Hundreds of people have protested in Malawi about thugs who have been stripping women of their trousers and mini-skirts.

Most of the women and girls who turned out for today's protest in Blantyre wore trousers or mini-skirts.

A recording of Bob Marley's No Woman, No Cry got a loud cheer when it was played.

Vice President Joyce Banda, who took part, says the vendors and others attacking women are thugs.

Some attackers claim their victims' dress was a sign of loose morals or that they were prostitutes.

During the dictatorship of the late Hastings Kamuzu Banda from 1963-1994, women in Malawi were banned from wearing trousers and short skirts.