CHRR faults JB on gender remark

The Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation (CHRR) has criticised Malawi President Joyce Banda for regularly referring to her gender when criticised.

In its assessment of Banda’s 20 months in office, CHRR says it cannot condone the President’s tendency to divert public attention from objectively looking at issues at hand and begin to sympathise with her gender.

“As human rights defenders, we at CHRR cannot smile at any attempt that is bent on thwarting Her Excellency Joyce Banda’s development agenda on the basis that she is a woman. Smiling at such attempts, that is if they exist in the current scenario, would definitely be retrogressive towards the realisation of Millennium Development Goals,” says Timothy Mtambo, CHRR acting executive director in the statement dated December 31 2013.

In an interview on Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) last week, Banda accused the media of writing negative stories about her on the controversial Presidential jet because she is a female head of State.

Mtambo recalled that upon her return from South Africa recently, Banda told journalists that she was being targeted because she a woman.

He recalled that few months ago when Media Institute of Southern Africa (Misa)- Malawi Chapter, CHRR, Centre for the Development of People (Cedep), Public Affairs Committee (PAC) and several other non-governmental organisations pressed her to sign the Table Mountain Declaration as requested by a Misa delegation, Banda made similar sentiments in her rejection to sign it.

While applauding the President for heeding calls to table the Declaration of Assets Bill in Parliament, Mtambo observes that the bill is powerless in the absence of an access to information legislation, bearing in mind that the two are directly linked to each other.

“They complement each other. In fact, having in place both declaration of asset and access to information legislations may not only help in curbing corruption and abuse of power but also attract direct foreign investments and improved public and donor confidence in the government,” says the statement.

He also criticises People’s Party’s (PP) attitude towards the private media, noting that Banda’s press conferences have changed from being platforms for her to engage with journalists to the ruling party’s functions where journalists are subjected to intimidation and name-calling.

Mtambo reiterates calls for Banda to declare her assets as a human rights obligation, observing that her refusal has only succeeded in planting seeds of suspicion in her “perceived” role in the cashgate.

CHRR has meanwhile proposed several recommendations, including that President Banda’s administration must acknowledge that we are in crisis that requires concerted efforts from all stakeholders.

Mtambo, therefore, says President Banda’s administration must walk the austerity talk by, among other things, cutting domestic and foreign travel.

Attempts to get a comment from presidential spokesperson Steve Nhlane or Minister of Information Brown Mpinganjira proved futile as we went to press on Monday.