The Ministry of Justice has delayed tabling the bill on the abolition of the death penalty, despite last year’s commitment to present it in parliament this year.
Recently, the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty (WCADP) and 67 other organizations urged the Malawi government to table a bill to abolish the death penalty in the forthcoming parliamentary session.
However, the Ministry of Justice’s Public Relations Officer, Frank Namangale, informed this publication that the ministry is not yet ready to present the bill, saying it is prioritizing other critical bills in the forthcoming parliament sitting.
Namangale stated, “The ministry is not yet ready to present this particular bill. However, we are committed to addressing this important issue in the future. Currently, we are prioritizing several other critical bills in the forthcoming parliament sitting that require immediate attention to address pressing social and economic needs and ensure the well-being of our citizens.”
Capital Punishment abolition advocate Alexious Kamangila reacted by saying that the letter to the Malawi government from WCADP indicates that Malawi is on the right track in efforts to abolish the death sentence.
However, Kamangila pressed the government of President Lazarus Chakwera to take immediate action, arguing that the death penalty is a human rights issue requiring urgent attention.
He emphasized; “For the last 20 years, Malawi has never been so close to abolishing the death penalty as it has been in the last two years. It is high time for President Lazarus Chakwera to exercise his political will to lead Malawi across the line.
“President Chakwera’s legacy as the President who ended the death penalty will shine like the Olympic torch in Paris in the world of human rights. No justice without life. Everyone can change. End the death penalty now.”
Notably, there are no prisoners on death row in Malawi, as President Chakwera commuted all death sentences to life imprisonment in 2022.
