Malawi Human Rights Commission Urges Full Abolition of Death Penalty
The commission believes that the death penalty is inhumane and violates the right to human dignity.
LILONGWE, Malawi — The Malawi Human Rights Commission (MHRC) on Tuesday expressed concern over the country’s slow progress towards fully abolishing the death penalty, despite recent statements of support from government officials, writes Winston Mwale.
Malawi has maintained a de facto moratorium on executions since 1994, but the death penalty remains on the books, allowing courts to impose it for offenses including murder, treason, housebreaking, and rape.
The MHRC cited surveys indicating strong local support for abolition.
A 2022 parliamentary committee hearing found 94% of respondents favored abolition, while a 2018 survey of traditional leaders in high-crime areas showed only 6% supported capital punishment.
Despite this public support, a bill to abolish the death penalty has not yet been drafted for parliament, the MHRC said.
The commission acknowledged the landmark 2005 Constitutional Court ruling that abolished the mandatory death sentence for murder, allowing for greater judicial discretion.
However, the commission believes that Malawi must fully align with global trends by abolishing the death penalty altogether.
The commission also pointed out that the Universal Periodic Review by the UN Human Rights Committee has twice recommended Malawi abolish the death penalty by signing the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
The MHRC urged the Ministry of Justice to table a bill for complete abolition of the death penalty in the next parliamentary session.
They pledged to directly engage with the minister and the Legal Affairs Committee to ensure this issue is addressed.
The commission believes that the death penalty is inhumane and violates the right to human dignity.
They also highlighted its irreversibility and the risk of wrongful convictions, citing the Kafantayeni Resentencing Project, where the High Court released death row inmates found to be wrongly convicted.
They further argued that the death penalty fails to consider mitigating factors and results in uniform sentencing for crimes that may vary widely in severity and context.