Africa

Police in Malawi Fire Tear Gas to Disperse Anti-President Rally - Reports (PHOTOS)

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Malawian police used tear gas to disperse protesters who blocked a road where recently re-elected President Arthur Peter Mutharika was supposed to have passed on his way to the country's capital of Lilongwe, local media reported.
Sputnik

In order to block the roadway, protesters burned tree branches, the Maravi Post newspaper reported. Police began to line up along the driveway to disperse the protesters and ensure the president's safety.

As a result, the president canceled his welcoming rally in Lilongwe and changed his itinerary, the newspaper added.

Protests started in Malawi after Mutharika was re-elected as head of state in May and the opposition contested the results, claiming that there had been irregularities during the vote.

Earlier in June, Malawi Congress Party (MCP) supporters besieged government offices in Lilongwe in protest of  the results of the May presidential election.

Mutharika has been heading Malawi since 2014 when he won his first presidential election, defeating both his main opponent Lazarus Chakwera and former President Joyce Banda from the People’s Party.

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