Swaziland Striving For Freedom Vol 39 Jul To Sept 2020

Swaziland: Striving for Freedom
As seen through the pages of Swazi Media Commentary

Vol. 39. July – September 2020
Compiled by
Richard Rooney
SWAZIAND STRIVING FOR FREEDOM
CONTENTS
Introduction 2
1 Coronavirus 3
2 Soldiers whip civilians 29
3 Police 31
4 Corruption 43
5 Senate election bribery 43
6 King Mswati III 46
7 Reed Dance 51
8 Media 53
9 Women 57
10 Hunger 60
11 Independence Day 62
12 ... and the rest 65
About the editor 72
Other publications 73
1
INTRODUCTION
The number of deaths from coronavirus (COVID-19) in Swaziland continues to rise and there
is no end in sight to the pandemic. The kingdom’s economy is in freefall and the Swazi
Government was forced to run to the International Monetary Fund for an emergency loan. It
promised to cut public sector jobs and make below inflation wage increases in future to pay
back the money. Earlier, the global finance analyst Moody’s warned the pandemic in
Swaziland might lead to social unrest because the government was failing to support people
living outside of large cities.
Hunger is growing throughout Swaziland and the government seems to have lost control of
the situation. International donors and charities have stepped up to help out.
These are some of the main stories from Swaziland over the past three months and contained
in Swaziland: Striving for Freedom, volume 39, a compilation of reports posted from July
to September 2020 on the Swazi Media Commentary website.
Away from the coronavirus pandemic, the United States Ambassador to Swaziland Lisa
Peterson called for the kingdom’s constitution to be changed to stop absolute monarch King
Mswati III’s lavish spending. She wondered aloud why taxpayers in her country would
continue to give financial aid to the kingdom while the King spent so much on himself and
his family.
Media freedom is once again under attack. The Ministry of Information, Communication and
Technology which is headed by the King’s daughter, Princess Sikhanyiso put forward a Bill
that if it becomes law could see people jailed for up to ten years for reporting ‘fake news’.
The new law would allow the courts to prosecute in some circumstances Swazi nationals who
live outside of Swaziland.
Police and Army assaults against the population continue. In September a video showing two
civilians apparently being whipped by soldiers went viral on the Internet.
Swazi Media Commentary is published online, updated most weekdays. It is operated entirely
by volunteers and receives no financial backing from any organisation. It is devoted to
providing information and commentary in support of human rights in Swaziland.
2
1 CORONAVIRUS
Entire Swaziland Cabinet in isolation after minister tests positive for coronavirus
5 July 2020
All 18 cabinet ministers in Swaziland (eSwatini) have been ordered into isolation after one of
them tested positive for coronavirus.
Public Works and Transport Minister Ndlaluhlaza Ndwandwe was found to be infected after
a routine test of all cabinet ministers on Tuesday (30 June 2020).
The AFP news agency reported Swazi Government spokesperson Sabelo Dlamini said in a
statement, ‘Following this development, all cabinet members will isolate with immediate
effect and work from home.’
All the other cabinet ministers reportedly tested negative.
The ministers are expected to continue working and hold virtual meetings.
The news comes just as Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini announced the easing of a partial
lockdown that has been in place since 27 March to tackle the coronavirus (COVID-19)
pandemic. Schools are set to reopen on 6 July.
As of 4 July there had been 13 deaths and 956 reported positive cases in Swaziland.
See also
Coronavirus cases in Swaziland continue to rise despite three-month partial lockdown
Swaziland schools reopen from coronavirus lockdown amid fears virus not peaked
6 July 2020
Some schools in Swaziland (eSwatini) began to reopen from coronavirus lockdown on

Monday (6 July 2020) amid fears that the virus has still to reach its peak.
The entire Swazi Cabinet is in isolation after Public Works and Transport Minister
Ndlaluhlaza Ndwandwe tested positive for the virus.
Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini announced a series of relaxations of the lockdown that has
been in place since 27 March. More businesses will be able to open and larger gatherings are
allowed.
The Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT) in a series of statements over the
past few days said schools were not ready to reopen and measures to ensure safety of pupils
and staff were not in place.
Other trade unions have also questioned the wisdom of the government in relaxing
restrictions.
As of 5 July there had been 988 people test positive for coronavirus (COVID-19), according
3
to official Ministry of Health figures. A week previously that number had been 795. There
have been 13 reported deaths from coronavirus.
SNAT said it had been inspecting schools over two weeks and concluded they were not safe
to reopen. There are 933 schools in Swaziland and at present the plan is to open classes for
Form V pupils who have examinations to take.
The Sunday Observer newspaper in Swaziland reported a memo from the Ministry of
Education and Training that stated that 13 schools in the Shiselweni Region were not ready to
reopen. It reported, ‘Minister of Education and Training Lady Howard-Mabuza confirmed
that the 13 schools were not ready to operate under the dangerous COVID-19 outbreak
because they could put their children in danger.’
SNAT leaders also expressed anger that teachers were required to scrub out classrooms ahead
of the reopening. Secretary General Sikelela Dlamini said, ‘Those employed on contracts
basis have been threatened with non-renewal of contracts, if they do not take the instructions
from their supervisors to clean the surfaces of their schools.
‘Teachers have been forced by the government to go work even though the level of
preparedness is so low. The Minister of Education has threated teachers with no work no pay,
therefore teachers have no alternative but to risk their lives.’
Separately, Sikelela Dlamini said SNAT would seek an urgent industrial court order on
Monday (6 July) to halt the reopening of schools.
