Culture, Nationalism, and the Invention of Tradition in Malawi

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Abstract
In May 1994 the Life President of Malawi, Dr H. Kamuzu Banda, the world's oldest Head of State, was peacefully defeated in the country's first multi-party elections after having been in power since February 1963. During that 31 year era his Malawi Congress Party (MCP) régime had been characterised by a remarkably high degree of legitimacy. It can of course be argued that this was simply based on political repression, which certainly existed, notably during periods of excessive sensitivity to various criticisms and actions that were interpreted as threats to the prevailing stability. This could be seen in the activities of Banda's strong-arm organisations (such as the Young Pioneers and the Youth League), and in the omnipresent secret police, who did their best to identify dissidents and rebels. Punishments included detention without trial, or much worse, and disloyalty was often vaguely and broadly defined.

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