After thirty years of autocratic rule under "Life President" Kamuzu Banda, Malawians experienced a transition to multi-party democracy in 1994. A new constitution and several democratic institutions promised a new dawn in a country ravaged by poverty and injustice. This book presents original research on the economic, social, political and cultural consequences of the new era. A new generation of scholars, most of them from Malawi, cover virtually every issue causing debate in the New Malawi: poverty and hunger, the plight of civil servants, the role of the judiciary, political intolerance and hate speech, popular music as a form of protest, clergy activism, voluntary associations and ethnic revival, responses to the HIV/AIDS pandemic, and controversies over women's rights. Both chameleon-like leaders and the donors of Malawi's foreign aid come under critical scrutiny for supporting superficial democratization. The book ends with a rare public statement on the New Malawi by Jack Mapanje, Malawi'sinternationally acclaimed writer.

Do participatory processes open a political space to marginalized groups and individuals? Or do they co-opt and coerce groups to reinforce existing inequitable relations? In an innovative comparative study which breaks with tradition this book explores these questions by looking at Malawi and Ireland.

This volume brings together expert contributors to explore the intersection of two major contemporary themes: globalization, and the contribution that both domestic party politics and international party support make to democratization. Globalising Democracy clearly shows what globalization means for domestic and international efforts to build effective political parties and competitive party systems in new and emerging democracies. Contrasting perspectives are presented through fresh case studies of European post-communist countries, Africa and Turkey. The reader is clearly shown how international party assistance is a manifestation and vehicle of globalization, and explores how it may be assessed in terms of: global economic integration the growth of global communications the development and implications for party politics of multi-level governance. This is the first book to analyze the impact of globalization on democracy and will be of great interest to all students of international relations, governance and politics.

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An overview of the press and mass media in Africa today and their contribution to democratization

This book deals with the often-neglected link between indigenous languages, media and democracy in Africa. It recognizes that the media plays an amplifying role that is vital to modern-day expression, public participation and democracy but that without the agency to harness media potential, many Africans will be excluded from public discourse.

Famine is the most extreme manifestation of the existence of poverty, inequality and political apathy. Whereas poverty, hunger and diseases are not easily eradicated in the world today, famines are often perceived to be relatively simple to avert. However, the political incentives to prevent famines are not always present. Inspired by the work of Amartya Sen, whose influential hypothesis that democratic institutions together with a free press provide effective protection from famine, Democracy and Famine is a study combining qualitative and quantitative evidence, analysing the effect of democracy on famine prevention. The book’s overall framework moves from placing political systems at the heart of famine protection to look at the political processes involved. Using a case study based approach drawing on famines from India, Malawi and Niger; Democracy and Famine will be of interest to scholars and students of democracy, comparative politics and international relations.