Malawi blocks protesters’ funeral

The authorities in Malawi have halted the mass funeral of seven protesters who were killed during this week’s anti-government protests.

President Bingu wa Mutharika ordered the Mzuzu city council to stop the funerals to avoid further unrest.

At least 18 people have died, many reportedly shot by police, in nationwide demonstrations.

Protesters accuse Mr Mutharika of plunging Malawi into its worst economic crisis since independence.

After the funerals were blocked, religious leaders and civil society members agreed to hold the funeral at the Heroes Acre in the northern city of Mzuzu.

But the head of Mzuzu’s council said the protesters could not be buried at the Heroes Acre because they were looters.

“We have been stopped by the government with our arrangements to bury the seven heroes,” Moses Mkandawire, director of the Church and Society rights group, told AFP news agency.

Graves had already been dug at Zolzolo cemetery and mourners had started gathering when the funerals were blocked, AFP reports.

Mr Mkandawire said the government itself had promised to arrange transportation for the bodies.

Some of the mourners insist they must bury their dead at the city’s Heroes Acre.

Rising cost of living

The protests began on Wednesday, with organisers saying Malawi was facing a “series of catastrophes”.

There has been unrest in the capital, Lilongwe and the biggest city, Blantyre, as well as Mzuzu.

The country was facing rising prices and acute shortages of fuel, electricity and foreign currency, they said in a statement.

They accused the government of failing to listen to the concerns of people, and they feared Malawi was turning into an “autocratic kleptocracy”.

Mr Mutharika – who was elected in 2004 – said he was prepared to enter into dialogue with the opposition but they should stop “sending your boys” on the streets to cause chaos.

“By allowing these people to demonstrate violently, have we solved our problems? Do we have fuel or forex [foreign exchange]? Is this democracy? Not so,” he said in a national address on Thursday.

Several buildings and businesses belonging to members of the security forces and government allies have been attacked during the violence.

The government passed an austerity budget recently, raising taxes to reduce dependence on aid.

Several donor countries have cut aid recently, accusing the government of mishandling the economy and not respecting human rights.

Malawi is one of the poorest countries in the world, with an estimated 75% of the population living on less than $1 (60p) a day.