A Malawian gay couple arrested after holding a wedding ceremony last week was denied bail yesterday, as a court gave prosecutors six more days to wrap up their investigation into "indecencies" by the men.

Steven Monjeza and Tiwonge Chimbalanga appeared downcast as they walked handcuffed into the court amid tight police security, to jeers and cheers from hundreds of onlookers.

They were arrested one week ago in Malawi's commercial capital Blantyre for holding the country's first public same-sex wedding ceremony - an act that landed them with three counts of "indecent practices".

If convicted, they face up to 14 years in prison.

Police prosecutor Dickens Mwambazi urged the court to deny them bail, saying they should remain in custody for their "own safety and security" because their case had attracted widespread condemnation from Malawians.

"Their lives would be endangered if they were released," he said.

Magistrate Nyakwawa Usiwa Usiwa said he feared the couple "would tamper with evidence" if they were freed, but warned he would release them if prosecutors failed to wrap up their investigation quickly.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.