An Ethiopian running a business in Malawi is deported but authorities in Ethiopia refuse to welcome him because he legally possesses a passport.
The Malawi government deported Lilongwe-based Samson Belachew Mulugeta on February 26 2025, but he was denied entry into Ethiopia upon arrival at Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa, two government sources have confided in Weekend Nation.
Mulugeta runs Lalibela, a boutique hotel and holds both a Malawi passport and national identity card. He has been in the country for over 15 years.
He had been under the Malawi Defence Force (MDF) custody since his arrest last year alongside eight Ethiopians on suspicion that they were part of an Ethiopian human smuggling syndicate operating from the Dzaleka Refugee Camp in Dowa District.
Our sources at ministries of Foreign Affairs and Homeland Security, who were among the officers who escorted Mulugeta ,said in separate interviews that the businessman’s extradition was blocked by Ethiopian authorities.
“He was deported on February 26 but got detained upon arrival [in Addis Ababa]. Ethiopian security agents refused to welcome him as a deported passenger.
“It was an embarrassing moment for the Malawian escorts as Mulugeta ended up being detained for two full days before he was sent back to Malawi on March 1 2025,” one of the sources said.
Mulugeta was escorted to Ethiopia by officers from the MDF, Department of Immigration and the Independent Complaints Commission (ICC), according to a document we have seen.
Private practice lawyer Kalekeni Kaphale (Senior Counsel-SC) who is representing the naturalised Malawian also confirmed his client’s predicament in an interview.
Kaphale, who twice served as Attorney General (AG), said after being returned to Malawi following the futile attempt to deport him, Mulugeta was rearrested by MDF on arrival at Kamuzu International Airport on March 1.
“I can confirm that he is still in the custody of MDF,” Kaphale said.
He, however, indicated there were on-going contempt of court proceedings against the MDF Commander General Paul Valentino Phiri for allegedly disregarding a High Court of Malawi order to take Mulugeta to court or release him unconditionally.
According to Weekend Nation’s investigations, ICC commissioner Christopher Tukula was one of the senior government officers who escorted Mulugeta to Ethiopia.
But in an interview, Tukula could neither confirm nor deny being part of the Malawian escorts saying: “Unfortunately, I am unable to say anything on the matters that you are inquiring about apart from just confirming that there are serious allegations of police misconduct that we are investigating in relation to how or the extent to which human trafficking is facilitated by the police.”
Tukula said as an investigative agency, the ICC works and collaborates with other investigative, law enforcement and intelligence institutions as long as police misconduct is alleged, suspected or complained about.
“Such operations are governed by inter-agency MoUs [memorandum of understandings] with strict confidentiality terms. When investigations into any issues are finalised, as ever, we will be happy to share our findings with the media and the public,” he explained.
Queried to justify why government was deporting Mulugeta to Ethiopia when he possesses a Malawian passport, Weekend Nation did not get any responses from the Minister of Homeland Security Ezekiel Ching’oma, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services, the MDF as well as government spokesperson and Minister of Information Moses Kunkuyu.
Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Security chairperson Salim Bagus said he was not aware of the issue when contacted and asked for time to find out.
However, refugee rights activist Innocent Magambi said it was “deeply troubling” that government was showing no interest to end human trafficking involving Ethiopian nationals, who have, for years, facilitated illegal entry of their fellow countrymen into the country on their way to South Africa.
He observed that government’s approach to arrest perpetrators, detain them at Kamuzu Barracks for months without trial before deporting them to Ethiopia without due process was not only irresponsible but also a serious threat to national security.
Magambi, who is chief executive officer of Inua Advocacy, a civil society organisation advocating for refugees’ rights, revealed that his organisation has been raising the alarm and repeatedly provided evidence of the illicit activities to authorities but government has turned a blind eye.
The activist further disclosed that since 2022, Inua had been documenting the illegal trade and gathering substantial data to support their urgent calls for intervention.
“Many of those deported manage to return to Malawi and resume their illegal activities. The case of Mulugeta illustrates government’s failure to deal with the issue.
“He was initially arrested, detained in a military facility, never taken to court and deported, only to return to Malawi. This not only highlights the inefficiency of the Malawian government but is also a major embarrassment for the nation,” he lamented.
In January this year, Kaphale gave the MDF commander notice of the intended suit for aggravated damages for false imprisonment and loss of earnings for the businessperson.
The senior counsel also gave the Army chief a notice of application for his committal to prison for contempt of court.
The country’s military head risks a K10 billion claim and contempt charge for allegedly disregarding two orders granted by the High Court in Lilongwe, according to a notice of intended suit claim for aggravated damages for false imprisonment and loss of earnings written by Kaphale and dated January 29, 2025.
The first order granted in April 2024 described a deportation order which government initially issued and used to extradite Mulugeta as unprocedural and unlawful.
The other order issued in January this year ordered MDF to take the suspected human trafficker to court for trial or have him released unconditionally.
The court further ordered the two security agencies to immediately release all items they confiscated from Mulugeta which include his passport and national ID, a Toyota Fortuner registration NS 4117, three cellphones and cash amounting to over K400 000.
Documents Weekend Nation has seen reveal that besides disregarding the court order, the MDF and the Department of Immigration also defied legal advice in a letter dated July 15 2024 from AG Thabo Chakaka Nyirenda against defying court orders.
In an earlier interview, Kaphale expressed concern with government’s lack of respect for court orders and legal advice.
He described the development as the “lowest point, the nadir, on our collective march on the rule of law journey which we started in 1994.”
“Utter disbelief that this is happening in Malawi under the present constitutional order… This is my lowest moment as a lawyer and as a former Attorney General. I cannot believe this is happening in my life time. I am lost for words.
“I cannot believe that the highly educated MDF command regard themselves as outside the jurisdiction of the courts in Malawi and that they consider themselves as not bound by the rights provisions in the Constitution,” lamented Kaphale.
