S v The Inspector of Police & Others; Ex-parte MM and Others

Members of the Malawi Police Service assaulted, raped, and physically and emotionally abused 18 women and girls while on duty following the death of the police superintendent. Their victims, the plaintiffs, asked the High Court to review the Inspector General of Police for failing to control and investigate the officers. The plaintiffs asserted that their constitutional rights to not be subjected to torture, cruel, inhumane, and degrading punishments were violated by the officers and Inspector General. In siding with the plaintiffs, the Court explained that the standard of proof required in civil cases is proof upon a balance of probabilities and rejected the defendant’s argument that the plaintiffs’ medical reports were irrelevant because they were taken months after the incidents. The court highlighted that it was the police department’s failure to investigate the incidents that led to the delayed medical examinations. The Court further held that the officers’ actions, and Inspector General’s inaction, amounted to human rights violations contrary to the Malawi Constitution and CEDAW. The Court awarded the plaintiffs damages using guidelines set by comparable local cases and cases from other jurisdictions, noting that various international treaties that Malawi is party to acknowledge compensation as a right for victims of sexual violence.