Lilongwe has a new parliament building. Last week I asked someone what she thought of the new parliament building. And then someone else told me something else. And then, it became a thing to ask. I never expected what followed. The parliament building was built by chinese prisoners? It was a gift from the Chinese in exchange for uranium? Malawi had the building built to attract business and foreigners and is now indebted to the Chinese three times over. And the list goes on....
Everyone seems to have a different idea. Some say they used some Malawian workers, but some say they didn't. It's surprising to think that in a poor city in a poor country the Malawian government would introduce a new population strictly to build an elaborate new government building. Is there a lack of skilled workers in Malawi? Are the Chinese more in need of work? Are they more trusted to complete the job than local workers? It could be anything. I just don't understand.
A brief google search revealed the following: In support of the UN One China policy in 2007, Malawi changed its alliance from Taiwan to China (apparently there used to be a large Taiwanese population in Malawi that was suddenly replaced with a large Chinese population). Building the parliament building cost 40 million USD. The People's Republic of China funded the endeavor along with a road, future five star hotel, future national stadium and future science and technology institute. The parliament building was completed in 13 months--five months ahead of schedule. The cited motivation behind the parliament building seems a little dubious--it was explained as a gesture by China to support Malawi for their allegiance.
With such conflicting information circulating about one of the biggest, most imposing, well-known structures in Lilongwe, it becomes more clear why information dissemination is so difficult for more nuanced topics.
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