In March this year, the Republic of South Africa concluded a Trade Agreement with Malawi—its first with an independent African state. Malawi ministers were flown down, feasted and accommodated in Pretoria’s leading all-white hotel. By the terms of the agreement, Malawi granted preferential tariffs for all South African goods imported into Malawi in exchange for a South African guarantee to admit, duty free, 500,000 lb. of Malawi tea each year. In September, official diplomatic relations were established, at chargé d’ affaires level.
This formalization of relations with Malawi has been the most striking achievement so far in the South African strategy of regional stabilization. There can be no doubt that it corresponds to an active choice by the present Malawi leadership. The dependence upon South Africa of the ‘decolonized’ High Commission territories is obvious, acknowledged and multiform; but Malawi’s situation vis-mvis the Republic is not comparable. Malawi policy towards Portugal is similarly accommodating, allegedly because of the importance to Malawi of the railway to Beira. Certainly, Malawi is landlocked; but so is Zambia. Banda has plans for a new outlet to the sea; not to Mtwara or Dar es Salaam, however, but to Naçala—in Mozambique! Banda, far from using the resources and attributes at his disposal to extend his margin of manoeuvre and independence, is integrating Malawi more firmly into the white-dominated zone whose northern buffer and promontory he now provides. In so far as independence is a national goal, it is independence from the oau which seems to preoccupy him.