Meanwhile, other trade unions in Swaziland criticised the relaxation of the lockdown. The
National Public Service and Allied Workers Union (NAPSAWU) Secretary General Thulani
Hlatshwayo said it put public transport operators at risk.
Swaziland Democratic Nurses Union President Bheki Mamba said the health service could
not cope with the current number of cases. He told the Sunday Observer, ‘You cannot relax
and allow gathering of 100 people when new infections are on the rise and there are no
medical supplies, personal protective equipment, human resources and COVID -19 supplies
including test kits. Now they are changing the case definition and they say we must only test
patients showing symptoms and leave out asymptomatic people and contacts of COVID-19
patients.’
See also
Swaziland teachers say Govt. plan to reopen schools from coronavirus lockdown unsafe
Swaziland teachers go to court in bid to stop schools reopening during coronavirus

crisis
7 July 2020
Teachers in Swaziland (eSwatini) are taking the government to court to try to halt the
reopening of schools during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT) says it is not safe to reopen yet.
The number of positive cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) is increasing in the kingdom.
4
SNAT made an urgent application to the Swazi Industrial Court which was due to be heard
on Tuesday (7 July 2020). Schools started to reopen the day before. So far only Form V
pupils are back at school.
SNAT wants the government to be ordered to keep schools closed until it provides all
teachers with personal protective equipment (PPE). Among other issues it also wants
teachers, staff and pupils to be obliged to wear facemasks.
The government is contesting the application but has yet to issue details of its objection.
This week it was announced that the all members of the Swaziland Cabinet were isolating at
home after one of their number tested positive for coronavirus. On Monday a sitting of the
High Court was abruptly ended when it was reported two judges had tested positive.
As of 6 July 2020 there had been 1011 reported positive cases of coronavirus and 13 deaths,
according to Ministry of Health figures.
Swaziland Govt. halts food aid to many elderly people as coronavirus crisis grows
8 July 2020
Many elderly people in Swaziland (eSwatini) will no longer receive food aid under a
government scheme to tackle hunger during the coronavirus crisis.
People aged 60 and over who receive monthly elderly grants (state pensions) but who do not
have to care for others such as grandchildren will not be registered for food aid in the second
wave of a government scheme to feed the hungry. They had received aid in the first phase of
the scheme.
The National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) which is coordinating the relief effort
confirmed the change this week.
Under the government scheme about 300,000 people of the kingdom’s 1.3 million population
were supposed to get grants of E700 cash to be used to buy food.
Now, NDMA Chief Executive Officer Russell Dlamini said the money would not go to
elderly people who get the monthly E500 elderly grant from the government.
He said, ‘We have to be very thoughtful with the funds that we have so many people who
need the relief. We are eliminating duplication by not registering elderly who are already
receiving grants from the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office.’
The Swazi Government’s scheme to feed the hungry has been plagued with problems.
The fund was set up to give money to about 300,000 people who faced hunger and possible
starvation when they lost their jobs because of the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown that
started on 27 March. Many businesses were forced to close.
There were so many reports across the kingdom that the registration was flawed that in some
places the whole process had to start again.
5
There were numerous reports that organisations tasked by NDMA had failed to identify
people genuinely in need. In turn those organisations blamed NDMA saying the process they
were asked to follow was flawed.
In June 2020 Dlamini said many people had dishonestly registered for relief.
Media reported that money was going to civil servants, landlords and some law enforcement
officers who had registered under questionable circumstances.
Dlamini called on the cheats to immediately pay back the money.
The Swazi Government’s feeding scheme was a failure from the start. Prime Minister
Ambrose Dlamini had announced it would feed more than 300,000 people by 6 May. By a
month after that date only 113,273 people had received aid.
The feeding plan was originally rejected by members of the House of Assembly who
preferred that food, rather than cash, be distributed. They feared money would not be spent
on food.
On 7 July 2020 the Ministry of Health reported the 14th death from coronavirus in Swaziland.
To date 1,056 have tested positive, according to official figures. By 7 June there had been a
total of 333 positive cases and three deaths.
See also
Only four in ten receive food aid in Swaziland Govt coronavirus scheme, a month after
deadline
People face ‘imminent death from hunger’ in Swaziland as coronavirus lockdown hits
poorest
Swaziland Govt. pledges to feed 300,000 facing hunger in next two weeks as coronavirus
intensifies
Chaos as Swaziland Govt. misses target to start food aid for destitute in coronavirus
lockdown
Swaziland Govt. confirms it will not feed the starving in towns and cities during
coronavirus lockdown
Thursday, 9 July 2020

Coronavirus cases in Swaziland hit record level, 10 pc of tests come back positive
The Swaziland (eSwatini) Ministry of Health announced a new record of coronavirus cases in
a single day just as schools in the kingdom began to reopen and churches were told they
could begin operating again.
The number of cases has been steadily rising in recent weeks. On Wednesday (8 July 2020)
Minister of Health Lizzie Nkosi reported there had been 82 positive cases in the previous 24
hours bringing the total number of cases to 1,138. There have been 14 deaths.
The number of tests reported in the first eight days of July was 3,306. Of these nearly 10
percent (326) tested positive. The total population of Swaziland is about 1.3 million.
6
Schools across Swaziland began to reopen on Monday against the advice of the Swaziland
National Association of Teachers (SNAT) which said it was unsafe to do so. SNAT went to
the Industrial Court on Tuesday to try to get the reopenings halted. The case is continuing.
Already local media have reported cases of suspected coronavirus (COVID-19) among
pupils. One teacher reportedly tested positive.
On Wednesday the Ministry of Home Affairs issued regulations allowing churches to reopen
with the maximum number of people present being ‘the equivalent of 30 per cent of the total
holding capacity’ of the venue.
