Malawi Judge calls for scrapping of death penalty

A Supreme Court of Appeal Judge has urged the Community of Saint Egidio in the country to continue advocating for the abolition of death penalty in Malawi.

Speaking at the commemoration of day of abolition of death penalty in Blantyre, Justice Dunstan Mwaungulu said the Community of Saint Egidio should push for abolition of death penalty in Malawi.

“It is therefore my call that Saint Egidio should lobby for the change of this law at Parliament, for they are the ones to revoke the law,” said Mwaungulu.

He added that the community has lived to stand for the prisoners who are taken as sinners.

Mwaungulu cited the Biblical story of an adulterous woman whom people wanted to stone to death as per the law but later was saved by Jesus Christ.

Concurring with Mwaungulu, lawyer Alexious Kamangila who is also a member of Community of Saint Egidio said the country needs to abolish capital punishment that is still in Malawi’s penal code.

“Capital punishment has no deterrence as its proponents suggest, acts as a legitimization of violence, irreversible yet the system has room for error as well as discriminatory as it is more likely to be imposed on the poor,” said Kamangira.

He further faulted the courts for capital punishment sayings it was “violation of the right to life”.

The Commitment of the Community of Saint Egidio in the fight against capital punishment dates back to 1995 when it began to write prisoners. It is from this commitment that Saint Egidio commits itself to advocate for the abolition of death penalty.

Later, the community launched a movement for global moratorium in 1998 that was endorsed by United Nations (UN).