Activists, students and other protesters joined Malawi’s ruling
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislator Bon Kalindo in the streets
of the capital, Lilongwe on Thursday, June 23 to demonstrate against
albino killings.
The legislator, human rights activists and other concerned citizens were
protesting against continued abductions and killings of people with
people with albinism.
The protests came after at least 19 albinos had been killed in Malawi since 2014.
The legislator, who was a popular stage and TV comedian accused some
unnamed politicians of being part of the albino hunters’ syndicate,
hence their failure to act decisively. Kalindo, announced that he would
parade naked but during the march, he simply wore a small red short, a
red vest, a red scarf and red cap.
Contrary to the guidance by Amnesty International that life
imprisonments were enough punishments for albino killers, Kalindo said
those convicted should face the death penalty.
“The heinous acts of these criminals need to be stopped immediately. If
we want to prevent further murders, we should use the strongest
punishment available to deter murder, and that is the death penalty,”
Kalindo told News24 in a telephone interview before the march.
He said if murderers were sentenced to death and executed, prospective
ones would think twice before killing for fear of losing their own
lives.
“The bottom line is simple. Vicious murderers should be killed to
prevent them from murdering again. Let’s accept the fact. The death
penalty as a deterrent and as a form of permanent incapacitation helps
to prevent future crime,” he observed.
Malawi’s information minister Patricia Kaliati recently ruled out the
implementation of the death penalty against killers of people with
albinism. She said it was possible to mete out stiff punishment while
respecting human rights.
“Life imprisonment is also a strong deterrent punishment,” she said.
Malawi leader Peter Mutharika has also rebuffed calls for the implementation of death penalty.
More photos below…
Source: News 24/Capital FM Malawi
