Namalenga, agreed that live bullets were only used on July 21 to disperse what he described as “thieves and looters.”

    “The police used live bullets on the said date because demonstrations took place on July 20 and after that, the rest were thieves and looters,” he told the local daily paper, The Nation.

    The demonstrations claimed 18 lives with most casualties in the three cities of Blantyre, Lilongwe and Mzuzu.

    The protests, sparked by worsening fuel shortages, rising prices and high unemployment in the southern African country, have seen calls for president Mutharika to step down.

    The demonstrations were organised by members of Civil Society in coalition with Workers, Faith Communities and Concerned Citizens. The country-wide mass demonstrations were held under the theme: “Uniting for Peaceful Resistance Against Poor Economic and Democratic Governance – “A Better Malawi Is Possible”.

Reactions

  1. Posted on Tuesday 03 April 2012 20:02
    kevinmiller
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  3. Posted on Thursday 03 May 2012 09:01
    LukeBaker
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    2 berichten
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    I am Antoinette Ménard, attended CPR training Dallas. Why do people still label blacks as criminals?

    Most of the blacks today finish high school and college. And the ones I see are productive members of society. I'm half black and I'm not a criminal or on welfare.
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