Malawi High Court on Friday blocked the government’s 21-day lockdown order that was meant to contain the spread of the coronavirus following a petition by a human rights group, reported Bloomberg.
President Peter Mutharika had declared the 21-day lockdown earlier this week. The southern African nation has reported 17 confirmed cases and two deaths as of Friday. Mutharika warned the country could risk losing around 50,000 lives if immediate steps are not taken to slow the spread of the disease.
On Friday, Justice Kenyatta Nyirenda ruled against the lockdown in response to a challenge by the Malawi Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC), which argued that more consultation was needed to prevent harm to the poorest and most vulnerable of society.
The HRDC approached the court against the government’s failure to announce any measures to cushion the poor during the lockdown. Notably, Malawi is one of the poorest countries on the African continent where more than half of the population live below the poverty threshold.
“While we commend the court for intervening in the matter, we appeal to Malawians to continue observing recommended precaution measures which also includes washing hands frequently,” the coalition said in a statement.
Thousands of informal small-scale traders took to the streets in the three major cities to protest against the planned lockdown, initially due to begin on Saturday. They claim that it would be better to get infected with the virus than die of hunger because of no work.
The protesters appealed the government to provide them with food and cash if it continues with the lockdown.
Gift Trapence, the HDRC chairman, confirmed that the court has ordered for a judicial review in seven days.
“Yes, we have been granted the injunction,” Trapence told AFP news agency. “So, what it means is that there is no lockdown for the next seven days.”
