Open Society Initiative of Southern Africa (OSISA)

Eight months after the battle for academic freedom at the University of Malawi began, President Bingu wa Mutharika has finally admitted defeat and issued an order guaranteeing academic freedom and reinstating the four lecturers who were illegally fired over the dispute.

The fight began when a lecturer discussed the political developments that led to the overthrow of dictatorships in Egypt and Tunisia. He was informed on and later interrograted by the Chief of Police. Fellow lecturers reacted swiftly saying they would no longer teach unless they were guaranteed academic freedom, which is when wa Mutharika weighed in - accusing the lecturers of influencing students to overthrow his government and precipitating the closure of Chancellor College, a key part of the University of Malawi.

And the College had remained closed until now. And had remained a stumbling block to any progress in the dialogue between civil society and the government - since it was the first (until now, unresolved) issue on the agenda.

But now it seems as though wa Mutharika has seen sense.

Perhaps it was the failure of the high-powered delegation - led by his brother and heir-apparent, Peter wa Mutharika - to the UK or the fear that he would be taken to task at the upcoming Commonwealth Summit in Australia, but wa Mutharika has now caved into pressure on two key issues - academic freedom and reversing the deportation order against the British High Commissioner, Fergus Cochrane-Dyet.

However, a lot of damage has already been done. Students have lost 8 months of lectures and the country has lost substantial donor funds.

Whether this is just a temporary tactic or a genuine change of heart on wa Mutharika's part remains to be seen. But at least there is now a chance to move on.