The entire Swazi Cabinet of government ministers have been in isolation this week after one
of their number tested positive. They were expected to return to work on Thursday after tests
they undertook proved negative.
Coronavirus set to ‘spread like wild fires’ through Swaziland, PM warns, but lockdown
to be eased
10 July 2020
The coronavirus crisis in Swaziland (eSwatini) is in danger of spreading like ‘wild fires’ in
part of the kingdom, Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini warned.
Teams are to be sent from door-to-door in an attempt to find cases, test, treat, isolate and
trace contacts, he announced on Friday (10 July 2020).
Despite the spread, schools will continue to reopen, some businesses will be taken out of
lockdown and some sports will be able to start again. Churches are set to reopen.
In a statement Dlamini said, ‘It took the Kingdom two months to reach 600 cases and only 20
days to reach 1,200 infections.’ There have now been 17 deaths from coronavirus (COVID-
19). He said this had set off ‘alarm bells’ among the people of Swaziland.
He said, ‘We are dealing with an ever evolving enemy which is always ready to strike and we
have no other option but to keep up our guard and pace of intervention. This will, inevitably,
be a long road to travel and certainly a marathon, not a sprint to the finish line.’
He said there were ‘hotspots’ of infections in the Manzini region and parts of Hhohho. The
Lubombo and Shiselweni regions had clusters with a high potential to turn into ‘wild fires’ if
not urgently attended to, he added.
He announced, ‘The Ministry of Health will soon embark on a “Door to Door Campaign”
contained in a six point plan to halt the spread of COVID-19, starting in the Manzini and
Hhohho regions and eventually spreading throughout the country. This plan will focus on
education, finding cases, testing, treating, isolating and tracing contacts.’
Despite the increase in cases he said the Swazi Government would start a phased reopening
of sporting activities. From Monday (13 July 2020) angling, athletics, cricket, cue sports,
cycling, darts, equestrian, golf, shooting, tennis and teqball would be allowed if strict health
conditions were met. Spectators would not be allowed.
7
Dlamini said more businesses would also open from Monday and churches would be able to
open with reduced numbers in the congregation from 19 July.
Meanwhile, the Industrial Court has still to decide on an application from the Swaziland
National Association of Teachers (SNAT) to force the government to halt the reopening of
schools that started on Monday (6 July 2020). SNAT says it is not yet safe for pupils to
return.
EU steps up to feed destitute during coronavirus crisis as Swaziland Govt. stumbles to

deliver aid
15 July 2020
The European Union donated 2.4 million euros (about 46.6 million emalangeni in local
currency) to Swaziland (eSwatini) as the government stumbled to feed hundreds of thousands
of people in desperate need of food during the current coronavirus crisis.
The money will help feed 230,000 vulnerable households in all four regions of the kingdom.
They will receive cash and food parcels for the next eight to 10 months.
EU Ambassador to Eswatini Esmeralda Hernandez Aragones presented a cheque to Swazi
Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini on Wednesday (15 July 2020).
In a statement the EU said the scheme would be implemented through the European Civil
Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) which would partner locally with the
World Food Program (WFP) and Baphalali Eswatini Red Cross Society.
EU Ambassador to Eswatini Esmeralda Hernandez Aragones presents a cheque to Swazi Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini
WFP would receive from ECHO 1.4 million Euros for an action focusing on food and
nutrition insecurity in worst affected areas. Baphalali Eswatini Red Cross Society which will
partner with Red Cross Finland, would receive 1 million Euros for an action focusing on food
security and nutrition.
8
The Swazi Government’s own scheme to feed the hungry has been plagued with problems.
A fund was set up to give money to about 300,000 people who faced hunger and possible
starvation when they lost their jobs because of the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown that
started on 27 March. Many businesses were forced to close.
There were so many reports across the kingdom that the registration was flawed that in some
places the whole process had to start again.
There were numerous reports that organisations tasked by the National Disaster Management
Agency (NDMA) had failed to identify people genuinely in need. In turn those organisations
blamed NDMA saying the process they were asked to follow was flawed.
Media reported that money was going to civil servants, landlords and some law enforcement
officers who had registered for relief under questionable circumstances.
The Swazi Government’s feeding scheme was a failure from the start. Prime Minister
Ambrose Dlamini had announced it would feed more than 300,000 people by 6 May. By a
month after that date only 113,273 people had received aid.
The feeding plan was originally rejected by members of the House of Assembly who
preferred that food, rather than cash, be distributed. They feared money would not be spent
on food.
Last week NDMA Chief Executive Officer Russell Dlamini said money would not go to
elderly people aged 60 and over who get already a monthly E500 elderly grant (pension)
from the government.
See also
deadline
poorest
Top Royal presses Swaziland Govt to send riot police, army into homes to confiscate
alcohol
17 July 2020
A Regional Administrator in Swaziland (eSwatini) has called on the government to send riot
police and soldiers into people’s homes to confiscate alcohol.
Chief Gija Dlamini, a half-brother of King Mswati III Swaziland’s absolute monarch, said
this would help tackle the increase in cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) in the kingdom.
Manzini where he is Regional Administrator has the highest population of the four regions of
Swaziland and also the highest number of cases.
9
Chief Gija wants the Swazi cabinet, which was not elected but appointed by King Mswati, to
raid homes and confiscate alcohol. Sales of alcohol have been banned as part of a partial
lockdown of the kingdom in response to the virus.
He said some liquor shops had partnered with shebeens (unlicensed bars or private
households) to sell alcohol. He asked for permission to send officers from the Operational
Services Support Unit (OSSU), a paramilitary-style state police unit, and members of the
Umbutfo Eswatini Defence Force (the official name for the army) into homes.
