A Malawian court has convicted a Chinese national accused of racism and exploiting children in relation to a series of online videos and ordered him to leave the country.
A judge in the African nation's capital of Lilongwe handed 27-year-old Lu Ke a 12-month sentence after the man was found guilty of procuring children to take part in entertainment and racially exploiting them.
Public prosecutor Masauko Chamkakala said Lu, who was arrested in 2022, was given seven days to leave Malawi, having already served his time behind bars.
"He has already served 12 months, hence his immediate release," Chamkakala told AFP on Thursday.
Lu allegedly filmed children singing racist chants about themselves in Chinese – which they did not understand – and then sold the videos on Chinese social media.
Paid compensation
In one video, a young child aged about nine was heard saying: "I am a monster with low IQ."
Chamkakala said Lu has paid compensation to the victims but declined to disclose the amount.
Lu was arrested in June 2022 in neighbouring Zambia for illegal entry after fleeing there and was later extradited back to Malawi.
When the allegations surfaced, the Chinese embassy in Malawi condemned the accused's actions in a statement, saying "the Chinese government has zero tolerance for racism."
