When teachers protested last month over salary increment, they were first hacked by thugs and government transferred them the following day. This week, the government has also swiftly moved protesting medical workers. Human rights activists now fear that these actions show the government is subtly silencing voices of discontent among workers in the public service
By Isaac Salima:
Thou shalt not protest! Or you get transferred!
This seems to be a new law which the government has unofficially introduced to crack down on voices of protest among public workers, according to human rights activists.
They say such actions are meant to drill fear in the general workforce so they do not speak out on the concerns they may have.
“We condemn the government in strongest terms for these unethical transfers because they are aimed at silencing public officers from raising concerns about their working conditions,” said Gift Trapence, chairperson of the Human Rights Defenders Coalition.
Over the past three weeks, the government, through its agency, the Local Government Service Commission, has wielded its might against teachers and medical workers who have staged protests to express discontent over various issues.
Last month, a group of teachers organised a demonstration in Lilongwe to challenge the 20 percent salary hike the government has effected. The workers said with the rising cost of living, 20 percent increment was insufficient.
Abandoned by the mother unions — the Civil Servants Trade Union and Teachers Union of Malawi — the group sought, and was granted, due permission from the Lilongwe District Council to stage the protest.
Just as the civil servants were about to start their march, panga-wielding thugs who had been hanging around brutally crushed the demonstration, hacking those participating in it.
The following day, the Local Government Service Commission announced immediate transfer of 13 teachers that had led the demonstration, “claiming exigencies of service”.
One of the affected teachers told us this week that only teachers that had been involved in organisation of the protest were transferred.
“We know that the transfer is because of the demos that we organised. All the names of the teachers who have been transferred are those that were involved in the demonstrations.
“Mind you, we were not only teachers who were against this. We had representatives from agriculture, health and others so why only teachers?” one of the affected teachers said.
This week, a group of nurses has suffered the same fate.
They have been challenging how the leadership of Nurses and Midwives Council of Malawi (Nomn) has been conducting its services and questioning the constitutionality of the conference with the council held in November last year.
In the last straw to push for their concerns to be heard, last week, the medical workers issued a notice to the Lilongwe District Council about their plan to shut down Nomn offices.
On April 1, Lilongwe District Commissioner Lawford Palani wrote them advising them to continue their engagement with Nomn, a statutory organisation which regulates nursing and midwifery education, training and practice in Malawi.
On Wednesday, April 2, the Local Government Service Commission issued a notice of immediate transfer of 13 of those involved in organising the protest from their current work stations due to “exigencies of service.”
Chairperson of the group, Frank Kamwendo, expressed dismay with the sudden transfers.
“We have received letters of transfers. We are surprised that the transfers have targeted those of us who were against Nonm,” he said.
We contacted Edward Talota, Executive Secretary for the Local Government Service Commission, to explain these immediate transfers of workers involved in protests.
He refused to comment saying the transfers are prepared by the Ministry of Health.
Spokesperson for the ministry, Adrian Chikumbe, said transfers are normal among health workers.
But human rights activist fear these crackdowns.
HRDC’s Trapence said the immediate transfer of teachers and nurses because they organised demonstrations is an infringement of their right to demonstrate and to be heard about their working conditions.
“The government must do better. It should make sure that rights of citizens including the right to demonstrate is protected regardless whether those demonstrating are public officers or not. We demand that the government reverse these effected transfers of teachers and nurses.
“We condemn the also the government in strongest terms for the unethical transfers aiming at silencing these public officers to raise their working conditions,” he said.
Trapence described as worrisome the tendency of certain elements deploying machete-wielding thugs to hack protestors, urging the police not to become spectators of such violence.
“We are not a lawlessness country and the police should not be spectators of such violence acts.
“They should be professional enough to protect peaceful demonstrators other than being used as vehicles to curtail people’s rights,” he said.
Executive Director of Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation Michael Kaiyatsa those protests by teachers and medical workers should have never attracted disciplinary measures.
“It is really unfortunate that this is what is happening. Our concern is that all these have an effect on the right to protest which is a constitutional right. It is also enshrined in our labour laws.
“Whether this [the transfers] is a coincidence or not, it is really concerning that the government is taking this direction,” he said.
Executive Director for Malawi Local Government Association Hadrod Mkandawire said when authorities are effecting such transfers, they have to give explanations.
“It is within the law that the service commission can transfer some cadres from one council to another. But the law also provides that some procedures have to be followed.
“In the case of those holding positions of director, for example, there should be consultation between one council and another and there should be reasons such as improving efficiency and effectiveness,” Mkandawire said.
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