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FDC cancels anti third term march
By
Aubrey Mchulu - 28-01-2003 |
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Forum for the Defence of the Constitution (FDC) yesterday called-off another proposed anti-third term march in Blantyre saying it wanted to monitor events in Parliament regarding the constitutional amendment allowing the president a third term.
Civil Liberties Committee (Cilic) executive director Emmie Chanika, one of the march organisers, said in an interview the civil society is currently discussing with religious organisations ways to completely dispose off the third term bill, currently referred to the parliamentary Legal Affairs Committee.
“We decided later on to monitor how the voting would go and prepare for celebrations in case of its failure to pass,” she said.
Chanika said civil society and religious organisations want the bill disposed “once and for all” because “it has sucked a lot of our money and almost cause police to kill people.”
Meanwhile, the Malawi Human Rights Commission (MHRC) has condemned police action in stopping demonstrations, saying they are a legitimate means for expressing one’s political opinion.
The statement said the police conduct is an indication of deterioration of the rule of law and negative setbacks to the democratic strides the country has achieved so far.
“Disruption of peaceful demonstrations creates fear and intimidates people from freely participating in the political affairs of the country. This is very unfortunate, retrogressive and uncalled for,” reads the statement signed by MHRC chairman George Kanyama Phiri.
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