He said there was a danger that people who drank alcohol might behave ‘irresponsibly’.
As of 15 July 2020, the Ministry of Health reported 1,489 cases of coronavirus across
Swaziland and 20 deaths.
Human rights have been under attack in Swaziland since the lockdown was imposed by the
king in March 2020. A new offence of spreading rumours or ‘unauthentic information’ about
coronavirus was introduced, carrying a fine of E20,000 or up to five years imprisonment.
Since lockdown, local media reported a number of cases of police and soldiers beating
members of the public who were not complying with the regulations. An 85-year-old woman
collapsed and died at her home on the outskirts of the Swazi capital Mbabane when police
and correctional services forces raided her home. The eSwatini News reported that the woman
sold alcoholic beverages for a living.
On 15 April 2020 Swazi Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini endorsed police beating people
during the coronavirus lockdown. He told a press briefing, ‘If you are found to be violating
these regulations, the law will definitely take its course, we won’t compromise on this.
Maybe those who were assaulted were found to be on the wrong side of the law by breaking
the regulations put in place by government. We would like to encourage members of the
public to abide by these regulations, there shouldn’t a need for the law enforcement to force
you to respect these regulations.’
See also
Swaziland bans alcohol production and sales, threatens media as coronavirus lockdown
extended
More reports of police and army violence against civilians as Swaziland coronavirus
lockdown continues
Global financial analyst Moody’s warns of social unrest in Swaziland as coronavirus

grips
20 July 2020
The coronavirus pandemic in Swaziland (eSwatini) might lead to social unrest because the
government is failing to support people living outside of large cities, the global financial
analyst Moody’s reported.
The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic came on top of an ongoing financial crisis in the
kingdom that had left the government with large debts that it failed to stabilise, Moody’s said
in a report on Monday (20 July 2020).
10
Swazi Government revenue has fallen during the coronavirus crisis that began in March 2020
and the government’s response mainly seeks to re-prioritize spending rather than increase
total spending.
Moody’s reported the government had failed to stabilize, let alone reverse, ‘a prolonged
increase in its debt burden’.
It added, ‘Reforms are often stalled by the need to navigate eSwatini’s complex political
system, including the royal family, its advisers and the cabinet.’ King Mswati III rules
Swaziland as an absolute monarch and he appoints the Prime Minister and cabinet members.
Moody’s reported that on 15 July 2020, a committee met to discuss the government’s
financial rating. The main points raised were that Swaziland’s economic strength, had
‘materially decreased’, including its ‘debt profile’.
On the general health of the Swazi economy, Moody’s reported, ‘eSwatini's economy has
experienced several years of low growth, averaging just 1.9 percent over the past five years.
After a significant contraction in 2020 output as a result of the coronavirus shock, Moody’s
expects eSwatini to return to this trend of relatively low growth over the foreseeable future.
‘Containment measures to stem the spread of the coronavirus weigh on economic activity in
2020, while the economy is also affected by the disruptions to global supply chains, including
in industries like textiles, forestry and transport.
‘Beyond the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, growth remains constrained by a number of
structural impediments related to the poor business environment for private investment.
Prevailing poverty and income inequality also weigh on the economy’s growth potential.
‘Poverty and income inequality are pronounced because of low growth and job creation, with
about 60 percent of the population living below the poverty line, while 38 percent live in
extreme poverty.’
There was also high youth unemployment, it added.
Moody’s said there were material social risks ‘because of the large income inequality
between royal family members and the general population. While there is a pro-democracy
opposition group, media is tightly controlled and regulated.’ Moody’s regarded the
coronavirus outbreak as a social risk because of its ‘substantial implications for public health
and safety’.
It added, ‘The coronavirus pandemic may also cause social unrest as the government’s
capacity to provide support for those living outside of large cities is currently stretched.’
Separately, the Swaziland Central Statistical Office reported the kingdom was officially in
recession following two quarters of negative growth. Gross domestic product declined by 6.5
percent in the first three months of 2020. This followed a decline of 1.2 percent in the fourth
quarter of 2019.
See also
IMF reports Swaziland public debt rising, foreign reserves fallen ‘below adequate levels’
More money goes to Swaziland’s absolute monarch, despite kingdom’s financial meltdown
11
Swaziland ambulances grounded by lack of fuel as coronavirus death toll rises

23 July 2020
Ambulances in Swaziland (eSwatini) have been grounded because of lack of fuel at the
height of the coronavirus crisis. The shortage might have contributed to the death of a teacher
from the virus.
The Swazi Director of Health Dr Vusi Magagula confirmed this to the Swati Newsweek
website.
Ambulances from Emergency Preparedness and Response (known as 977) had been
grounded because of a fuel shortage, he said.
An ambulance was not available to take Boy Phathaphatha Magagula, a 53-year-old teacher
from Mdzimba High School, to Lubombo Referral Hospital after he became sick with
coronavirus (COVID-19). He later died.
Dr Vusi Magagula told Swati Newsweek, ‘There was lack of fuel in eSwatini last week. This
means the 977 ambulances had been grounded. It is true, we had such a situation. The teacher
from Mdzimba could not be picked up due to lack of fuel.’
The death toll from coronavirus has been steadily rising in Swaziland. As of 23 July 2020 28
people had died, according to official Ministry of Health figures. At the beginning of the
month the figure was 11. A total of 2,021 people have tested positive for the virus.
See also
Only 12 Govt ambulances in kingdom
Swaziland hospitals close to overwhelmed by coronavirus, says Heath Minister

26 July 2020
The hospital system in Swaziland (eSwatini) is close to breaking point as coronavirus cases
continue to rise, the Minister of Health Lizzie Nkosi reported.
