Report faults PP led govt. on rising cost of living, suppression of the media and the handling of extractive industry

The Malawi Human Rights Commission report on the status of human rights in Malawi from June 2012 to May 2013 released by the  has faulted government on the ever rising cost of living, the suppression of the media and the handling of the extractive industry.   RISING COST OF LIVING Released on Thursday in Lilongwe, the report while agreeing with the Peoples' Party (PP) led government for aptly proclaiming that it had a few policy options in the area of economic reforms and had to put in place some inevitable strategies to effectively attain economic recovery for the country, what matters are measures that duty bearers put in place to mitigate the impact of the tough economic policies especially against the poor and the vulnerable.   It observes that the economic reforms introduced by the government have led to a significant erosion of the right to a decent standard of living due to the rising cost of goods and services on the market, among others.   "The 49 percent devaluation and eventual floatation of the Malawi Kwacha as well as the Automatic Fuel Pricing Mechanism led to a fall of the purchasing power and high inflation rate which resulted in negative consequences on the living standards of most people.   "With a rising cost of living, came the increasing demand for social safety nets, growing rates of unemployment as well as increasing demand for higher wages and pay. Overall, the situation has led to a falling household income and disposable income," reads the report.   Even so, the commission raised a concern with respect to the level of implementation of such policy measures in light of the results of the recent assessment of the perfomance of Malawi with respect to the attainment of the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs).   The recent assessment, according to MHRC, shows that the country is not likely to meet the 4 goals relating to poverty reduction, gender equality and maternal mortality out of the 8 goals.   "This signifies the need for priority spending to be focused on these areas and a need to effedtively streamline these areas in the various policy programmes that are curently aligned to the economic recovery plan.   "The Commission further notes that the rhetoric that has come about due to the negative impact of the rising cost of living has largely not been met by deliberate, adequate, effective and prompt responsive strategies for effectively mitigating the negative effects of the economic reform and austerity measures on the population.   "This is evident from, among other things, the increasing levels of human insecurity, growing rates of retrenchments and rampant industrial actions oin the part of employees to demand for increased wages," it reads.   Therefore, the Commission urges government to urgently work towards effectively addressing the negative impact of the economic reforms, by among others; rationalizing the investments towards such programmes such as the Greenbelt Initiative, Social Protection through operationalising of policies like the Social Support Policy.   SUPPRESSION OF THE MEDIA The Commission noted developlments to the approach adopoted by the Statge President towards the media that point to interference with the right to freedom of the press and an emerging pattern of undue suppression of the media.   "The State Poresident variously expressed misgivings with the way some of the stories and events relating to the PP led government.The statements that the president utteredcan potentially lead to undue suppression of the media," says the statement.   The International Covenant on Civil and Political rights in the article and the Constitution in section 36 accords the media the right to publish freely within Malawi and abroad.   This is subject to the standards on limitations of human rights imposed by section 44 of the Constitution.   However, according to Commissioner Chilenga, this does not cover situations where the contents of the publications do not meet the taste of a particular person or authority, while at the same time it does not sanction the exercise of this right bybthe media without regard to attendant responsibility.   "The functioning of the media independently and without interference from any person or authority is important in checking both overt and covert power abuses, suppressions of human rights and freedoms, and provides a means for an effective accountability mechanism for holders of public offices," reads the report.   In view of the above, the Commission calls upon public officers to desist from making comments that potentially or actually compromises fundamental human rights and freedoms, in particular the right to freedom of the press.   EXTRACTIVE INDUSTRY The discovery of precious minerals in the country has seen a number of foreign and multi-national companies coming into the Malawi.   But in the wake of lack of transprency and accountability, there are unanswered quenstions in as far as the benefits to local citizens and the economy are concerned.   According to the report, the Commission is therefore gravely concerned with the inreasing worrying sentiments pointing towards Malawi being given a raw deal in the contracts signed.   "This centers on the lack of transparency and accountability in the mining licensing/awarding procedures of the exploration and mining concessions, as well as in the accruing and potential benefits from the mining sector to all citizens of Malawi," reads part of the report.   Therefore, the commission calls on government to fast-track the finalisation of the review of the Mines and Minerals Act, Cap 61:01 which was enacted in 1981 and therefore is quite outdated and not in line with the recent and gas exploration.   "There should also be an overall strategy at an early stage, for how the nation could gain and grow from the industry,  put in place a robust tax policy to secure the governments' share of revenues and specialized regulatory government institutions to facilitate and monitor this," reads the report.   The report further reccomends government to ensure for a competitive process of bidding at the international level for exploration and mining rights, put in place a clear strategy in advance for how to maximise the use of the extra revenues and a fiscal policy to ensure that the benefits from the income will last for generations, among others.