As Tanzania and Malawi are still fighting over the long-time territorial dispute concerning Lake Malawi, thought to sit over highly coveted oil and gas reserves, the wrangle has taken another level as Tanzanian government blames the colonial masters over the dispute.
Malawi
recently cut off dialogue concerning the border issue after intelligence reports showed that Tanzanian troops starts
patrolling the eastern side of the lake while negotiations were still in place.
Recently
Malawi president Joyce Banda said her country will take the long standing
dispute with Tanzania to the International Court of Justice for arbitration.
Banda’s move
to call for arbitration follows reports that Tanzania troops arrested and
harassed Malawian fishermen in the disputed waters.
Malawi also
accused Tanzania for including the lake in its new map and harassing Malawian
fishermen.
“ I have
decided to take the matter to the international Court of Justice to determine
and resolve this wrangle, the issue has gone too far and Malawi will seek
international help to ensure that justice prevails” Banda was quoted in the
local media.
Speaking in
an interview Malawi minister of foreign Affairs, Ephraim Chiume, also accused
Tanzania for including lake Malawi on their new map without reaching an agreement.
Msiska said
it is very unfortunate that director of survey a Mr Mayunda who developed the
new map was a chief negotiator between Tanzania and Malawi.
“Issuing a
new map which includes Lake Malawi means that the dispute has been cleared, however
the negotiations are still going on, it shows that Tanzania is not ready to negotiate” said Msiska”
Msika added “Deploying
troops to patrol our lake it is like they are calling for war, Tanzania is
challenging us however this is a legal matter and that is the reason why we are
seeking support from the International Court of Injustice.
Tanzanian Reaction
However
Tanzania government has challenged Malawi to go ahead and take the boundary
wrangle to the International Court of Justice .
Speaking in
a telephone interview Tanzania High Commissioner to South Africa Ravhia Msuya
blamed colonial masters , Britain and Germany on the issue.
Msuya
claimed that Malawi, Tanzania and Mozambique use to share Lake Malawi before
the colonial era but it was later divided.
“We are only
claiming what is ours and nobody is to blame here despite the colonial masters,
back then we use to share the lake that is the reason why we have nyasa
speaking people in both Tanzania and Malawi.’
She further
rejects Malawi’s claims that her government is patrolling and harassing
Malawian fisher men saying it’s only defending its territory, She claimed that
50 percent of the lake which forms its borders with Malawi belongs to Tanzania.
Msuya
further conquered with her Malawian counterpart Tanzania’s High Commissioner to
Malawi Patric Tsere saying she’s confident that talks on the border dispute
will resume soon.
She said
that Malawian authorities had not formally informed the Tanzanian government
that it is pulling out of the talks.
