STATEMENT COURTESY MANA ONLINE/THE MALAWI NEWS AGENCY
BELOW IS A STATEMENT FROM THE MINISTER OF INDUSTRY, TRADE AND TOURISM (Henry Mussa) ON THE SAME:
I wish to join my fellow Cabinet Ministers in condemning the recent acts of mob justice on fellow Malawians and the touring Belgian couple, who have been obviously mistaken as blood suckers in Mulanje, Phalombe Districts, and surrounding areas.
Stories of blood sucking in Malawi are mere rumours which have been making rounds from sometime back and should not be believed. From what I know, It takes a lot of technical expertise and skills to extract blood from a human being, including using suitable equipment and locating the blood nerves in the body, something that cannot be done just in a flash.
The prevailing vampire paranoia situation in Mulanje and surrounding areas has the potential to derail our efforts in promoting our country as a tourism destination but also as preferred destination for foreign and direct investment. No tourist or investor would like to come to a country whose citizens are attacking others due to such misguided beliefs. I would like therefore to ask and warn all those involved to stop this malpractice immediately since this practice is tarnishing the image of our beautiful country.
At this stage allow me to apologise to the Belgian couple, who were attacked at Madzeka near Lujeri Tea Estate in the early hours of 15th September, 2017, after being mistaken as the so called “blood suckers”. The Belgian couple were actually Self-Drive tourists who had been attracted to hike on our Mulanje Mountain and had been travelling from South Africa to Cairo in their 4×4 vehicle. The couple was badly injured in the brutal attack and their vehicle was also smashed. This is a very unfortunate and we sincerely apologise for the unfortunate incident.
Lastly, I am aware that the tourism players in Mulanje is very unsettled due to these disturbing stories. I would like to assure the tourism and travel industry in Mulanje, and the country in general that the Government of Malawi will step up a number of interventions to eradicate the unfounded fears of blood suckers in the District. These will include increased Police presence in the area, increased awareness on blood sucking myth, and increased security in areas that are visited by tourists.
All these interventions will be carried out by various Government Ministries and Departments such as Home Affairs, Information, Civic Education and of course traditional leaders in the areas affected.
I thank you for your attention.