She announced a series of measures designed to save it from collapse.
She blamed people for not following guidelines, including wearing facemasks and self-
distancing.
She told a press briefing, ‘The health system is not yet overwhelmed, but it is going there.
Hence, the need to change the way we operate.’
As of 25 July 2020 the Ministry of Health had identified 2,142 positive cases in Swaziland.
There had been 28 deaths. Nkosi said about 23,000 coronavirus (COVID-19) tests had been
carried out. The population of Swaziland is about 1.3 million.
12
She said, ‘Considering the increasing number of cases and deaths and the large number of
contacts that need to be traced, we have revised strategies for better use of resources while
ensuring access to quality care for those who need it the most and reducing the risk of death.’
She said under the new guidelines hospital admission would be prioritized for those with
moderate to severe and critical illness and those with mild disease with pre-existing
conditions.
She also said treatment would no longer be centralised and would be available in public
hospitals across the kingdom. Some private hospitals would now also be used.
Testing would be prioritized for all who meet the case definition for the virus and suspect
who show symptoms.
Swaziland seeks US$207m IMF loan to save sinking economy as coronavirus worsens
28 July 2020
Swaziland (eSwatini) is seeking US$207 million from the International Monetary Fund as its
economy continues to slide because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Swazi Finance Minister Neal Rijkenberg said the money was needed ‘to cushion the budget
and help address urgent balance of payment needs’ created by the coronavirus (COVID-19)
crisis.
Swaziland is already in recession and international trade and tax collections within the
kingdom have been badly hit since March 2020 when many businesses were forced to
lockdown.
In a statement on Tuesday (28 July 2020) Rijkenberg said Swaziland would seek the money
from the IMF’s Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI) which had been set up to help countries to
help counter the effects of coronavirus.
Rijkenberg said the coronavirus crisis had ‘severely affected eSwatini’s economy,
exacerbating pre-existing economic challenges’ which had led to ‘a significant contraction in
economic activity’.
As of 27 July 2020 the Ministry of Health had reported 2,316 positive cases of coronavirus in
Swaziland and 24 deaths.
He added the government had been forced to spend money on a package of measures to
tackle the coronavirus crisis that it had not budgeted for. He said, ‘The package includes
additional health spending, ramped up food assistance programs, increased social protection
transfers and improved access to water and sanitation facilities for the vulnerable. To
accommodate this additional expenditure, additional resources have had to be mobilised,
which would have worsened Government’s fiscal position, which had already been in a
precarious state prior to the emergence of the scourge.’
The US$207 million represents 5.3 percent of Swaziland’s GDP. Rijkenberg said the request
would be presented to the IMF Board before the end of this week and the outcome would be
communicated soon thereafter.
13
Separately, also on Tuesday it was reported that the Labour Commissioner, Mthunzi
Shabangu’s office had received requests from 105 different companies to retrench 14,048
workers who were presently on unpaid layoffs. Companies said they could no longer afford
to pay employees. Labour Advisory Board discussions are expected to take place on Friday.
The IMF rules for receiving the RFI loan include that the country ‘is required to cooperate
with the IMF to make efforts to solve its balance of payments difficulties and to describe the
general economic policies that it proposes to follow. Prior actions may be required where
warranted.’
In February 2020 before the coronavirus pandemic hit Swaziland the IMF reported the
kingdom’s economy continued to be in free-fall. Public debt was still rising, domestic arrears
had grown, and international currency reserves had fallen ‘below adequate levels’.
The IMF reported, ‘Economic indicators are expected to remain weak. GDP growth [the total
value of goods and services in the kingdom] is projected to temporarily pick up in 2020, as
the government plans to repay some arrears, but growth would be subdued afterwards as
fiscal imbalances persist and the private sector remains hamstrung.’
The IMF predicted the government’s deficit was expected to remain large and public debt
would rise to above 60 percent of GDP over the medium-term and contribute to further
reduce international currency reserves.
See also
IMF gives Swaziland emergency coronavirus loan but is only half what is needed
29 July 2020
The International Monetary Fund has approved a loan of US$110 million to help Swaziland
(eSwatini) as it grapples with the coronavirus crisis.
The Swazi Government had earlier said the coronavirus (COVOD-19) pandemic had
devasted the economy and it would be US$207 million short of the budget funds it needed for
the present financial year.
It applied to the IMF’s Rapid Financing Instrument scheme.
Announcing the assistance the IMF said, ‘The COVID-19 pandemic has magnified
eSwatini’s existing economic and social challenges, leading to a sharp decline in growth and
large financing needs.’
The announcement was made on Wednesday (29 July 2020).
The IMF added, ‘The immediate priority is to support public health, vulnerable groups and
businesses. Once the impact of the pandemic subsides, it is critical to implement the
authorities’ fiscal consolidation plan and structural and governance reforms to ensure debt
sustainability and achieve a fast and inclusive recovery.’
14
The IMF said Swaziland’s economy already faced ‘deep economic and social challenges’
before the coronavirus crisis hit the kingdom in March. Swaziland has been on partial
lockdown since then.
The IMF said, ‘Before the pandemic, growth was subdued, the fiscal deficit and public debt
were rising, and international reserves declining, amid elevated unemployment and
widespread poverty. The pandemic has resulted in a sharp decline in growth and generated
large financing needs, magnifying these challenges.’
The coronavirus crisis is worsening in Swaziland. On Wednesday the Ministry of Health
announced a record number of positive cases of 147 in a single day. There have been 40
deaths, half of them in the past 14 days. In total 2,551 people have tested positive.
