The Beginnings of Life
In the beginning there was Chiuta-God and the earth.
Chiuta lived above in the sky
and below him was the earth, waterless and without life.
One day, clouds began to cover the sky;
lightning flared and peals of thunder were heard.
Then the sky opened and from it Chiuta-God,
the first human pair and all the animals
descended in a shower of rain.
They alighted on a flat-topped hill by the name of Kaphiri-Ntiwa,
in the mountains of Dzala-Nyama.
After their descent the soft surface hardened and turned into rock.
On this rock the imprints of their feet
as well as the spoors of many animals can still be seen.
There can be seen two pairs of human feet;
the man’s larger than the woman’s.
There are also imprints of a hoe, a winnowing basket, and a mortar.
Plants and trees grew up, yielding abundant food.God, men and animals lived together in happiness and peace.
The Cataclysm
One day, man accidentally invented fire
by playing with two twirling sticks, one soft, the other hard. They warned him to stop, but he did not want to listen.
In the end the grass was set alight, and there was great confusion.
Among the animals, the dog and goat fled to man for safety;
but the elephant, the lion and their companions ran away,
full of rage against man.
The chameleon escaped by climbing a tree.
He called out to God to follow him,
but Chiuta-God replied that he was too old to climb.
In the end the spider spun a thread lifting him up on high.
Thus God was driven from the earth by the wickedness of man.
As he ascended, he pronounced that
Henceforth man must die and join him in the sky.
Tied to and flowing from this story is the belief in traditional Chewa religion that with the rains come spirits and in the dry season, with the inevitable grass fires that occur the spirits return to the sky. Many of the roles of the chiefs are far more than being a local administrative leader but rather they have a clear religious role. Most of the spirits are actually ancestor spirits and the chief is tasked with performing rituals in the dry season that call for the return of the beneficial ancestor spirits who will bring the rain down with them upon their return. The chief is in the same family line as these ancestor spirits so it is left to him (and sometimes her) to interact with their ‘relatives’. These rituals partly occur in sacred groves that have been protected for centuries and where fire is forbidden and also where the chief’s ancestors are buried. Often these groves are managed by a priestess called the Banda who possibly traces back millennia and may be an institution taken over from the former people of Malawi I have mentioned before that are related to the Kalahari bushmen and the pygmies.
Some of the ideas surrounding chiefs sound truly like the Arthurian legends such as wearing pouches of earth around their neck from their area of control. There would also be a tooth from the recently deceased chief in the pouch to show the continuation of leadership because just as a tooth doesn’t decay neither does the continued leadership of the chiefly line. If the chief did something against the spirits he could fall ill and if the chief is ill then his land is ill. Droughts, pests, fire, infertility of the soil, all could result until the proper balance was returned.
Contrast this with Arthurian stories that state the King is the land and the land is the King. What befalls the king befalls the land and in the some of the King Arthur stories the land experiences drought and ruin after the King is maimed. These Arthurian legends came out of Celtic beliefs so it is interesting to see the connections.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Desk Unchained continued
The group we met with today stated that condoms are for use by vagabonds and then followed that up with the statement that most men are in informal polygamous relationships with 2 to 3 women. The farmers we met with today follow different traditions than what the majority of Malawi follows with regard to what happens in marriage. The majority of Malawians follow a matriarchal society structure where the husband must move to the village of the wife to work and live on her land. So what happens is that all the men in a village are actually from somewhere else. Despite what sounds like a position of power for women in reality they are not treated with equality despite the fact that it is “their” land. This system is called uxorilocal, in contrast where we were today they are virilocal. That means that the wife goes to live in the village of the husband and it is his land. As well in this area a dowry must be paid by the daughter’s family to that of her husband. The men told us that kuchotsa fumbi does not occur in their area but the women told us that it still occurs but is highly secretive. This contrasts with what the men stated about how a woman used to be checked before marriage to make sure that she wasn’t spoiled goods (no longer a virgin) and that if she wasn’t the man could cancel the marriage or negotiate a higher dowry. The men stated that this practice no longer occurs though.
In this area if a man dies the widow will be married to one of the man’s younger brothers. If the widow was the wife of the younger brother she does not marry the older brother as he is seen almost like a father in law to her. Instead he will hire someone to come and have sex with her to get her pregnant with the man staying no longer than 3 days. The men stated that fisi is declining due to the impact of HIV/AIDS. The women described that fisi continues to occur and that it fisi means jackal and like a jackal a man they don’t know will be sent to them in the middle of the night and he will have sex with her and she does not have any say in the matter and never knows who the man was.
