US embassy cable - 05LILONGWE564

C O N F I D E N T I A L LILONGWE 000564 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR AF/S, INR/AA 
MCC FOR KEVIN SABA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/29/2015 
TAGS: KCOR, KDEM, PGOV, PREL, MI, POL MIL 
SUBJECT: MALAWIAN MILITARY'S ROLE IN CURRENT POLITICAL 
TENSIONS 
 
 
Classified By: CDA D. Gilmour for reasons 1.4 b and d 
 
1.(C) On Tuesday June 28 PolOff met with General Marko 
Chiziko, Commander of the Malawian Defense Force (MDF), and 
discussed the current Presidential impeachment rumors. 
Chiziko has close ties with President Mutharika, and hails 
from Mutharika's home area.  The General said that the MDF 
would be concerned with national security if an impeachment 
effort were to go through.  He stated that it is "the role of 
the military to be impartial, but it's hard to be impartial 
when you see that one side is in the right."  He then went 
on to discuss the problems Africa has had with military 
coups, highlighting military leaders' tendency to stay in 
power long after crisis-periods end. 
 
2.(C) Comment: The Malawian military is a professional 
organization that has a long history of respecting civilian 
rule.  It is first unlikely that the opposition could 
leverage enough votes to move forward with an impeachment of 
the President.  It is also unlikely that the MDF would step 
in at any point.  General Chiziko is well respected as a 
military leader who fully understands the civ-mil divide. 
However, if impeachment proceedings were to go forward, it 
would be worth keeping an eye on the MDF.  A possible 
scenario exists where, if President Mutharika were impeached 
in Parliament, the MDF might be 
pressured by his supporters in public to step in and "restore 
order". 
GILMOUR