Vol 53 No 10 | MALAWI A long-distance run for Banda 11th May 2012 The new President is trying to correct her predecessor’s blunders and persuade the people to face tough times ahead President Joyce Banda has formed an inclusive government, appointing former enemies as well as allies in an effort to maintain a united front on economic problems. ‘The economy...
Vol 53 No 10 | MALAWI Three days in April 11th May 2012 President Bingu wa Mutharika’s heart stopped during a meeting on 5 April with a member of parliament, Agnes Penemulungu. ‘He just stopped talking and tipped over and the...
Vol 53 No 8 | MALAWI New leader, new broom 13th April 2012 Africa’s second female president faces a fickle parliament and a desperate economy Joyce Banda, accepting promotion from Vice-President to President on the death of Bingu wa Mutharika, inaugurated her rule on 9 April by sacking the police chief, Peter Mukhito....
Vol 53 No 8 | MALAWI How Mutharika went wrong 13th April 2012 Bingu wa Mutharika was Malawi’s third President, after Hastings Kamuzu Banda and Bakili Muluzi. Born in 1934 in the Thyolo district of southern Malawi, he was educated...
Vol 53 No 5 | MALAWI Pressure mounts on Mutharika 2nd March 2012 The IMF still wants devaluation, while a former Attorney General claims the governing party is hiring thugs to silence critics Ralph Kasambara is voicing the concern of many when he warns of a campaign of intimidation against civil society activists by criminals hired by the party in power.
Vol 53 No 5 | MALAWI Kwacha devaluation: not if but when 2nd March 2012 The debate about whether to devalue the kwacha has moved on and become ‘by how much?’ President Bingu wa Mutharika remains determined not to devalue, though the International...
Vol 5 (AAC) No 5 | MALAWICHINA Too much competition 28th February 2012 A group of 33 Malawian merchants in Karonga has petitioned the government to oust the Chinese nationals whose businesses, the traders complain, are increasing competition in the northern...
Vol 5 (AAC) No 4 | MALAWI Bingu wa Mutharika 10th February 2012 President Commonwealth Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma visited Malawian President Bingu wa Mutharika on 21-24 January en route to last month’s African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Secretary General...
Vol 52 No 25 | MALAWI Donors challenge Bingu 16th December 2011 Aid providers wring some concessions from an increasingly arbitrary president President Bingu wa Mutharika has stood up to his opponents in civil society and shows no sign of meeting their demands or of loosening his grip on power....
Vol 52 No 22 | MALAWI Plot device 4th November 2011 The repressive climate in Malawi took a bizarre turn when a journalist’s e-mail account was hacked and a forged message sent from it alleging a plot to overthrow...