The President had made comments regarding a group of human rights defenders who had presented a statement at the sixteenth session of the Human Rights Council. The President allegedly declared that “there is a group of 15 people roaming in Europe saying that there is a violation of human rights because we don’t allow university professors to teach revolution... We are waiting for them to come back and to tell us what their agenda is”. A local newspaper reportedly published an article alluding to the possibility that United Nations aid to Malawi could be cut if human rights defenders continued their “irresponsible reporting” to the Council.