At a staged media breakfast, MISA Malawi calls out the Chakwera administration’s double-dealing on media freedom—amid declining global press rankings and rising domestic censorship.
At a carefully staged media breakfast, MISA Malawi delivered a thinly veiled rebuke to President Lazarus Chakwera’s administration—highlighting rising censorship and a steady decline in press freedom as Malawi slips down global rankings.
While President Chakwera posed for photos at the 2025 Presidential Media Breakfast held at Mzuzu State Lodge, the reality for journalists across the country was far bleaker.
Behind the polished setting and diplomatic speeches, Golden Matonga, chairperson of the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Malawi, delivered a clear and urgent warning: press freedom in Malawi is rapidly deteriorating.
His remarks came amid growing international concern. According to Reporters Without Borders, Malawi has dropped in the World Press Freedom Index for three consecutive years—falling from 62nd in 2022 to 74th in 2023 and now down to 81st in 2024.
Despite the government’s pro-democracy rhetoric, the evidence points to a troubling trend: decreasing transparency, increased legal intimidation, and reduced access for local journalists.
At the same event, President Chakwera took a more philosophical tone. Quoting actor Denzel Washington and referencing books such as The Death of Truth by Steven Brill and Michiko Kakutani, he lamented the erosion of public trust and the spread of misinformation.
“Even your fellow journalist Steven Brill seems to feel such a deep sense of despair about the crisis of credibility in the media that he even refers to it as the death of truth,” Chakwera said.
He called for a partnership between the media and public institutions, urging both sides to uphold “accuracy, fairness, balance, calmness, diversity, and objectivity.”
It was an idealistic appeal—but one that rang hollow for many journalists facing growing challenges on the ground.
Matonga acknowledged some progress under Chakwera’s leadership, including the repeal of colonial-era sedition laws and the implementation of the Access to Information Act.
However, he stressed that these gains are being eroded by mounting pressure on the press.
Broadcasting license fees, pegged to the US dollar, continue to burden local radio and TV stations struggling with a weakening kwacha. While journalists are no longer routinely jailed, they now face another threat—legal harassment under the Cyber Security and Electronic Transactions Act, a vague law open to abuse.
One of the most striking moments came when Matonga criticised the government’s refusal to release the names of inmates granted presidential pardons.
“Should those convicted in open courts be released without transparency?” he asked. “Such actions reflect a refusal to embrace the spirit of proactive information disclosure as mandated by law.”
Despite its public support for press freedom, Chakwera’s administration has increasingly limited direct access for local journalists. Regular press briefings have almost disappeared. Instead, the president appears more often on international platforms and local podcasts—avoiding the reporters most familiar with Malawi’s critical issues.
With elections approaching in September, concerns are growing over the president’s reluctance to commit to live presidential debates—a tradition every winning candidate has honoured since 1994.
Matonga also expressed long-standing frustrations with the state broadcaster’s partisan stance. Mandated to serve the public impartially, it continues to promote ruling party narratives while sidelining opposing voices.
He challenged the broadcaster to embrace civic responsibility—especially in an election year—and urged the president to take part in civil society-organised debates, as he did in 2014 and 2019.
“I sincerely hope you will break new ground by being the first incumbent president to participate,” Matonga said. It was both an invitation and a pointed reminder: avoiding scrutiny does not build public trust—or win votes.
To his credit, Chakwera did not completely avoid the issue. He acknowledged a “credibility gap” and described the challenge as a shared responsibility between government and the media.
“Citizens have nowhere else to turn to… than state institutions and the media,” he said. “How to restore public trust… is a question we need to wrestle with together.”
But when secrecy, legal threats, and restricted access persist, such calls for partnership can feel more like political theatre than genuine dialogue.
The Mzuzu breakfast was not a celebration. It was a staged confrontation—one side calling for truth and accountability, the other facing accusations of intimidation and opacity.
As Matonga concluded, holding a breakfast is not press freedom. Real freedom means access, transparency, safety, and the courage to be questioned—openly and often.
