Nkhata Bay, March 4, 2016: Government says it cannot pursue the compensation issue with the British Government for the Martyrs who died on 3rd Mach, 1959 in the course of fighting for the country’s independence.
Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development, Dr Goodall Gondwe, made the statement Thursday in an interview when he presided over the commemoration of Martyrs Day in Nkhata Bay.
March 3 is commemorated every year as a national holiday in Malawi, honouring the political heroes who gave up their lives in the struggle for independence from British colonialism.
It was on this day when the British declared a state-of-emergency and arrested prominent Malawian Nationalists and other dissidents. Fury over the arrest of these resistance leaders precipitated into the death of 31 demonstrators in Nkhata Bay district, 51 in the country and detention of over 1, 300.
About two years ago, the people of Nkhata Bay asked the Government of Malawi to ask Britain to compensate families of individuals who were killed by the British forces on 3rd March, 1959 during the state-of emergency.
“In Kenya the case of Mau Mau was pursued by private lawyers. Hon. Ralph Mhone, because he started pursuing the issue, can just team up with other lawyers [to continue with it] but not [Malawi] government pursuing the issue of compensation,” said Gondwe, adding government was ready only to assist if the aggrieved parties want assistance.
On lack of history books on the country’s Martyrs, Hon. Gondwe asked academicians in the country to write books on the same.
“We have a lot of books on John Chilembwe and now we need books on the Martyrs. Academicians are the ones who write these books and I’m asking academicians from Mzuzu University to write books on the Martyrs,” urged Gondwe.
Also present at the function was Minister of Sports and Culture, Grace Chiumia. She expressed the need to have a museum in the district where history of the Martyrs could be kept.
“We need to have Martyrs’ museum in Nkhata Bay District where their history and other literature can be kept,” she said, urging people of Nkhata Bay to start the project before government comes in to assist.
In his remarks on the compensation issue, Nkhata Bay Central Member of Parliament Hon. Ralph Mhone disclosed that he has already started working on it.
“Currently, I’m doing investigations on the issue and we have already contacted our friends from Kenya who assisted the MauMau warriors and they are ready to help,” he said.
However, Mhone said he needs to visit the archives office in the country’s old capital, Zomba, to look for the correspondences between the colonial administrators and the London officials.
“We want to find out who authorized the soldiers from South Africa and Rhodesia to come to Malawi and massacre our beloved people?” said the Nkhata Bay Central legislator.
The country’s President and other public officials attend local gatherings annually, remembering the fallen heroes and laying of wreaths on monuments dedicated to the popular personalities of the liberation.
