Every nation, like a human being, needs friends for mutual support on needs and protection from foes.
Looking back in time, Kamuzu seem to have cleverly chosen his friends with politically neutral allies in world politics for trade, for development partnerships and knowledge sharing.
Instead of China, Kamuzu chose to partner with Taiwan. I do believe, UK remained a friend due to the common wealth "partnership" which at world level it was enough protection.
At world level, Malawi was very much unknown, economically it was possible to prosper so much without much of the external interference. Our citizens have been known world over for their wisdom and knowledge which they acquired in peace and prosperity of our land some of whom are the likes of Prof. Bingu Wa Mutharika who has been very active in World Wide Organizations like the United Nations, OAU etc, and recently AU due to his successfully arresting the deteriorating economy of Malawi and making big strides in getting back to the lost glory of what Malawi was in the 30 years of independence.
I remember sitting in a training workshop organized for Mzuzu network of youth led ngos learning about the role of donors. We are supposed to have been Friend Raising as opposed to Fund Raising.
Friend Raising looks at chosing to partner with friends whose goals are similar to ours. Some of these friends exist to support smaller organizations and so it becomes better if we chose to receive support from friends with similar goals as ours.
At national level it seems wiser as well to chose trade partnerships, economic partnerships, etc among countries with which we have similar goals and especially on trade, where there is natural mutual benefit.
We have been forced into various partnerships with the United States of America, in the recent years do to the chance to multi-partite democracy which USA so strongly advocates.
While we may have needed financial support, we may not have required cutting ties with the rest of our previous partnerships, and be forced to partner only with the USA in everything.
China has a vibrant cloth manufacturing industry unequaled world over. We produce cotton as one of our major commercial export. And we have been in trade partnership with China for many other products it produces which we also need.
It is not necessary, because we are now a democratic country that we should cut trade partnership with China just because the USA is unhappy with China. Realistically speaking there is not much benefit we get from USA save for donations. We cannot depend on donations forever, we work hard, and we need to sell at profit. This is only possible if we are selling products to who need and value them.
Putting so much restrictions on such partnerships to countries like Malawi will indeed force us to develop even political partnerships for mutual protection whose end is indeed similar to the world war eras.
The western nations/United Nations is so keen at pressing sanctions to countries it deems bad. I think sanctions have necessarily become siege laid on countries these western nations seek to loot.
Is the middle east the most evil region in the world that it should be so punished by western nations under the United Nations? The Moslem Law is so much like Old Testament Bible law which also forms the basis of the English Common Law and [Western Democratic Law] which are the two laws common in world wide government systems.
In other words, the Law of the Koran(sharia law), the Law of the Bible, the Statutory Laws are not very different on definitions of right and wrong but they might have a big difference on the punishment given.
Of the three laws, The Statutory is the most lenient maybe due to the influence of the new testament of the Bible in old to the best of ability, to try and incooperate the principles of the new testament of the Bible.
Needless to say, Since, the Moslems are able to live in obedience to this law without much finding themselves on the penal side of the law, shall it be a crime that they follow such a law?
It is indeed difficult for foreigners to find themselves among such a crowd living in obedience to a law they fail to adhere to. So indeed they will find themselves on the penal side.
But then here is a problem: the definition of right and wrong in the laws are the same. A foreigner so severely punished in the land of the Moslems is as wrong as he is in his own land. The fact that his home country is very lenient does not in any way, he should continue doing wrong in a land that is not as lenient.
Let's face the fact, the wages of sin is death even to God. And the world is ending fast. Learn when you can.
Moslems therefore are not wrong to live by the Sharia Law that we Christians should war them. For our own Bible has equally severe punishment prescribed for the same wrongs.
Christians therefore have no right to war Moslems on the basis of the sharia law.
Christians living in obedience to the word of God should not be able to find themselves in conflict with Moslems on the basis of breaking the law even the sharia law. Except for the belief itself which is not in any way on conflict with Moslems. For Moslems recognize Jesus in their religion. Even though, they may not recognize him in the same way we Christians do.
So it remains, the middle east should not be at war fought by Christians on the basis of the Moslem law.
Why then is their war in the middle east? Or why should there be sanctions so much that countries like Malawi should fail to buy petroleum?
The enemies of the United States should not necessarily be our enemies too. For even the United States makes enemies for all the wrong reasons.
The United States should not have been at war in Afghanistan had it been that it accepted to move out of the land when the nationals decided the should. In my opinion, after the cold war, they got greedy of all the oil there and can't want let go. Swallow the pride, leave the land that doesn't belong to you. Leave their riches to themselves.
If it so happens, the middle east is our main supply of oil to Africa and most middle east countries are under siege by western forces who seem to be after looting the oil itself than anything else, we should not be found in problems if we disobey the sanctions so placed on these middle east countries.
Our lack is not america's lack.