Malawi: Taking Stock in Turbulent Times

Abstract

In 2002, John McCracken co-edited a Journal of Southern African Studies special issue on Malawi. 1 This year marks the 20th anniversary of the conference in Zomba from which that issue, and its accompanying volume, emerged. 2 While contributors were cognisant of the challenges facing higher education in Malawi at the time, 3 it was nevertheless a moment of optimism, marked by 'an upsurge in intellectual activity' 4 following the demise of Hastings Kamuzu Banda's dictatorship and the coming of multi-party democracy. The issue showcased research that had been facilitated by the new conditions in the country: historical sources readily accessed in the national archives, probing research questions more openly confronted and expanded opportunities for field research. However, while optimistic, the authors were also cautious. A subtle shift could already be determined between these publications and those of the 1990s, which, while certainly not uncritical, bore the first fruits of academic freedom. 5 In acknowledgement of changing circumstances, McCracken's introduction was followed by a postscript that addressed events that had taken place in the weeks since the former had been written: 'democratic rights [had] been put under threat', judicial and academic freedoms had been compromised and police had opened fire on students and protesters with fatal consequences. 6 By 2000-2002, then, with President Bakili Muluzi's controversial third-term bid already visible on the horizon, some of the initial scholarly relief that accompanied the change of regime in 1994 was beginning to give way to trepidation and still hopeful vigilance. Almost a decade later, in 2011, following a period of much-lauded economic growth, Malawi was in the throes of political and economic crisis. At its height, tensions surrounding the mishandling of the economy and anger against President Bingu wa Mutharika's regime led to violent demonstrations, in which 20 people were killed at the hands of the police and state security forces. Academic freedom was listed among the demonstrators' demands. 7 From February to October 2011, classes at the University of Malawi were cancelled and campuses shut down in response to police interference when the political scientist Blessings Chinsinga was accused of drawing parallels between Malawi and events of the Arab Spring

Political ecology of domestic water access and use in urban Malawi

“…This makes Malawi an intriguing setting to research urban water access and use issues. Malawi became independent from Britain in 1964 under President Hastings Banda, who remained in power until 1994, when he lost the first multiparty general election (Johnson, 2020;Gabay, 2017). Since then, Malawi has had several democratically elected governments, including the present government of Dr. Chakwera of the 'Tonse…”