Suicide Criminals
The self-immolation of the Manda family in an impoverished Blantyre slum has been grabbing headlines in Malawi for weeks. Many commentators here have been mulling over why the siblings made their fatal...
View ArticleA closer look at the ‘grassroots’
Once a week, about 80 men, women, and youth throng the streets of Nkolokoti, an area just outside Blantyre. By sweeping the roadsides, cleaning latrines, and arranging the markets, these volunteer...
View ArticleFrom culprits to catalysts: Girls’ initiation in Malawi
In their respective villages, Cecelia Muliya and Esitere Chabwera are regarded as cultural leaders. The two have worked in girls’ initiation camps for decades, tasked with the role of introducing young...
View ArticleThe plight of the condom
“Nyimbo imodzi sachezelela gule.” (One song won’t keep you dancing throughout the night.) As this Malawian proverb suggests, just one sexual partner won’t satisfy a person for their entire lifetime....
View ArticleMalawi’s fisherman more likely to catch HIV: Reports
Ronald Gomo, 37, is a fisherman who would rather live alone than associate with the other fishermen who reside on the shorelines of Malawi’s Lake Chilwa. “Before, when I was living over there [with the...
View Article“Meating” halfway – The growing importance of soy in Malawi
Skewered meat sizzles on kickstand grills along the main M1 highway, a whole pig is slaughtered in an open-air butcher’s market shack, a farmer herds wealth-representative cattle down a maize-sidled...
View ArticleDefending sexual minority rights
“Pedophiles or other sexual deviants are not welcome in Ghana.” The sign loomed over me as I stood, waiting to get my passport stamped, in line at the Kotoka International Airport in Accra. It was my...
View Article“Mind the gap” – The crippling impact of HIV/AIDS on family composition and...
The old “respect your elders” adage has customarily been an important part of Malawian culture, with the elderly able to depend on the social and economic support of their children and the community....
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