BLANTYRE, Malawi, May 5 (MaraviPost) _ Malawi President Peter Mutharika has confirmed that at least six Malawians were killed in the recent attacks on foreign nationals in South Africa.
“The situation is very worrisome as six Malawians are reportedly killed, with over 3,000 affected, during xenophobic attacks against foreign nationals including Malawians, living in the Republic of South Africa,” he told Members of Parliament in the capital, Lilongwe, Tuesday in the State of the Nation address ahead of the 2015/16 budget session of Parliament.
Mutharika said Malawi was the first country to repatriate its stranded citizens from South Africa. “The first 390 evacuees arrived in the country on 20th April, 2015, and to date, 3,590 Malawians have been repatriated. This process will continue until every willing Malawian is repatriated,” he said.
Attacks of foreign nationals in South Africa begun towards the end of March in KwaZulu Natal following remarks by the Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini that suggested that foreigners must leave the country. The xenophobia attacks later quickly spread to the Gauteng Province.
President Mutharika said his government was “actively engaging” the Government of South Africa in order to find a lasting solution to this unfortunate development.
“Government will also seek to resolve this issue through regional and multilateral Organisations,” he said.
Many Malawian young men trek to South Africa in search of work.-MaraviPost
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