60 Somalis, Ethiopians feared dead in Malawi

Lilongwe (Malawi), June 22 (IANS) Police in northern Malawi have found bodies of some 48 of the 60 Somalis and Ethiopians who were drowned in Lake Malawi earlier this week. The rest are also feared to be dead, Xinhua reported citing local media.

These people drowned when the boat they were sailing in to illegally get into Malawi sunk due to overloading Monday.

One of Malawi's leading private radios, Zodiak, reported Thursday that the authorities in Karonga district were arranging to burry the 48 bodies into a mass grave while the search for the rest, believed to be dead, as well was still underway.

Reports indicated that the Somalis and Ethiopians had connived with local Malawians to ferry them from Tanzania to Malawi by boat across Lake Malawi. But since the boat was overloaded, it sunk into Lake Malawi Monday.

Almost every month, hundreds of illegal immigrants from Somalia and Ethiopia cross Lake Malawi to get into Malawi through lakeshore districts of Karonga, Nkhatabay and Nkhotakota.

Most of the immigrants get apprehended while some successfully make their way to South Africa, using Malawi as a conduit.