Malawi Pres. Supports Land Grab

Harare — Malawian President Bingu wa Mutharika, visiting Zimbabwe to officially open the Harare Agricultural Show on Friday, says he supports the seizure of white-owned farms in the country.

“I believe that land should be owned by the people. Malawi is sympathetic and supportive of the stance taken by Zimbabwe on this issue,” said Mutharika.

Since February 2000, Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu-PF government has seized about 90% of Zimbabwe’s white-owned land, apparently displacing as many as 300 000 farm workers in a violent campaign to allocate farms to peasants and members of the ruling elite.

Meanwhile, the Malawian president told reporters the Southern African Development Community should “stand together” against the international community.

“It’s time that we started closing ranks and stand by each other and fight for each other because that is what it means to be a community,” Mutharika said.