Police teargas rioting Athens students in Lilongwe
Malawi Police have used teargas to control rioting students who are protesting the firing of two teachers at Athens private school in Lilongwe.
Last week a science teacher was dismissed and on Wednesday another teacher has also been dismissed, angering the students.
The students, who threw stones, breaking the school premises, attracted police teargas, which was unsparingly used, affecting people going about their business and residents.
A witness, Martin Galimoto, said police brought in armoured vehicles to quell the situation.
“As I am talking now I can hear some more teargas blowing right in our neighbourhood,” he said when the incident happened.
This is not the first time police have used teargas on students. A few months just before the 19/20 July 2011, police also engaged with students at the same school as they rioted in protest of poor learning materials.
Ironically, there is a junior private school nearby where children as young as those in kindergarten attend lessons, making the teargas a dangerous accompaniment to the heavy order mending tactics employed by the police.
Meanwhile, Chifuniro Private School and Mlodza Primary School have been closed today due to the pandemonium.
Chifuniro Private School is the one where there is a kindergarten and primary classes, just next to Athens. And Mlodza is the government primary school close to the Area 23 bus terminal near the MacConnel that was ransacked during the June 2011 riots/protests and again when vendors attacked and undressed women in trousers and miniskirts.
However, the situation is now normal.
