World’s law professors and academics condemn Executive assault on Malawi Judiciary
We, law professors and academics from around the world, note the judgments of the High Court of Malawi sitting as a Constitutional Court and of the Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal, which held that the presidential election held on 21 May 2019 was marred by unlawful and unconstitutional actions and irregularities, and therefore that there must be a fresh presidential election. These judgments also provided guidance on the standard to be used when determining the winner of a presidential election.
We note that all parties, including the government, had previously committed, and are under a legal obligation, to respect determinations of the courts.
We are deeply concerned about coordinated attempts by the government to undermine the judiciary, including statements by President Peter Mutharika falsely accusing the judiciary of having staged a coup against his government and claiming that Parliament is supreme in Malawi, and an attempt by the government to repeal the two judgments via Parliament.
We are extremely concerned that the Chief Secretary to the Cabinet has issued a public notice and written personal letters to the Chief Justice, Mr Andrew Nyirenda, SC, and Justice of Appeal Mr Edward Twea, SC, ordering them to take leave pending their retirement and intimating that the President will appoint a new Chief Justice.
These actions constitute an unprecedented assault on judicial independence in Malawi. We hereby condemn them in the strongest terms.
We note that all judges in Malawi are by law guaranteed tenure until they reach the age of 65. We note that Chief Justice Nyirenda is due to retire on 31 December 2021 and Justice Twea on 31 April 2021. We also note that the conditions of service for judges in Malawi provide that leave is optional. Hence, no judge can be forced to take leave at any time of their judicial tenure. Moreover, the Chief Secretary has no legal authority to direct Chief Justice Nyirenda and Justice Twea to take leave.
We call upon the government of Malawi to uphold the rule of law and constitutionalism and to respect all court judgments. The government must refrain from attacking individual judges and from undermining the judiciary.
Signed
-
- Migai Akech, Professor of Law, University of Nairobi
- Philip Alston, John Norton Pomeroy Professor, New York University School of Law
- Kevin Bampton, former Professor of Law and Secretary to the 1994 Malawi ConstitutionCommittee
- Chikosa Banda, Senior Lecturer, University of Malawi
- John Barker, former Lecturer of Law, University of Malawi, Director of Cambridge Governance Labs and Fellow of the Lauterpacht Centre for International Law, University of Cambridge
- Christine Bell, Professor of Constitutional Law, University of Edinburgh
- Edwin Bikundo, Senior Lecturer, Griffiths University
- Roger Burridge, Emeritus Professor, University of Warwick
- Lilian Chenwi, Professor of Law, University of the Witwatersrand
- Enoch Chilemba, Lecturer, University of Malawi
- Danwood Chirwa, Professor and Dean of Law, University of Cape Town
- Hugh Corder, Emeritus Professor of Law and former Dean of Law, University of CapeTown
- Peter Danchin, Professor of Law, University of Maryland
- Surya Deva, Associate Professor of Law, City University of Hong Kong
- Jacques de Ville, Professor and Dean of Law, University of the Western Cape
- Pierre de Vos, Claude Leone Foundation Chair in Constitutional Governance, Universityof Cape Town
- Rosalind Dixon, Professor of Law and Director of the Gilbert & Tobin Centre of Public Law, University of New South Wales
- Wesahl Domingo, Associate Professor of Law and Head of the School of Law, University of the Witwatersrand
- Donald F Donovan, Partner, Debevoise& Plimpton, Adjunct Professor, New York University School of Law
- Solomon Ebobrah, Professor and former Dean of Law, Niger Delta University
- Hiroshige Fujii, Assistant Professor of International Law, University of Utsunomiya, Japan
- Yash Ghai, Emeritus Professor of Law, University of Hong Kong
- James Gathii, Wing-Tat Lee Chair of International Law and Professor of Law, Loyola University of Chicago School of Law
- Avinash Govender, Professor and Dean of Law, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
- MicheloHansungule, Professor of Law, University of Pretoria
- Christof Heyns, Professor and Former Dean, University of Pretoria
- Jeffrey Jowell, QC, former Director of the Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law, Barrister at Blackstone Chambers
- Laurence Juma, Professor of Law, Deputy Dean, Rhodes University
- Evance Kalula, Emeritus Professor of Law, University of Cape Town
- Garton Kamchedzera, Associate Professor & former Dean of Law, University of Malawi
- Fidelis Kanyongolo, Associate Professor & former Dean of Law, University of Malawi
- Pamela Katz, Professor of Political Science and Legal Studies, New York University
- Jonathan Klaaren, Professor of Law and former Head of the School of Law, University of the Witwatersrand
- Heinz Klug, Evjue-Bascom Professor of Law and Director of the Global Legal Studies Centre, University of Wisconsin Law School
- Sandra Liebenberg, HF Oppenheimer Chair in Human Rights Law, University ofStellenbosch
- MusavenganaMachaya, Lecturer, Great Zimbabwe University
- SunduzwayoMadise, Dean of Law, University of Malawi
- Tshepo Madlingozi, Associate Professor of Law and Director of the Centre for Applied Legal Studies, University of the Witwatersrand
- Bernadette Malunga, Lecturer, University of Malawi
- Mtende Mhango, Professor and Dean of Law, National University of Lesotho
