Malawi has saved its democracy but not its economy
It remains the world’s poorest peaceful country
In many parts of the world democracy can feel abstract and immutable, like mountains in the distance; voting is not a triumph but a chore. But not in Msundwe, a thin strip of road lined by stalls selling beans, maize and cabbages about 40 minutes drive from Lilongwe, Malawi’s capital. Here democracy feels as fresh and real as the scars people still bear from beatings, shootings and mass rapes three years ago.
This article appeared in the Middle East & Africa section of the print edition under the headline “Escaping the dead hand of dictatorship”
From the September 24th 2022 edition
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