Some of the women farmers from today’s session were curious about the origin of AIDS and were discussing ideas that they have heard such as the American government creating HIV, injecting it in Africans who are in American prisons on the agreement that they would release them if they allowed themselves to be injected. Then the prisoners were set free, given some money and deported back to Africa where HIV then was spread to everyone. Another theory was that HIV may not even exist and that when you tell someone they are HIV positive they may die from frustration and despair. Despite these ideas they all could describe the difference between HIV and AIDS, how it is transmitted and what practices encourage it’s spread. All these ideas came from a female farmer that is also a trained nurse and works in a medical clinic. The women in this area also stated that if they asked their husband to wear a condom he would assume they had been unfaithful but what is telling is that the women stated that they think the same. If their husband stated he would want to wear a condom they would assume he had been unfaithful and since they all stated they believe in abstaining and monogamy condoms aren’t needed.
Today definitely put an interesting spin on issues like George Bush’s administration being against condom use. He has been much vilified for the spread of condom use but from the samples we spoke too they wouldn’t want them anyways. Across the board we were told that they encourage unfaithfulness and promiscuity and aren’t needed except by those with low moral standings like sex workers and vagabonds. Religion and the role of the local pastor is extremely important in this as we were told the pastors inform them about the truth behind HIV including the fact that condoms given to Africans are full of holes to let the virus through and that this can be tested just by filling a condom with water and watching the water leak through little holes therefore there is no reason to use them.
In this area if a man dies the widow will be married to one of the man’s younger brothers. If the widow was the wife of the younger brother she does not marry the older brother as he is seen almost like a father in law to her. Instead he will hire someone to come and have sex with her to get her pregnant with the man staying no longer than 3 days. The men stated that fisi is declining due to the impact of HIV/AIDS. The women described that fisi continues to occur and that it fisi means jackal and like a jackal a man they don’t know will be sent to them in the middle of the night and he will have sex with her and she does not have any say in the matter and never knows who the man was.
Some of the women farmers from today’s session were curious about the origin of AIDS and were discussing ideas that they have heard such as the American government creating HIV, injecting it in Africans who are in American prisons on the agreement that they would release them if they allowed themselves to be injected. Then the prisoners were set free, given some money and deported back to Africa where HIV then was spread to everyone. Another theory was that HIV may not even exist and that when you tell someone they are HIV positive they may die from frustration and despair. Despite these ideas they all could describe the difference between HIV and AIDS, how it is transmitted and what practices encourage it’s spread. All these ideas came from a female farmer that is also a trained nurse and works in a medical clinic. The women in this area also stated that if they asked their husband to wear a condom he would assume they had been unfaithful but what is telling is that the women stated that they think the same. If their husband stated he would want to wear a condom they would assume he had been unfaithful and since they all stated they believe in abstaining and monogamy condoms aren’t needed.
Today definitely put an interesting spin on issues like George Bush’s administration being against condom use. He has been much vilified for the spread of condom use but from the samples we spoke too they wouldn’t want them anyways. Across the board we were told that they encourage unfaithfulness and promiscuity and aren’t needed except by those with low moral standings like sex workers and vagabonds. Religion and the role of the local pastor is extremely important in this as we were told the pastors inform them about the truth behind HIV including the fact that condoms given to Africans are full of holes to let the virus through and that this can be tested just by filling a condom with water and watching the water leak through little holes therefore there is no reason to use them.
Desk Unchained
I am on my way home from my first trip to the field on behalf of Farmers Union of Malawi (FUM). Janna has been in the field quite regularily but due to the nature of my position of building a lobbying and advocacy department it has not been necessary for me to be in the field up to this point in my mandate.
