The aim of the regional celebrations is to broaden participation. All journalists, media freedom and freedom of expression advocates across the country would be able to take part in the celebrations.

The celebrations started with a freedom march from Kamuzu Stadium to Blantyre Sports Club in the commercial city of Blantyre, Southern Malawi. Journalists later engaged in a public debate at the Blantyre Sports Club on the topic ‘State of Freedom of Expression in Malawi: Are citizens free to express themselves?’ The debate was broadcast live on Capital Radio, owned by renowned media guru, Al Osman.

Speaking at the debate, the Public Affairs Officer for the Embassy of the United States of America, Benjamin Canavan, commended journalists in the country for working tirelessly in ensuring that there are checks and balances especially on governance issues. “The media are the eyes and ears of society...A vibrant media is always necessary in any country to ensure transparency and accountability,” he said.

Concurring with Canavan, MISA Malawi’s National Governing Council (NGC) member, Rebecca Theu, commended the media for gracing the occasion. “The topic we are about to start deliberating on this morning is very crucial for media freedom and freedom of expression in the country…You will agree with me ladies and gentlemen that the regional celebrations have increased the hype and excitement
as both the media and members of the public have had an opportunity to grace these activities,” she said.

The aim of the debate was to give people an opportunity to assess freedom of expression in the country.

The celebrations are being held against a background of court actions over amendment of Section 46 of the Penal Code which gives powers to the Minister of information to ban importation and publication of materials deemed not to be in the public interest. The amendment is, however, being challenged in court by the Malawi Human Rights Commission (MHRC), a government body in collaboration with
MISA Malawi, Media Council of Malawi (MCM) and the Human Rights Consultative Committee (HRCC).

Meanwhile, the regional celebrations are scheduled to continue this Saturday, 30 April 2011 in the capital Lilongwe, Central Malawi. Journalists are expected to take part in yet another freedom march scheduled to start at the Lilongwe Old Town Post Office to Silver Club Conference Hall, where a public debate will be held on the topic ‘‘Access to Information and New Media: Opportunities and Challenges for Malawi.” The aim of this debate is to give an opportunity to the citizenry to assess relevance of 21st Century media in promoting free expression and access to information. Panelists to all the debates have been drawn from the academia, civil society, government and the media.

The main celebrations for the 2011 WPFD celebrations are scheduled to take place in Mzuzu, Northern Malawi, where journalists and members of the public will be treated to a gala dinner.

The theme for this year’s WPFD celebrations is ‘21st Century Media: New frontiers, New challenges,’ and seeks to cast the spotlight on the importance of new media in promoting free flow of information, even in societies that do not recognize the relevance of free speech. //End//
 
Reagan Malumo
Programme Specialist: Media Freedom Monitoring and Research
Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Regional Secretariat
21 Johann Albrecht St
Private Bag 13386
Windhoek
Namibia
Phone: +264 61 232 975
Fax: +264 61 248 016
Mobile: +264 81 311 2626
Official Email: reagan(@)misa.org
Private Email: reagan32002(@)yahoo.com

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