Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Malawi chapter has strongly condemns threats on Nation Publications Limited (NPL) journalists by some suspected Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) supporters during the party’s elective conference.
In the wee hours of Monday, August 19, 2024, some people operating under the banner ‘DPP media team’ during the party national convention at COMESA Hall in Blantyre threatened and ‘forced’ NPL team to delete a Facebook news update on what was happening at the convention.
The NPL team had to seek special protection from some party officials to safely move themselves and their livestreaming gadgets out of the convention hall.
In a statement MISA Malawi Chairperson Golden Matonga described the act as barbaric.
“Intimidation of journalists and forced deletion of stories are a huge affront to media freedom and the right to know and such behaviour has no place in democracy that birthed party politics.
“It is even more concerning that such barbaric actions are happening at a time Malawians are eager to know what is happening in respective political parties for them to make informed choices during the 2025 elections,” said Matonga.
He added: “The media in Malawi are ready to render their services, in the interest of the public, and creating an atmosphere of animosity for journalists covering events and activities in the run to 2025 elections is criminal and disservice to the nation.”
MISA Malawi has since called on all political parties to create a safe and secure environment for the media, by among others, working closely with the police, journalists and media outlets, for fair and credible 2025 elections.