I am accompanying Elizabeth our new WUSC - World University Service of Canada volunteer who is here for four months to work on gender and HIV/AIDS issues for FUM as she does some field work on those topics. Yesterday we went to visit some farmers. It was a really interesting day and I was impressed with the knowledge about HIV and about AIDS and the differences and connection between the two. The discussions were done with males and females separately and even simple questions like what do you do each day and who makes the decisions on different matters had different conflicting answers between the two groups. Practices that I had been told no longer occur are still going on according to these rural farmers who I would assume would be best placed to know. One of these practices is called fisi and it is when another man is brought in to impregnate a woman who isn’t getting pregnant with her husband. As well we were told that kuchotsa fumbi is still a common cultural practice. This is where a man is brought in when a girl begins to menstruate in order to initiate her into sex. Both of these practices were described to us when Elizabeth asked about what kind of cultural activities may spread the transmission of HIV. It was also clearly stated to us that men often have multiple female partners in a kind of informal polygamy but that it is not possible for a women to ask her husband to wear a condom as it will imply that they (the woman) have been unfaithful. The men stated to us that if the woman asked them to wear a condom they would see it as a challenge to whether they (the men) have been unfaithful. So despite the fact that everyone stated that formal polygamy is very rare (it once was widely practiced) informal still occurs yet people won’t wear condoms because that implies unfaithfulness! The majority of Malawians are intensely Christian with many of them following evangelical and born again denominations and therefore they all state that polygamy is wrong and that condoms are not needed as all that is required is abstaining until marriage and then faithfulness within marriage.
To be continued...
I am accompanying Elizabeth our new WUSC - World University Service of Canada volunteer who is here for four months to work on gender and HIV/AIDS issues for FUM as she does some field work on those topics. Yesterday we went to visit some farmers. It was a really interesting day and I was impressed with the knowledge about HIV and about AIDS and the differences and connection between the two. The discussions were done with males and females separately and even simple questions like what do you do each day and who makes the decisions on different matters had different conflicting answers between the two groups. Practices that I had been told no longer occur are still going on according to these rural farmers who I would assume would be best placed to know. One of these practices is called fisi and it is when another man is brought in to impregnate a woman who isn’t getting pregnant with her husband. As well we were told that kuchotsa fumbi is still a common cultural practice. This is where a man is brought in when a girl begins to menstruate in order to initiate her into sex. Both of these practices were described to us when Elizabeth asked about what kind of cultural activities may spread the transmission of HIV. It was also clearly stated to us that men often have multiple female partners in a kind of informal polygamy but that it is not possible for a women to ask her husband to wear a condom as it will imply that they (the woman) have been unfaithful. The men stated to us that if the woman asked them to wear a condom they would see it as a challenge to whether they (the men) have been unfaithful. So despite the fact that everyone stated that formal polygamy is very rare (it once was widely practiced) informal still occurs yet people won’t wear condoms because that implies unfaithfulness! The majority of Malawians are intensely Christian with many of them following evangelical and born again denominations and therefore they all state that polygamy is wrong and that condoms are not needed as all that is required is abstaining until marriage and then faithfulness within marriage.
To be continued...
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Different Work for the Ministry of Labour in Malawi than in Ontario
Thought I would paste in this news story. It is about a Ministry of Labour officer having to investigate a worker being fired from the government for being a witch. Quite a bit different than our Ontario Ministry of Labour reactive calls. When you see the word Traditional Authority (T/A) it means a tribal chief who still wield some power here in Malawi and are semi-officially part of the government apparatus which is a British parliamentary style system like Canada.
Sanjika driver fired, asked to relocate over witchcraft allegations
By OLIVIA KUMWENDA(5/21/2008)
A Sigerege family in Blantyre’s Chilomoni Township is in a tight corner after the husband, who until recently was working as a truck driver at Sanjika Palace, was "verbally" fired following allegations that his wife was teaching State Residence children some witchcraft, a development that has been questioned by labour and human rights authorities.The family, of Duncan and Christina Chilembwe, also faces another predicament—that they move out of Sigerege following Traditional Authority (T/A) Kuntaja’s decision acting on advice from a witch-doctor’s report that allegedly implicated the household.Kuntaja has given the Chilembwes up to October-end to relocate, but the family maintains its innocence.According to a Blantyre-based labour officer, there are no regulations in the Laws of Malawi that govern the issue of witchcraft at work-places.Human rights activists have also described the development as "a common challenge" that the nation needs to address, arguing that witchcraft allegations are difficult to prove.The Chilembwes’ saga started last November when the family was stationed at Sanjika Palace.Chilembwe last week told The Nation the family was ordered out of the palace premises after some staff members alleged his wife was teaching children witchcraft.The family moved to Sigerege, just behind Sanjika Hill, where they own a house. But according to Chilembwe, some Sanjika officials later reported the matter to village headwoman Anderson of Sigerege."This time it was alleged that both me and my wife were teaching children witchcraft. Village headwoman Anderson then reported the matter to group village headman Pensulo."