A few weeks ago, the vote concerning whether the UK will stay or leave the European Union came out. It was a very close race with about 52% of the vote in favor of leaving the EU.
The place I’m staying for these 9 weeks, Kabula Lodge, is host to many international travelers, mostly working at Queen’s–and many being from the UK. I woke up on the morning that the result was to be announced to an Associated Press alert on my phone saying that the votes were still being counted and no decision has been reached. I knew all my friends from Kabula had been on edge the past couple weeks about whether the UK with remain or leave the EU — calling home to make sure their absentee ballot was being cast, relentlessly checking the latest poll data, and just verbally processing their thoughts with those surrounding them. I had heard about the referendum and had done some preliminary reading about how the outcome would effect the UK before coming to Malawi, but to hear opinions from the people it would actually affect was fascinating to me. Breakfast on the morning of the vote was just a flurry of questions about how they feel about the vote, how they think their country will lean, what brought about the call for the referendum, and their opinions on party leaders and their Prime Minister, David Cameron. I learned more about British politics waiting for our bus to work than I could have possibly from the news. By the time the bus came to get us, everyone’s news alert on their phone had buzzed and delivered the result: the UK had voted to leave to EU.
That entire week, while my friends were processing what leaving the EU means to themselves and their country, I took this opportunity to pump them for as much information as possible. I wanted raw emotion mixed with political perspective to really get a feel for what this referendum meant to them. I had a friend that goes to veterinary school in the UK and had just applied to a global health masters program in Holland. Now she was left wondering whether she would have to pay international fees or could still pay fees as though she was in the EU. I had a friend’s sister, who after a long and painful process of endless interviews had just gotten job at a bank in London, be laid off that next day due to Brexit.
These would be things I might hear in anecdotes in articles or interviews on the news, it was a completely unique experience to be able to hear and empathize with people we have been getting to know this summer. I would have never have gotten the chance to hear these stories or be a sounding board for British people’s thoughts on the result at home. But, I am eager to experience this in my home country come November when the US elects a new president.
faceofmalawi.com