The Malawi High Court on Tuesday ordered the extension of an earlier order barring the government from imposing a 21-day lockdown to contain the spread of coronavirus.
Sitting in the administrative capital Lilongwe, the court indefinitely extended its earlier ruling at the beginning of the month in which it granted an order in favour of the Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC).
The HRDC had argued that President Peter Mutharika could not impose a lockdown until he had put the necessary socio-economic protection measures in place.
The application came after Mutharika had announced plans to impose stay-home regulations starting from April 18 as a precautionary measure to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
The rights group argued that the lockdown regulations should be reviewed by Parliament and that the government had not provided food or money to individuals or a stimulus package to small businesses considering that the stay-home policy would deprive most Malawians of their means and sources of income.
FT/jn/APA