[Pensulo] referred the matter to T/A Kuntaja. The T/A told us, including the complainants, to go to a witch-doctor to find out if there was indeed witchcraft among us," said Chilembwe from his home in Sigerege.He said the families of both the accused and the accusers went to a witch-doctor in Mdeka, rural Blantyre, where they spent a night."The witch-doctor gave everyone medicine to drink saying those who do not practise witchcraft will vomit after taking it. After taking the herbs, everyone vomited meaning there was no one who was practising witchcraft."We left the place without being officially told the outcome but we knew that we were innocent as we had vomited just like everybody else. However, we were surprised that when the T/A summoned us early this month, we were told that the witch-doctor has found us guilty of witchcraft," said Chilembwe.He said the T/A then ordered that family to pay chickens to the complainants and relocate.However, Anderson, who said she cannot entertain witchcraft practices in her village, contradicted Chilembwe on the witch-doctor’s outcome."I have heard about Chilembwe’s version that the witch-doctor said those who do not practise witchcraft will vomit but according to an independent observer sent by the T/A, the doctor did not say that," said Anderson.She said, according to the observer, the witch-doctor only said the herbs had several side effects including vomiting. She said she does not know how the witch-doctor came to a conclusion that the Chilembwes are guilty of witchcraft.But Kuntaja defended his decision to evict the family from Sigerege, saying it was made for security reasons."I am not forcing the family to move but normally after such incidents, the suspects are advised to move to another area for fear of being persecuted by the community," said Kuntaja.But at the time of the interviews, the Chilembwes claimed they were not facing any hostility in the community.State House press officer Chikumbutso Mtumodzi refused to comment on the matter, saying under the Laws of Malawi, witchcraft, sorcery and anything related to magic does not exist. But Chilembwe insisted he was verbally fired after the accusations.
Blantyre District labour officer George Chilonga said the country does not have laws on witchcraft practices at the workplace."But for security reasons and when there is public interest, a person suspected to be practising witchcraft can be transferred to another place or have his or her contract terminated. But when he or she is fired, one has to get all the benefits," said Chilonga.
Chilembwe said he is still waiting to hear from State House on his benefits.Meanwhile, Malawi Human Rights Commission (MHRC) executive director Dorothy Nyasulu said the Chilembwes scenario represents many other Malawians who are being harassed following witchcraft accusations."This is a big issue because sometimes people take the law into their own hands to deal with witchcraft suspects. As a country, we need to come up with a way forward as people’s rights are being violated," said Nyasulu.She said village leaders are not supposed to tell the suspects to relocate but should protect them as their subjects.Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation (CHRR) executive director Undule Mwakasungula concurred with Nyasulu that it is very difficult to pin down people over witchcraft allegations."This is a challenge. As a country we need to be very careful with the way we handle such cases. Innocent people are being victimised and having their rights violated," said Mwakasungula, who is also Human Rights Consultative Committee (HRCC) chairperson.The Chilembwes have since said they will appeal against Kuntaja’s decision in a court of law.
Sanjika driver fired, asked to relocate over witchcraft allegations
By OLIVIA KUMWENDA(5/21/2008)
A Sigerege family in Blantyre’s Chilomoni Township is in a tight corner after the husband, who until recently was working as a truck driver at Sanjika Palace, was "verbally" fired following allegations that his wife was teaching State Residence children some witchcraft, a development that has been questioned by labour and human rights authorities.The family, of Duncan and Christina Chilembwe, also faces another predicament—that they move out of Sigerege following Traditional Authority (T/A) Kuntaja’s decision acting on advice from a witch-doctor’s report that allegedly implicated the household.Kuntaja has given the Chilembwes up to October-end to relocate, but the family maintains its innocence.According to a Blantyre-based labour officer, there are no regulations in the Laws of Malawi that govern the issue of witchcraft at work-places.Human rights activists have also described the development as "a common challenge" that the nation needs to address, arguing that witchcraft allegations are difficult to prove.The Chilembwes’ saga started last November when the family was stationed at Sanjika Palace.Chilembwe last week told The Nation the family was ordered out of the palace premises after some staff members alleged his wife was teaching children witchcraft.The family moved to Sigerege, just behind Sanjika Hill, where they own a house. But according to Chilembwe, some Sanjika officials later reported the matter to village headwoman Anderson of Sigerege."This time it was alleged that both me and my wife were teaching children witchcraft. Village headwoman Anderson then reported the matter to group village headman Pensulo."