A new report from the Clooney Foundation for Justice’s TrialWatch initiative reveals that women incarcerated for violent offenses in Malawi are often survivors of gender-based violence (GBV) who have been criminalized for incidents connected to their own abuse.
TrialWatch and its partners — the Centre for Human Rights Education, Advice and Assistance (CHREAA) and the University of Southern California Gould School of Law International Human Rights Clinic (USC IHRC) — interviewed 63 women detained across nine prisons in Malawi. Nearly half reported being charged in connection with incidents of GBV.
More than half of that group said they are in prison for defending themselves against violence by their intimate partner. In one case, a woman spent 11 months in jail before the trial even began after she killed her ex-partner, who had stalked, strangled, sexually assaulted and stabbed her twice with a knife — which she extracted from her own chest to defend herself against him.
“Our report’s findings reveal that many female defendants in Malawi’s justice system face more than just due process violations—they encounter a system that frequently ignores their trauma and fails to see the survivor behind the accused,” said Orubah S. Ahmed, Legal Program Manager at TrialWatch.
The legal system fails to apply a gender-sensitive perspective when prosecuting GBV survivors and exposes flaws in the justice process that aggravate their plight. The report builds on CFJ’s ongoing efforts to support legal reform and accountability for gender-based rights violations in Africa and beyond, including a December report that found Kenya’s law to prevent female genital mutilation (FGM) disproportionately criminalizes survivors, not perpetrators.
The report also found that detained women faced prolonged periods of pretrial detention, far exceeding constitutional limits, with an average duration of 13.7 months. One woman –– the caretaker of her deceased sister’s children and her epileptic mother –– spent 10 months in jail, more than twice the legal limit for pre-trial detention, after her partner was killed by men who were defending her from his abuse. She had reported him four times to the police to no avail, enlisting the men’s help to stop him from destroying her property. They intervened when he began to beat her.
Police and prosecutors have routinely failed to investigate self-defense or consider the abuse the survivors suffered in line with international legal standards and best practices. None of the women prosecuted for what they have said was self-defense were provided medical examinations at the time of arrest, even when they showed visible injuries. Some women even reported being assaulted by police during interrogation. None of the women interviewed had access to legal counsel during the investigation stage, likely hampering their ability to build a case. Only 14% had representation during pretrial proceedings and of those convicted, only 25% had lawyers during trial.
“To ensure that the justice system doesn’t turn against those it has a duty to protect, urgent reform is needed,” Victor Mhango, Executive Director of CHREAA said. “The authorities must integrate a gender-sensitive approach in criminal processes; ensure that defendants have access to legal and medical support; and properly investigate self-defense claims before rushing into arrests and pretrial detention.”
“Our report offers a roadmap for stakeholders in Malawi’s criminal justice system with specific practical recommendations for legal and policy reform grounded in human rights law,” said Prof. Hannah Garry, USC IHRC. “Following up on these recommendations will prevent future abuses against women subjected to gender-based violence and, importantly, help to restore hope, fairness and dignity to these women.”
You can read the report here. A visualization of its findings is also available here.
ABOUT THE CLOONEY FOUNDATION FOR JUSTICE’S TRIALWATCH INITIATIVE
TrialWatch provides free legal aid to journalists who are unfairly imprisoned to secure their release and uphold freedom of speech.
ABOUT THE CLOONEY FOUNDATION FOR JUSTICE (CFJ)
The Clooney Foundation for Justice (CFJ) wages justice by providing free legal aid in defense of free speech and women’s rights in over 40 countries. Its work has led to dozens of journalists being set free and thousands of women receiving free legal support to defend their rights.
ABOUT THE CENTRE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS EDUCATION, ADVICE AND ASSISTANCE (CHREAA)
CHREAA is committed to promoting and safeguarding the rights of vulnerable and marginalized groups including prisoners, sex workers, women, and children. It operates across Malawi, working to enhance access to justice through advocacy, legal aid, research, and civic education.
ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GOULD SCHOOL OF LAW INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS CLINIC (USC IHRC)
The USC IHRC engages student attorneys in partnership with human rights advocates in using international law as a tool for social justice for serious human rights abuses in the U.S. and globally. The USC IHRC represents impacted communities in cases and projects that address: gender justice, fair trial rights, international criminal justice and accountability for atrocities (war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and aggression); and refugee rights.