IMMUNITIES AND PRIVILEGES

CHAPTER 16:01
IMMUNITIES AND PRIVILEGES

ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS

    SECTION

PART I
PRELIMINARY

    1.    Short title

    2.    Interpretation

PART II
STATE IMMUNITY

    3.    General immunity from jurisdiction

    4.    Submission to jurisdiction

    5.    Commercial transactions

    6.    Contracts of employment

    7.    Personal injuries and damage to property

    8.    Ownership, possession and use of property

    9.    Patents, trade marks, etc.

    10.    Membership of corporate bodies

    11.    Arbitration

    12.    Proceedings against ships used for commercial purposes

    13.    Duties and rates

    14.    Service of process and default judgments

    15.    Other procedural privileges

    16.    States entitled to immunities and privileges

    17.    Heads of State

    18.    Excluded matters

    19.    Evidence by certificate

PART III
DIPLOMATIC IMMUNITIES AND PRIVILEGES

    20.    Application of Convention on Diplomatic Relations

PART IV
CONSULAR IMMUNITIES AND PRIVILEGES

    21.    Application of Convention or Consular Relations

    22.    Agreements to accord immunities and privileges

    23.    Commonwealth representatives

PART V
INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS, ETC.

    24.    Immunities and privileges of certain international organizations

        and persons connected therewith

    25.    Representatives of sovereign governments at international

        conferences

    26.    External agencies which provide cooperation or co-assistance

    27.    Modifications with respect to the United Nations Organization

    28.    Reciprocal treatment

PART VI
GENERAL PROVISIONS

    29.    Restriction and extension of privileges, immunities or powers

    30.    Admiralty jurisdiction of High Court

    31.    Special provisions relating to customs duty

    32.    Evidence

    33.    Oaths and notarial acts

        First Schedule

        Articles of Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations having the Force of Law in Malawi

        Second Schedule

        Articles on Vienna convention on Consular Relations having the Force of Law in Malawi

        Third Schedule

        Provisions for giving Effect to other Agreements

        Fourth Schedule

        Organizations

        Fifth Schedule

        Immunities and Privileges of an Organization and Officers thereof

    

16 of 1984

G.N. 78/1986

70/1996

102/1996

17/1999

14/2001

11/2002

28/2003

29/2003

27/2007

31/2007

4/2022

32/2022

43/2022

15/2023

    An Act to determine the extent of the immunity of foreign states from the jurisdiction of the courts of Malawi; to provide for diplomatic and consular privileges and immunities by giving effect to certain international conventions and otherwise and for privileges and immunities of international organizations; and for connected purposes

PART I
PRELIMINARY

1.    Short title

    This Act may be cited as the Immunities and Privileges Act.

2.    Interpretation

    (1) In this Act—

    ‘‘commercial purposes’’ means purposes of any commercial transaction as defined in section 5 (3);

    ‘‘consular officer’’ means any person, including the head of a consular post, entrusted in that capacity with the exercise of consular functions and any person in the service of the government of a Commonwealth country performing any such functions;

    “consular post” means any consulate-general, consulate, vice-consulate or consular agency;

    “diplomatic agent” has the meaning assigned to it in Article 1 in the First Schedule.

First and Second Schedules

    (2) In the Articles set out in the First and Second Schedules—

    “agent of the receiving State” or “authorities of the receiving State” shall be construed as including a police officer and any person exercising a power of entry into or upon premises under any written law;

    “grave crime” shall be construed as meaning any offence which, on first conviction, is punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to five years or with a more severe sentence;

    “national of the receiving State” shall be construed as meaning a citizen of Malawi.

PART II
STATE IMMUNITY

3.    General immunity from jurisdiction

    (1) A State is immune from the jurisdiction of the courts of Malawi except as provided in this Part of this Act.

    (2) A court shall give effect to the immunity conferred by this section even though the State does not appear in the proceedings in question.

4.    Submission to jurisdiction

    (1) A State is not immune as respects proceedings in respect of which it has submitted to the jursidiction of the courts of Malawi.

    (2) A State may submit after the dispute giving rise to the proceedings has arisen or by a prior written agreement; but a provision in an agreement that it is to be governed by the law of Malawi is not to be regarded as a submission.

    (3) A State is deemed to have submitted—

    (a)    if it has instituted the proceedings; or

    (b)    subject to subsection (4), if it has intervened or taken any step in the proceedings.

    (4) Subsection 3 (b) does not apply to intervention or any step taken for the purpose only of—

    (a)    claiming immunity; or

    (b)    asserting an interest in property in circumstances such that the State would have been entitled to immunity if the proceedings had been brought against it.

    (5) A submission in respect of any…