Police under ICC radar
The Police Independent Complaints Commission (ICC) has initiated an investigation into allegations of police brutality and torture against street-connected children.
The investigation comes after a petition was submitted by the children, claiming that police brutality during operations to remove them from the streets is a violation of their human rights.
ICC commissioner Christopher Tukula confirmed in an interview with Nation on Sunday that the investigation was prompted by the petition.
But Section 23 of the Child Care and Justice Act prohibits the presence of children on the streets.
In their petition, the street-connected children argue that not all are involved in criminal activities; some genuinely beg for survival.
They claim that mass arrests are wrongfully targeting even those who are innocent.
The children also accuse law enforcers of detaining them in police cells alongside suspects older than them, in violation of a High Court ruling that prohibits the detention of children in police cells.
The High Court ruling in 2018, issued by Judge Sylvester Kalembera, explicitly banned the detention of children in police cells and mandated their placement in safe homes pending trial.
This ruling was the result of an appeal case brought by children who were detained at Kachere and Bvumbwe prisons while awaiting trial.
In the petition, street-connected children call for the establishment of a confidential and safe reporting mechanism to report incidents of alleged abuse, harassment or misconduct without fear of police retaliation.
They also demand an end to the practice of detaining them in police cells and insist that they should be sent to safe homes instead.
In an interview, Tukula said they have opened an investigation into the various allegations made by the street-connected children.
He added that the petition outlined various complaints but lacked specific details. They have been interviewing a number of street-connected children to gather factual and evidential information to support the complaints.
Youth and Society executive director Charles Kajoloweka described the concerns raised by the street-connected children in their petition as genuine.
Human Rights Defenders Coalition chairperson Gift Trapence suggested that the Malawi Human Rights Commission should also consider joining the investigations.n
