Human Rights Violation Report : Violence and Discrimination Based on Real or Perceived Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity in Malawi, 2015 Report

M. Kaiyatsa, E. Kalea

Recent years have seen increasing reports of people being harassed, marginalized, discriminated against and attacked in Malawi because of their real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity. This report provides an insight into such human rights violations. It is important to note that such violations are occurring in a country whose legal system still condones the criminalization of consensual same-sex sexual acts, and where the police and the justice system hamstring by the penal code failing to prevent these crimes from happening. During Malawi?s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in May 2015, the State accepted two recommendations on LGBTI ?namely, the recommendation to take effective measures to protect LGBTI persons from violence and prosecute the perpetrators of violent attacks, and to ensure that LGBTI persons have effective access to health services, including HIV services. While the State is commended for taking such a bold move, the continued criminalization of consensual adult same-sex conduct remains a serious cause for concern. As the U.N. Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health has noted, the existence of laws criminalising same-sex sexual acts reinforces existing prejudices, and legitimizes community violence directed at affected individuals. Furthermore, the existence of such laws sends a message to the broader population that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity is acceptable, and that human rights do not apply to LGBTI people. This creates an environment in which people can perpetrate acts of human rights violations with impunity. This report confirms that most perpetrators of violent attacks against LGBTI persons often conduct such attacks in the knowledge that they would never be arrested or prosecuted. This report also confirms that many victims of violence on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity do not report to relevant