Swaziland pledges public sector job cuts, below inflation wage increases to secure IMF
loan
3 August 2020
Swaziland (eSwatini) pledged to cut public sector jobs, contain wages and award below
inflation salary increases in order to get a loan from the International Monetary Fund.
These were some of the pledges made that included cutting public spending. Some personal
taxes and VAT (Value Added Tax) would rise. Taxes on companies would not be cut.
A loan of US$110.4 million to help fight the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic was agreed
on 29 July 2020. Swaziland faces an urgent balance of payments crisis.
The loan was the full amount available under the IMF’s Rapid Financing Instrument. In a
statement last week Neal Rijkenberg, the Swazi Finance Minister, estimated a total of
US$207 million was needed to shore up the economy. Swaziland is seeking additional loans
from the World Bank and African Development Bank (AfDB).
The job cuts and salary pledges were part of a package of promises set out in a letter dated 20
July 2020 to the IMF jointly signed by Rijkenberg and Majozi V. Sithole, Governor, Central
Bank of eSwatini.
In the letter they stated, ‘The virus is spreading rapidly, and Eswatini’s relatively high
HIV/AIDS prevalence and an already pressured health care system exacerbate risks that the
pandemic could propagate even faster. To contain the pandemic, the government has swiftly
put in place an array of containment measures. It has declared a national emergency and
imposed a partial lockdown across the country, including travel bans, closure of schools and
universities, and a suspension of all non-essential activities. These measures, combined with
a sharp decline in external demand for eSwatini’s key exports and spillovers from South
Africa, are causing a dramatic fall in economic activity.’
They promised the IMF, ‘We will contain public wage spending, continuing our policies of
gradual employment reduction and lower-than inflation salary adjustments. We have
commissioned an external review of the extra budgetary sector with the aim of rationalizing
spending and transfers to key state-owned entities and merge entities with similar mandates
over time.
15
‘We will also continue to pursue new ways to reduce our operational expenditures, and intend
to improve the targeting of our main social assistance programs.
‘In addition, about 40 percent of our adjustment plan relies on boosting our domestic revenue
by broadening tax bases, increasing some tax rates such as personal taxation and VAT, and
continuing strengthening tax administration.
‘To protect revenue collection, we also commit not to introduce measures that would reduce
corporate income tax revenue. This strategy will allow us to broadly preserve capital
spending and domestic capital accumulation, and caring more effectively for the most
vulnerable members of the society.’
They also pledged, ‘The government will intensify reforms to strengthen governance,
transparency and accountability, and reduce vulnerabilities to state-capture and other forms of
corruptions.’
Another Swaziland police assault on people allegedly breaking coronavirus lockdown

5 August 2020
Police in Swaziland (eSwatini) have once again reportedly assaulted people for breaking
coronavirus lockdown rules.
Police reportedly fired a shot and severely kicked and punched residents at Murray Camp,
outside the main commercial city Manzini. A shot was fired at a woman but missed.
It is one of a series of reports in Swaziland of police and security forces’ brutality against
ordinary people during the partial lockdown that has been in place since March 2020.
In the latest case the eSwatini Observer quoted witnesses who said police broke up a group
who were drinking alcohol outside a homestead. It happened on Saturday (1 August 2020) at
about 4 pm.
A police officer who was not in uniform questioned the group and when they did not give
him the answer he wanted he slapped one of them. The officer then kicked a man several
times in the stomach.
The newspaper reported, ‘Meanwhile, other police officers, some of whom were in uniform,
approached and some of them reportedly joined in the attack against the residents.’
Later the police tried to take a phone from a woman because they thought she was recording
their actions. They also kicked her in the stomach. She needed hospital treatment.
The newspaper reported, ‘When she had her back turned, an officer fired a shot but missed
her and soon thereafter he placed the hot gun on her back.’
Police chased the woman to her home where one male officer stripped her half-naked while
he hurled insults at her, the Observer reported.
‘All six police officers reportedly took turns kicking her on her stomach and abdomen. She
and three others were taken to the Fairview Police Post where they were made to pay E260
16
each for supposedly breaking COVID-19 regulations and obstructing the police while on duty
before being released,’ the newspaper reported.
The Observer reported a community policeman only identified as Khoza introduced himself
to the police and asked what was going on. ‘I was insulted, kicked, slapped and degraded in
front of everyone here,’ Khoza said.
Police later denied the attack.
There have been a number of attacks by police and security forces on people allegedly
breaking lockdown rules.
On 15 April Swazi Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini endorsed police beating people during
the lockdown. He told a press briefing, ‘If you are found to be violating these regulations, the
law will definitely take its course, we won’t compromise on this. Maybe those who were
assaulted were found to be on the wrong side of the law by breaking the regulations put in
place by government. We would like to encourage members of the public to abide by these
regulations, there shouldn’t a need for the law enforcement to force you to respect these
regulations.’
A 15-year-old boy was shot and wounded by police when he played football with friends on a
dusty field near Gege. The Times of eSwatini reported their game was being watched by two
adults. It said the police officer allegedly fired his weapon to disperse the spectators.
The Times reported, ‘The startled youngsters are said to have trampled on each other as they
ran away, while one of the boys aged 15 reportedly sustained a serious injury after he got shot
during the skirmish.
‘The youngster was struck by a bullet in his left arm while running away from the police
officer.’ He was detained in hospital.
In April security forces reportedly whipped a destitute woman in Eteni when she was on the
streets desperately trying to get food for her three children.
Mbabane lawyer Sabelo ‘Mngo’ Mngomezulu was left with broken ribs after soldiers
assaulted him, two women were whipped with sticks by police and a man was hospitalised
after police beat him about the head with a baton.
