The sorry state of Swaziland
A boiling pot
The king is good for the tourists, much less so for his people
Sep 16th 2010 | Mbabane
More than just ornamental
RENOWNED as Africa’s last absolute monarchy, Swaziland has been in a
state of emergency for the past 37 years. Political parties are banned,
critics are systematically arrested and beaten up by police and freedom
of expression is severely curtailed. Ministers, judges and local chiefs
are all appointed by the king, Mswati III. While he and his 13 wives
flaunt their opulence, most of his 1.2m subjects struggle to survive.
More than one in four is HIV positive—the highest infection rate in the
world.
Yet the pretty little mountainous kingdom, locked into the
north-east corner of South Africa, is better known for its annual
traditional reed dance, where bare-breasted virgins parade their beauty
before their toga-clad king, than for its human-rights abuses. There may
be the odd suspicious death in custody, but there have been no mass
killings, as in Myanmar or Sudan. It does not have any big deposits of
gold, diamonds or oil to covet; most of its wealth comes from sugar
cane. So why should anyone care?
As wars of liberation raged around it in the 1980s, this former
British protectorate gained a reputation as an island of peace in a sea
of regional conflict. And that is the way the government wants to keep
things, come what may. The prime minister has even threatened to bring
back the bastinado, a form of torture where a person’s feet are beaten
with a cane or a rod, to deal with pesky dissidents and interfering
foreigners. “There is peace,” Mduduzi Gina, head of the Swaziland
Federation of Trade Unions, concedes, “but it’s not real peace if every
time there is dissent, you have to suppress it. It’s like sitting on top
of a boiling pot.”
The federation, the country’s biggest union movement, is one of
the leading lights of the newly formed Swaziland Democracy Campaign, an
umbrella group set up jointly with Cosatu, South Africa’s main union, to
press for a peaceful transition to multiparty democracy. On September
6th, as around 50 of its members were preparing for a protest march in
Mbabane, the capital, armed police stormed in and arrested them. The
South Africans were promptly driven to the border and deported, while
the Swazis were harshly interrogated. More people were arrested and
beaten up during the march the next day. All were later released without
charge.
Mario Masuku, veteran president of the banned People’s United
Democratic Movement (Pudemo), the main opposition party, was among those
detained. Over the years, the soft-spoken former banker has been
arrested and jailed umpteen times on a variety of charges, including
high treason, but always acquitted. Two years ago, after a spate of
unclaimed bombings against government targets, Pudemo was officially
declared a terrorist organisation. Although the party has always denied
any responsibility, Mr Masuku hints that violence may sometimes be
justified. “If the state refuses to speak to us, if it decides to
torture, beat and imprison our people, then you can only expect people
to defend themselves,” he says.
It is difficult to tell how much support Pudemo really has. Despite
all the poverty and repression, King Mswati, in power for the past 24
years, remains popular and revered. Swazis are brought up to regard him
as a kind of god, omnipotent, omnipresent, benevolent. That is why all
reformers, even Pudemo, insist that they would keep the king on, though
as a constitutional monarch, like Britain’s queen. Needless to say, that
is not a job description that exactly appeals to the Swazi king.
Over the past few years the oppression has been getting worse. Yet
no country seems willing to take up the Swazis’ case. They feel most
aggrieved about South Africa’s silence. After all, they gave refuge to
the African National Congress during its liberation struggle. Why can’t
it return the favour now? Because, it is whispered, South Africa’s
president, Jacob Zuma, received money from King Mswati during his
campaign to oust former president Thabo Mbeki. Mr Zuma is also still
officially engaged to one of the king’s nieces. And South Africa wants
Swaziland’s support to get itself elected back onto the UN Security
Council next month.
Middle East & Africa
News1 new result for PUDEMO The sorry state of Swaziland: A boiling pot
The Economist
It is difficult to tell how much support Pudemo really has. ... That is why all
reformers, even Pudemo, insist that they would keep the king on, ...
The Economist
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