MHRC wants SA held responsible for attacks

The Malawi Human Rights Commission (MHRC) has called upon the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the African Union and SADC to hold South Africa accountable for the atrocities being committed during xenophobia attacks.

The commission argues that the attacks are being committed with the full knowledge of Pretoria and in the face of her police.

Seven foreigners have lost lives in the attacks, including two Malawians. About 3 200 Malawians have been affected, forcing Lilongwe to cough K195 million to repatriate her citizens.

In a statement on Wednesday, MHRC urged Pretoria to quell the crisis: “The government of Malawi and all concerned African Governments should impress upon the government of South Africa to act with full resolve to put a conclusive end to this crisis.

“In the interest of justice, the commission calls on the government of South Africa to investigate these heinous crimes and ensure that all the perpetrators are identified prosecuted and the victims appropriately compensated.”

MHRC welcomed repatriation efforts, but also called for efforts and mechanisms to ensure that the victims recover their losses through compensations.

“MHRC commends the steps taken by the government of Malawi on its obligations to engage the government of the Republic of South Africa and the efforts made to repatriate the affected persons from South Africa.

“We [would also advocate] for efforts and mechanisms to ensure that there is redress, recovery and where possible compensation to all victims for the property that might have been lost in the process,” added MHRC in the statement.

The commission also urged Lilongwe to devise lasting strategies to address the push and pull factors that fuel migration of Malawians to destinations within and outside of Africa in search of jobs and other economic opportunities.

So far, government has repatriated 390 people from South Africa with six more buses expected to arrive in the country by Sunday—Mana