An 85-year-old woman collapsed and died when security forces raided her home because
they thought she was selling alcohol.
Armed military police officers also forced members of the public to do press-ups when they
were found at a bus rank in Manzini during the coronavirus lockdown.
See also
Swaziland policeman shoots boy, 15, playing football during coronavirus lockdown
lockdown continues
Swaziland armed police, army intimidate people to obey coronavirus lockdown. Woman,
85, dies
Swaziland security forces whip destitute woman searching for food during coronavirus
lockdown
17
Swaziland passes grim milestone for coronavirus deaths, no end in sight

6 August 2020
Swaziland (eSwatini) has passed a grim milestone for coronavirus deaths, with more than 50
confirmed fatalities.
Swazi Minister of Health Lizzie Nkosi announced on Wednesday (5 August 2020) there had
been 53 deaths so far from coronavirus (COVID-19). Ten of those deaths were reported in the
past week.
The number of confirmed positive cases of coronavirus continues to rise and has reached
2,909.
These numbers are those known to the Ministry of Health and are almost certainly an
underestimate in the small impoverished kingdom where about 80 percent of people live in
rural areas. The population of Swaziland is 1.1 million, according to latest United Nations
estimates.
Figures released by the Ministry of Health show more young people than older had tested
positive. Of the total, 474 (16.2 percent) were aged 19 or younger. In contrast, 178 positive
cases were aged 60 or older (6.1 percent). A total of 838 cases involved people aged 30-39
years (28.8 percent).
Of the 2,909 people testing positive, the Ministry reported, 1,385 had recovered.
The Swazi Government reopened some schools in July and intends to open more soon. It is
not known if the school reopenings contributed to the numbers of cases in young people. The
Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT) has asked the High Court to close the
schools again because it says it is not yet safe to open.
The Ministry of Health has not published a breakdown of the ages of those who have died.
There is no end in sight to the pandemic in Swaziland. Last week Nkosi announced hospitals
were close to breaking point. At that time there had been only 28 deaths. A total of 23,000
coronavirus tests had been carried out, she said.
Separately, it was reported that ambulances were grounded because of a lack of fuel.
Also last week, Finance Minister Neal Rijkenberg announced the cost of tacking coronavirus
would leave a shortfall of US$207 million in this year’s national budget. He secured a loan of
US$110 million from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and is expecting further loans
from the World Bank and the African Development Bank (AfDB).
On Monday, Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini announced a new set of guidelines aimed at
reducing the number of deaths from coronavirus which included an improved turnaround
time for test results by offering priority testing for those with symptoms and those already
severely ill and admitted at various health facilities.
18
He also promised improved care of suspected cases in regional hospitals by deploying

additional equipment such as ventilators and oxygen delivering apparatus.
Swaziland police fire teargas to break up coronavirus prayer meeting

13 August 2020
Police in Swaziland (eSwatini) fired teargas to break up a group of people who were praying
for an end to the coronavirus pandemic.
People were also beaten by police officers when they questioned if the they had a court order
to disperse them.
It happened at Mphundle in Siteki, the Times of eSwatini reported. Pastor Aaron Ngwenya,
who was leading the service, told the newspaper they were praying at a neighbourhood care
point. There were fewer than 100 people present so they were not breaking regulations
against gatherings during the present partial lockdown in the kingdom. They were all wearing
facemasks, he said.
The Times reported, ‘Ngwenya said while they waited for more people to come, a group of
about 10 police officers, who were armed with batons and other weapons, appeared and
questioned them about their gathering.
‘He said as the congregants attempted to respond, the police ordered them to leave the
premises but as they attempted to plead with them, the law enforcers allegedly started kicking
a faction of the congregants in an attempt to drive them out of the neighbourhood care point
premises. He claimed that other congregants were assaulted with batons.’
The newspaper quoted him saying, ‘The police officers claimed that they were sent by higher
authorities to disperse the gathering, something which shocked us as we know that the
country’s leaders had requested the nation to pray for the coronavirus pandemic to come to an
end, which is exactly what we were doing.’
The Times added, ‘This resulted in commotion and that is when the police are said to have
thrown teargas canisters to disperse the crowd.’
Elsewhere, 67 people, including businesspeople, were arrested on Wednesday (12 August
2020) as the Manzini Disaster Management Task Team cracked down on traders who were
not complying with the coronavirus (COVID-19) guidelines.
The Times reported most of the people were running their businesses with trading licences
that had expired; some were using unapproved sanitisers, and others failed to wear their
facemasks properly. Chief Police Information and Communications Officer Superintendent
Phindile Vilakati said a total of 67 people were arrested and most of them paid fines ranging
between E60 and E120. However, she mentioned that some paid E500, while others paid
E800 as fines for failing to comply with the guidelines.
The previous weekend the task team arrested 39 people for being drunk or selling alcoholic
beverages at Mangwaneni, a township, about four kilometres from Manzini.
19
The death toll from coronavirus continues to rise in Swaziland. As of Thursday (13 August
2020) it stood at 63, up 20 from the beginning of August. A total of 3,525 people have tested
positive since the crisis started. Of these 1,910 have recovered.
Swaziland’s plan to revive economy after coronavirus ambitious, but unrealistic

17 August 2020
The eSwatini (Swaziland) Government is relying on the private sector to revive the
kingdom’s economy after the coronavirus pandemic is over.
Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini announced a strategic economic recovery plan that would
cost E30 billion (US$1.73 billion). The Swazi Government wants E23 billion of this to be
privately financed.
