Malawi churches announce details of Dec 6 march against abortion

Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM) alongside Evangelical Association of Malawi (EAM) have  announced details of the a demonstration which they have against abortion law and homosexuality to be held on 6th December in all districts across the country.

In what they are terming ‘citizen march for life and family’, the two churches says the march will be held in cities of Lilongwe, Blantyre, Mzuzu, Zomba and all the 28 districts in the country.

Accoridng to the released program, in Lilongwe  the march shall have  two converging starting points: Route 1, starting from Area 18 St. Patricks’ Catholic Parish through Area18 Round About to City Center.

Route 2, starting from Presbyterian Church of Malawi (PCM) opposite Kamuzu College of Nursing and next to Central Medical Stores through Central Hospital Round About, Bisnowatty Filling Station to City Center. The two groups will converge at Parliament Building and proceed to Parliament for presentation of the petition.

In Blantyre, the march will start from Blantyre Old Town Hall via Highway to Blantyre Civic Centre. The petition will be presented to the Chief Executive Officer.

The march in Mzuzu will start from Katoto Secondary School Ground via Mzuzu Highway to Mzuz City Assembly where the petition will be read and presented.

While in Zomba the March shall have 2 converging starting points: Route 1, starting from Mpunga Market via Shoprite to the DC’s Office; Route 2, starting from Chinamwali Market via Zomba Zero to the DC’s Office. The petition will be presented to the DC.

According to secretary general for ECM, Fr Henry Saindi and Rev Francis Mkandawire the general secretary for EAM, the march is going to serve as a reminder to all people and institutions that human life is sacred and also that the dignity of the human being is the foundation of moral vision for society.

“From the moment of conception a life is begun that is neither of the father nor of the mother it is rather the life of a new human being with his own growth. It is therefore important that we all safeguard, preserve and protect life with extreme care from conception.

“We also want to remind all people and institutions-the executive, the legislature and judiciary arms of government, private sector, traditional leaders, civil society, political parties, foreign agencies and faith groups- that defending marriage as a unit of man and woman is the responsibility of every citizen of Malawi. And that marriage is the first cell of society as it provides the healthiest environment for raising the next generation of citizens,” reads a statement from the ECMand EAM.

The churches have argued that it is not true that if abortion is legalized in the country then maternal mortality deaths are going to be reduced, saying those countries that have legalized abortion haven’t faced any drop in maternal mortality rates while on the other hand maternal mortality has remained under check in the countries where abortion is illegal such as Egypt.

Proposed abortion law is expected to be tabled in Parliament tt and advocates of the legislation have been arguing that by denying women of the freedom to procure abortion legally, it is costing government more in treatment effects of unsafe abortion complications.