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Treading on the corn

It is universally accepted that a Malawian government's legitimacy is determined by the latest maize harvest. 'Chimango ndi moyo' (Maize is life) is an expression often heard and corn has to be available for purchase at a reasonable price. Most Malawians not only consume but also produce the grain, if only on a small scale. Almost everyone eats nsima, the national dish, made from maize flour. Such was the strength of the reaction when a Scottish aid worker dared recently to criticise nsima on an internet blog site, that she was forced to remove her sacrilege from the internet....

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Treading on the corn

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