Police arrest second suspect in UTM woman assault case

Malawi Police Service in Mangochi have arrested a second suspect in connection to the assault of UTM Party supporters on Sunday afternoon.

The second suspect has been identified as 38 year old Rajab Assan of Ntagaluka Village, Traditional Authority Chowe in the district.

National Police Publicist James Kadadzera has confirmed the arrests.

Kadadzera says the law enforcers are expected to make more arrests in connection to the same.

Police first arrested 28-year-old Adam Masitala barely hours after the powerful women movement, Women in Politics, gave President Peter Mutharika and the Inspector General of Police Rodney Jose an ultimatum to arrest and bring all the suspects to justice or the women from all the political parties would match in Lilongwe.

Masitala hails from Mtagaluka village in chief Chowe’s area in Mangochi.

All the suspects will be charged with two counts of insulting the modesty of a woman and robbery with violence.

The woman, Veronica Katanji told a news  conference in Lilongwe on Tuesday that her husband has since dumped her after the video clip of her walking semi-naked made rounds on phones.

“He has deserted me, leaving me alone with my three children. Two are his step children and the other one is an orphan whom I bring up,” she said.

She said the husband accused her of going to political rallies when he provided her with everything she needed in her life, saying the act is embarrassing.

“He said I embarrassed myself and I have embarrassed him too. So, he left since the incident and he has not come back,” she said.

Some people in social media however are skeptical of the arrests, saying they are just a mere smokescreen as the suspects cases would be discontinued after the anger among women groups and other human rights activists dies down.

According to published research.  out of 15 incidents of violence that occurred between 2014 and 2018, police only acted swiftly on one.In October last year, Human Right Watch (HRW) and 13 international organisations penned Jose demanding urgent and thorough investigations into attacks and threats against human rights defenders and the opposition in the country.