[Pensulo] referred the matter to T/A Kuntaja. The T/A told us, including the complainants, to go to a witch-doctor to find out if there was indeed witchcraft among us," said Chilembwe from his home in Sigerege.He said the families of both the accused and the accusers went to a witch-doctor in Mdeka, rural Blantyre, where they spent a night."The witch-doctor gave everyone medicine to drink saying those who do not practise witchcraft will vomit after taking it. After taking the herbs, everyone vomited meaning there was no one who was practising witchcraft."We left the place without being officially told the outcome but we knew that we were innocent as we had vomited just like everybody else. However, we were surprised that when the T/A summoned us early this month, we were told that the witch-doctor has found us guilty of witchcraft," said Chilembwe.He said the T/A then ordered that family to pay chickens to the complainants and relocate.However, Anderson, who said she cannot entertain witchcraft practices in her village, contradicted Chilembwe on the witch-doctor’s outcome."I have heard about Chilembwe’s version that the witch-doctor said those who do not practise witchcraft will vomit but according to an independent observer sent by the T/A, the doctor did not say that," said Anderson.She said, according to the observer, the witch-doctor only said the herbs had several side effects including vomiting. She said she does not know how the witch-doctor came to a conclusion that the Chilembwes are guilty of witchcraft.But Kuntaja defended his decision to evict the family from Sigerege, saying it was made for security reasons."I am not forcing the family to move but normally after such incidents, the suspects are advised to move to another area for fear of being persecuted by the community," said Kuntaja.But at the time of the interviews, the Chilembwes claimed they were not facing any hostility in the community.State House press officer Chikumbutso Mtumodzi refused to comment on the matter, saying under the Laws of Malawi, witchcraft, sorcery and anything related to magic does not exist. But Chilembwe insisted he was verbally fired after the accusations.
Blantyre District labour officer George Chilonga said the country does not have laws on witchcraft practices at the workplace."But for security reasons and when there is public interest, a person suspected to be practising witchcraft can be transferred to another place or have his or her contract terminated. But when he or she is fired, one has to get all the benefits," said Chilonga.
Chilembwe said he is still waiting to hear from State House on his benefits.Meanwhile, Malawi Human Rights Commission (MHRC) executive director Dorothy Nyasulu said the Chilembwes scenario represents many other Malawians who are being harassed following witchcraft accusations."This is a big issue because sometimes people take the law into their own hands to deal with witchcraft suspects. As a country, we need to come up with a way forward as people’s rights are being violated," said Nyasulu.She said village leaders are not supposed to tell the suspects to relocate but should protect them as their subjects.Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation (CHRR) executive director Undule Mwakasungula concurred with Nyasulu that it is very difficult to pin down people over witchcraft allegations."This is a challenge. As a country we need to be very careful with the way we handle such cases. Innocent people are being victimised and having their rights violated," said Mwakasungula, who is also Human Rights Consultative Committee (HRCC) chairperson.The Chilembwes have since said they will appeal against Kuntaja’s decision in a court of law.
Friday, May 16, 2008
Tracking Tolkien
We have had an amazing climb up Mount Mulanje, the tallest mountain in central Africa. We climbed up it two weeks ago taking advantage of a statutory holiday to give us the time to do it. The mountain is an amazing site as you approach it due to the fact that it rises out of a completely flat plain. There are no foothill or gradual slopes that lead to the mountain and it is not part of a mountain chain. This type of geologic feature is called an inselberg which is German for island mountain which is a very apt description. The mountain was quite a stiff hike but it didn’t take any mountain climbing skills. The peak of Mulanje is at 3002 m above sea level which puts it quite a bit below Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania which is 5895 m above sea level but it is impressive nonetheless. One of the huts we stayed in has a view outside of it of Chambe peak which has a 1.7 km vertical rock face, the highest cliff in Africa. Mulanje is significantly higher than our previously highest climbed peak, Mt. Washington in New Hampshire which is 1917 m above sea level.
The views are unbelievable and the scenery continually takes on a different look as you round a peak or enter into another valley. As you rise from a plain you travel through various stages of vegetation until you are above the tree level where only lichen is precariously clinging to the rock. Clouds continually move in shrouding everything in an eerie mist and dropping visibility quite low but then the wind will blow the mist away and you will be treated to what one traveler early in the twentieth century called the best view in the British Empire. J.R.R. Tolkein climbed Mt. Mulanje shortly before he wrote The Hobbit and local legend has it that Mulanje inspired him. The rivers that flow off of the mountain travel through the surrounding plain until they join the largest river in Malawi, the Shire.
