| From: | Fred Stoessel <Fred.Stoessel@*******.AI.FH-NUERNBERG.DE> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Republic of Malawi |
| Date: | Mon, 18 May 1998 08:11:47 +0200 |
Republic of Malawi (part 2, version 1)
Fred Stoessel <fred.stoessel@*******.ai.fh-nuernberg.de>
--------
Geography
Despite the chaotic situation in Africa, where borderlines change almost =
every
day, you can define the location of Malawi quite precisely.
(>) But the borderline only exists on governmental maps. Since there =
aren't
enough Wit Afrikan mercenaries to control much more than Hofmeyr-City =
and some
strategical and economic important areas, the rest of Malawi can be =
considered
unguarded. You can cross the border with a panzer and probably nobody =
will
realize it.
(>) Traveller
Malawi is in southern Africa and can be found between the teritories, =
which were
formerly known as Zambia, Tanzania and Mozambique. You have to load a =
map, which
is older than 50 years, in your deck or you won't find these names. =
(Except for
Mozambique but this country is now much smaller.) It's very likely, that =
some
microstates will be founded or destroyed, before this document is =
online, so I
think, it's the best way to refer to a age with only limited border
fluctuation.
The country's width varies between 10 kms in the south and 250 kms at =
the
latitude of Hofmeyr-City. In the east, Malawi is limited by the huge =
Lake Nyasa,
which gave the former british colony it's name Nyasaland. This lake has =
a length
of 568 kms, not very much shorter than Malawi itself. (855kms) Even if =
the
south-east part of the lake belongs to Mozambique, the two islands =
Chisamula and
Li-koma are Malawian enclaves in foreign teritory.
(>) That's only half the truth. In fact both islands are bases and =
supply caches
of the rebel forces. But of course Negromancer doesn't admit this fact =
openly.
(>) Viper
(>) Drekhead! Now Hofmeyr's troops will bomb that place back into stone =
age!
(>) Ivan Antonovich
(>) You're the drekhead. Do you really believe, that the government of =
Wit
Afrika doesn't know exactly, what's going on there?
(>) Viper
(>) So why the hell is this place still above water level?
(>) Ivan Antonovich
(>) The islands are enclaves. That means, that everything around belongs =
to
Mozambique.
There exists an agreement, that theoretically allows civilian crafts to =
use a
corridor between Nkhata Bay and the islands. But every military vehicle =
cruising
there would be a violation to that treaty. Because Mozambique supports =
the
rebels and can be considered as Wit Afrika's enemy, this would mean war. =
(>) Viper
Two minor lakes, Lake Malombe and Lake Chilwa can be found south of Lake =
Nyasa
and the Shire River, which connects Lake Nyasa with Lake Malombe, passes =
through
the southern part of Malawi. Of cource some of the most important cities =
are
located at the coast of Lake Nyasa, for excample Karonga, Nhkotakota, =
Nhkata Bay
and Chipoka.
(>) Important cities? Maybe in the last century, but now some of the =
places are
ghost towns. That especially applies to Senga. The natives say, that =
place is
cursed. And they're damn right. I've been there for only 2 hours and I =
saw at
least 5 ghosts in the deserted streets.
(>) Magnifico
(>) Senga is a very sad story. It was the place, where the first victims =
of
VITAS were reported in
Malawi. The government tried to get the epidemic under control and put =
the whole
city in quarantine. Everyone, who tried to leave the city was killed by
soldiers, who were stationed around the city. Since there was no cure, =
all 30000
residents of Senga had to die. But of course all efforts were useless, =
because
the virus emerged almost everywhere in the country. Years later, many =
people,
who came back to Senga, reported paranormal activities, maybe the angry =
souls of
the dead. So the new residents decided to leave the city once and for =
all.
(>) Dr. Geiger
West and south of the lakes are the plateau areas, with an average =
heigth of
1000 meters above sea level. The Shire highland in the south is the =
place with
the highest mountains of the country. There
are large areas of tropical rain forest around hills and rivers, for =
excample
the Shire River, but the landscapes, which can be found most in Malawi =
are the
vast savannahs.
Most of the people live in rural areas and no city has more than 15000
residents. The big exception is Hofmeyr-City, located about 80 kms west =
of Lake
Nyasa's coast, with a population of 110000 white men and women. This is =
90 % of
the overall white population in Malawi.
(>) When all the whites and most of their military resources are =
concentrated in
the city, why don't the rebels just nuke the place and get rid of their
problems?
(>) Mr. Gunn
(>)You're sick. We're talking about many innocent civilians! We never =
would do
something like that!
(>) Black Power
(>) Maybe, but that's not the real reason, why HC is no crater. In fact, =
the
rebels just can't afford to buy a nuke.
(>) Wuestenfuchs
Malawi's climate can be described as tropical continental. There is a =
dry season
from April to November. The length of this season has increased during =
the last
decades, which is a direct result of world wide environmental pollution =
and
responsible for many famines.
But anyway agriculture is still Malawi's most important economic branch. =
Tobacco, cotton, tea, corn and potatoes grow on governmental controlled
plantations, but due to privately owned arable land and cattle it is =
very hard
but possible for the black majority to survive.
Other natural resources include limestone, coal, bauxite and uranium.
> Uranium... I've got a nice idea...
> Mr. Gunn
> Forget it. The rebels don't have the high tech to build a nuclear =
warhead. And
always remember, that all mines in the country are controlled by =
Hofmeyrs' men
and heavily guarded.
> Wuestenfuchs
--------
I planned to post the history section first, but since I'm waiting for =
some
further infos, I decided to finish Malawi's geography section and send =
it to the
list.
- Fred