- TiyanjanaMaluwa, H Laddie Montague Chair in Law & Professor of Law andInternational Affairs, Penn State University
- Melvin Mbao, Emeritus Professor and former Dean of Law, University of the North-West
- Christopher Mbazira, Professor and Principal of the School of Law, University of Makerere
- Gay McDougall, Senior Fellow and Distinguished Scholar-in-Residence,
Leitner Center for International Law and Justice, Fordham University School of Law - BenyamDawit Mezmur, Professor of Law and Deputy Dean, University of the WesternCape
- Tshepo Mongalo, Professor of Law and Head of the Department of Law, Monash University South Africa
- AdmarkMoyo, Senior Lecturer, Great Zimbabwe University
- Chantelle G Moyo, Lecturer, Great Zimbabwe University
- John Mubangizi, Professor and Dean of Law, University of the Free State
- George Mukundi, Adjunct Professor of Law, University of Cape Town
- Owen Murozvi, Lecturer, Zimbabwe Ezekiel Guti University
- Christina Murray, Emeritus Professor of Law, University of Cape Town
- Valentine Mutatu, Lecturer and Head of Public Law, Midlands State University
- Makau Mutua, SUNY Distinguished Professor and the Floyd H and Linda Hurst Faculty Scholar, School of Law, University at Buffalo
- Willy Mutunga, Former Chief Justice of Kenya and former Lecturer in Law, University of Nairobi
- Lea Mwambene, Professor and Deputy Dean of Law, University of the Western Cape
- JayanNayar, Associate Professor of Law, University of Warwick
- Caroline Ncube, DST/NRF SARChI Research Chair in Intellectual Property, Innovationand Development, University of Cape Town
- Muna Ndulo, William Nelson Cromwell Professor of International and Comparative Law, Cornell University School of Law
- MwizaNkhata, former Associate Professor and Dean of Law, University of Malawi
- Clement Ng’ong’ola, Professor of Law, University of Botswana
- Enyinna Nwauche, Professor of Law, Nelson Mandela School of Law, University of Fort Hare
- Desmond Oriakhogba, Lecturer, University of Benin, Nigeria
- Abdul Paliwala, Emeritus Professor of Law, University of Warwick
- Geo Quinot, Professor of Law, University of Stellenbosch
- Henry Richardson, Professor of Law, Temple University School of Law
- Theunis Roux, Professor of Law, University of New South Wales
- Sharifah Sekalala, Associate Professor, University of Warwick
- Issa Shivji, Emeritus Professor of Public Law, University of Dar es Salaam
- Nicola Smit, Professor and Dean of Law, University of Stellenbosch
- James Tsabora, Senior Lecturer, University of Zimbabwe
Mutharika has exposed himself to be corrupt, wicked and shameless through the 2012 Midnight Six saga where he eXported the dead body of his late brother Bingu to SA, the 2019 Fraudulent Presidential elections where he used tippeXed results to claim re-election and the 2020 Chief Justice removal plot where he plotted to aXe the current CJ to replace him with the court-declared incompetent and corrupt Jane Ansah. Mutharika has attributes suited for an underworld (mafia) boss and not running any country–he will do anything to ascend to the highest office on the land and commit any transgression to remain… Read more »
Chilima said is with what judges reminded Mutharika of no rights to fire chief Nyirenda & I wondered why some of the citizens mocked chilima about this idiomatic judgement from whom you call president of yours. Look how he has divided this country, Muhara contract expired last year. Today I acknowledge that Mutharika is not a professor in law but a professor in lies & cretins. 68 professors in law are not opposition leaders that can agree with what the truth chilima said about Chief Nyirenda that is going nowhere. My question to Mutharika’s followers, which university your professor went… Read more »
Njuchi zikati zikuunjilire😆🤗😋😂😊🤣
APM will likely NEVER receive another Honourary Degree or be invited to speak at a Law University in the future.
62 professors akakhale abodza. Inu olondola.
The old man has lost any grain of respect & integrity. We are now a LAUGHING STOCK . A professor of law as president who cannot even respect himself at all. He probably indeed FAKE.
World law professors and academics!!!! I see 65 characters. 22 South Africans, 11 Malawians, 8 US, 6 UK (most from Africa), 5 from Zimbabwe, 2 each from Nigeria, Uganda and Hong Kong, and 1 each from Japan, Botswana, Lesotho and Tanzania. Surely this is not the world.
It is a Start
They should wait for it to grow. Otherwise it’s premature to talk about “world academics”.
u have a problem with that?
Yes. 65 unelected people cannot pretend to speak on behalf of more than 120,000 “world law professors and academics”. This is FRAUDULENT.
Such ignorance anything beyond the border of Malawi is the rest of the World SHAME the President educated in the UK and USA has embarrassed Malawi by disrespecting THE RULE of LAW and the Supreme Court that other Countries are taking Notice of the President’s POOR Behaviour when he himself holds himself up as a Lawyer.
I wish that some from Mutharika’s last place of employment in the US could have signed, ie Washington Uni, St Louis, Missouri.
Their meetings are written in Tumbuka. What kind of association full of Tumbukas only and fake white people? We don’t have law scholars from other 25 tribes in Malawi? This is a Mbwenumbwenu society.
hahahahahahahah zakuvutani
Its not about tribes here the fact is your dad pulofesa is a low professor
Adadi chikawachitikila ndi chiyani abale inu masiku okutha ithawa ndikuona mawu amati ukafuna kukwatira uzionesesa akadzi ena amakupitisa kuphompo
Yalakwa.
Kodi ndi aja akuluwa amanama kuti akutisekawa? Zoona ndi zoti akuseka ndani tsopano? Shame.