The hiking was tiring but well worth it. The first night we stayed at a hut at the base of Sapitwa peak which in ChiChewa means “don’t go there”. Before we left our day guard at our house pulled me aside and told me that it was ok to go to Mulanje but that we must not go to Sapitwa. Sapitwa, and Mulanje as a whole is considered by some Malawians as the basis of all bad magic and witchcraft in the country. It is considered a realm of evil spirits and a place dangerous to visit. Our guard, Grant warned me that the influence and power of evil spirits is strong still on Sapitwa and that people who climb it have been known to disappear. So after staying the night in a hut at the base of Sapitwa the first thing we did was attempt to commune with the spirits (no , I don’t mean we had a séance, just that we attempted to climb the peak). After 3 hours of climbing though we had to regroup, analyse the situation and we realized that we weren’t equipped to climb the peak. While all the earlier travel on Mulanje was just hiking despite its difficulty Sapitwa entered the realm of climbing with a large proportion of smearing involved. One group that we met stated that they were only able to make to the peak using the climbing rope that they had brought so our decision to turn around was a good one despite Regan’s disappointment. She was climbing without any problems and had be been properly equipped she would have had no problem claiming the peak. After that we hiked to another hut, which was at the base of the earlier mentioned cliff and spent another night. The next day we hiked down and returned home.
The whole experience was magical despite the lack of spirits. As well I kept my eyes pealed for the elusive Abatwa, light skinned people of extremely short stature who are whispered to still be on the mountain. In actuality there is some truth behind this legend as when the Bantu people first migrated into Malawi over a 1000 years ago the land was already occupied by the Abatwa people. There are still remnants of these people in Africa but not in Malawi. The pygmies of the Congo and the Kalahari bushmen of Botswana are the remnants of this once widespread people. Their features are very different from the larger, darker skinned Bantu tribes who now cover the majority of sub-Saharan Africa.For anyone who is visiting Malawi I highly recommend Mt. Mulanje, even if it is just to drive to see it as it is spectacular.
The views are unbelievable and the scenery continually takes on a different look as you round a peak or enter into another valley. As you rise from a plain you travel through various stages of vegetation until you are above the tree level where only lichen is precariously clinging to the rock. Clouds continually move in shrouding everything in an eerie mist and dropping visibility quite low but then the wind will blow the mist away and you will be treated to what one traveler early in the twentieth century called the best view in the British Empire. J.R.R. Tolkein climbed Mt. Mulanje shortly before he wrote The Hobbit and local legend has it that Mulanje inspired him. The rivers that flow off of the mountain travel through the surrounding plain until they join the largest river in Malawi, the Shire.
The hiking was tiring but well worth it. The first night we stayed at a hut at the base of Sapitwa peak which in ChiChewa means “don’t go there”. Before we left our day guard at our house pulled me aside and told me that it was ok to go to Mulanje but that we must not go to Sapitwa. Sapitwa, and Mulanje as a whole is considered by some Malawians as the basis of all bad magic and witchcraft in the country. It is considered a realm of evil spirits and a place dangerous to visit. Our guard, Grant warned me that the influence and power of evil spirits is strong still on Sapitwa and that people who climb it have been known to disappear. So after staying the night in a hut at the base of Sapitwa the first thing we did was attempt to commune with the spirits (no , I don’t mean we had a séance, just that we attempted to climb the peak). After 3 hours of climbing though we had to regroup, analyse the situation and we realized that we weren’t equipped to climb the peak. While all the earlier travel on Mulanje was just hiking despite its difficulty Sapitwa entered the realm of climbing with a large proportion of smearing involved. One group that we met stated that they were only able to make to the peak using the climbing rope that they had brought so our decision to turn around was a good one despite Regan’s disappointment. She was climbing without any problems and had be been properly equipped she would have had no problem claiming the peak. After that we hiked to another hut, which was at the base of the earlier mentioned cliff and spent another night. The next day we hiked down and returned home.
The whole experience was magical despite the lack of spirits. As well I kept my eyes pealed for the elusive Abatwa, light skinned people of extremely short stature who are whispered to still be on the mountain. In actuality there is some truth behind this legend as when the Bantu people first migrated into Malawi over a 1000 years ago the land was already occupied by the Abatwa people. There are still remnants of these people in Africa but not in Malawi. The pygmies of the Congo and the Kalahari bushmen of Botswana are the remnants of this once widespread people. Their features are very different from the larger, darker skinned Bantu tribes who now cover the majority of sub-Saharan Africa.For anyone who is visiting Malawi I highly recommend Mt. Mulanje, even if it is just to drive to see it as it is spectacular.
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