STEPHENVILLE — Tarleton professor Dr. Paul Banda has published a new book, The State, Counterinsurgency, and Political Policing in Colonial and Postcolonial Malawi, 1891-1994, that examines the history of the African nation.
Malawi is a former British protectorate then known as Nyasaland.
Banda analyzes the rise of insurgencies in Malawi and adopts the concept of counterinsurgency to address the reactions of the state to those who questioned it.
He explores the factors behind the rise of insurgency, such as land alienation, high taxation, elements of forced labor, and denial of development opportunities. He also studies the counterinsurgency measures used by the state, including brutal force by police and other para-military groups, the codification of strict laws, and the offer of development opportunities.
Through Malawi’s history, he provides an analysis of why citizens challenge state authority, how the state responds, and what methods the state uses to defeat insurgencies.
Reviews by his colleagues in education have been glowing.
“Paul Chiudza Banda records a heartfelt, passionate and extensive centennial account of the long-suffering and enduring people of Malawi,” writes Nicholas Githuku of the City University of New York. “This is an important and timely book that tells the inspiring story of the relentless struggle of the people against the state and beaming hope for change in the horizon.”
To order the book, visit https://rowman.com/lexington.
Banda is an assistant professor of world history at Tarleton. He earned a Master of Arts in African social history from the University of Malawi in 2010 and a PhD in history from West Virginia University in 2019.
Be the first to comment