Africa-Press – Malawi. Religious Leaders Network for Choice has called upon the Attorney General to advise the Executive and the Legislature to make necessary policy arrangements so that the Gender Act is enforced to protect the plight of minors who are sexually abused.
They have also asked for the speedy interpretation of the Gender Equality Act of Malawi which is a product of thorough nationwide consultation which aims at protecting the minors to subject of sexual abuse.
Reverend Cliff Nyekanyeka, National Coordinator for the grouping which was registered in 2020 said this following the High Court of Malawi October 28 ruling by Judge Michael Tembo that girls who have experienced sexual violence, if they wish, are free to seek safe abortions without any obstacles, in accordance with Section 19 of the Gender Equality Act.
The ruling comes based on a case in which a minor filed a lawsuit against a healthcare provider, a medical facility and the Ministry of Health for infringing on her sexual and reproductive health rights, as she was initially denied access to safe abortion after being subjected to defilement.
“We call upon the Attorney General to make necessary arrangements to ensure that the ruling should be enforced. We would like further call upon the public to further desist undermining the integrity and the Independence of the Judiciary because we believe that the ruling is not barely a statement of the Judge’s personal conviction on the matter but a thorough and objective interpretation of the Gender Equality Act of Malawi,” explained Nyekanyeka.
The Network, which is a member of the Sexual and Reproductive Justice Network (SEJUN) then commended the Malawi High Court for delivering the ruling, saying it will set free minors who fall pregnant from sexual violence such as rape and defilement from the torment of carrying forced pregnancies while suffering in silence.
The network also asked government to make sure that the ruling is respected and that necessary measures are put in place to ensure it’s enforcement.
“We have noticed that most debates on the health of victims of sexual abuse centers on the physical aspect while throwing the mental aspect to periphery.
It is high time as a nation we do searching on how we perceive mental health challenges and how we would like to address them to ensure that lives are saved from preventable deaths resulting from suicide and other mental health related deaths,” said Nyekanyeka
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