The plan listed 97 specific projects across eight sectors of the economy that ‘are ready to be
implemented within 18-months beginning of 1 July 2020.’ It said 40,126 jobs would be
created.
The plan emphasised the recovery would result in a private sector-led economy. To achieve
this there needed to be ‘fundamental economic reforms’. These included ‘a shift away from
Government as the central driver of the economy. Instead, Government needs to re-establish
itself as the key enabler of growth across all sectors of the economy.
‘In enabling the private sector, the Government of eSwatini will focus on creating a
conducive business environment’. It added, ‘Overall, a focus on “big projects” that will be
driven by the private sector will stimulate the necessary economic reforms to allow the
private sector to lead and expand the eSwatini economy for greater income generation and
wealth creation.’
The plan stated, ‘The ultimate outcome of the recovery plan is to create the pathway for high
value investment to settle in eSwatini so that the country can be Africa’s most preferred host
for high net-worth individuals and the head office capital for multi-corporations.’
The plan was welcomed by business interests in the kingdom. The local media in the
kingdom where King Mswati III rules as an absolute monarch were largely supportive.
None pointed out that Swaziland has been trying for more than a decade to reduce the
government’s spending and to encourage private investment, especially from outside the
kingdom. To date these efforts have largely failed.
Swaziland continuously scores poorly in surveys for the ease of doing business in the
kingdom.
In June 2017, the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA) reported the kingdom,
was riddled with corruption in both private and public places.
In May 2019, the US State Department in its annual review of human rights in Swaziland
found there was a widespread public perception of corruption in the executive and legislative
branches of government and a consensus that the government ‘did little to combat it’.
20
It added, ‘Credible reports continued that a person’s relationship with government officials
influenced the awarding of government contracts; the appointment, employment, and
promotion of officials; recruitment into the security services; and school admissions.
Authorities rarely took action on reported incidents of nepotism.’
Swaziland remains a desperately poor kingdom where about seven in ten of the 1.1 million
population live on incomes less than the equivalent of US$2 per day.
Swaziland’s economy has been in freefall for years and the coronavirus (COVID19)
pandemic accelerated its decline. Government revenues have fallen and the recovery plan
stated ‘continuing implementing government programmes without adjustment/reallocation of
the budget may lead to a situation where government will not able to pay civil servants’.
Swaziland has already secured an emergency loan of US$101.4 million from the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) and another E2 billion loan from the African Export-Import Bank. It
wants to borrow another US$100 million from the IMF and US$200 million from the World
Bank.
The Swazi Government pledged to cut public sector jobs, contain wages and award below
inflation salary increases in order to get the loan from the IMF.
The new economic recovery plan is ambitions but unrealistic. In February 2020, just before
coronavirus struck the IMF reported the economy continued to be in decline. Public debt was
still rising, domestic arrears were growing, and international currency reserves had fallen
‘below adequate levels’.
The growth in private investment was slowing and declining external competitiveness
hindered the kingdom’s growth prospects. None of that has changed and the effects of the
lockdown on the economy introduced by King Mswati in March has made the situation
worse.
The IMF reported in February 2020, ‘Economic indicators are expected to remain weak. GDP
growth [the total value of goods and services in the kingdom] is projected to temporarily pick
up in 2020, as the government plans to repay some arrears, but growth would be subdued
afterwards as fiscal imbalances persist and the private sector remains hamstrung.’
The IMF predicted the government’s deficit was expected to remain large and public debt
would rise to above 60 percent of GDP over the medium-term and contribute to further
reduce international currency reserves.
Richard Rooney
See also
Swaziland bus operators defy coronavirus regulations to run fully loaded despite surge
in deaths
18 August 2020
21
Bus operators in Swaziland (eSwatini) are defying coronavirus social distancing regulations
and running vehicles at full capacity because they say they will go out of business otherwise.
It comes as deaths from the virus continue to surge.
Buses, known locally as kombis, are only allowed to run at 80 percent capacity. They have
also faced restrictions on the number of hours the can operate.
Swaziland Local Transport Association (SLTA) made the announcement on Sunday (16
August 2020). The decision was taken by kombi operators across Swaziland.
SLTA Chairperson Mandla Dlamini told local media, ‘Banks have claimed that they will
repossess our vehicles this coming September because we are failing to settle our debts.’
He said the only way they could pay was to carry passengers at full capacity. They would
continue to sanitise vehicles and make sure passengers had their hands sanitised before
boarding.
The Swazi Government has not helped the transport operators financially since the kingdom
was placed in partial lockdown to tackle the coronavirus (COVID-19) emergency in March.
A police spokesperson said police would continue enforcing the regulation.
Coronavirus continues to spread throughout Swaziland. As of 17 August there had been
3,894 cases confirmed by the Ministry of Health and 73 deaths. At the beginning of the
month there had been 43 deaths.
Meanwhile, the traditional Umhlanga Reed Dance at which tens of thousands of women
dance bare-breasted in front of absolute monarch King Mswati III has been cancelled. People
travel from across Swaziland to attend. It was due to begin on 25 August and this is the first
time in history the ceremony has been cancelled.
More Swaziland schools reopen as health expert predicts coronavirus cases could triple
by end of month
21 August 2020
More schools and colleges in Swaziland (eSwatini) are to reopen from coronavirus lockdown
just as the Ministry of Health’s epidemiologist predicted cases of the virus could triple before
the end of the month.
Dr Vusi Lokotfwako reportedly said positive cases could reach 12,470 over the next 10 days.
As of 20 August 2020 the Ministry of Health reported 4,110 confirmed cases of coronavirus
(COVID-19) since the crisis began in March. Of these, 2,643 had recovered. There had been
a total of 81 deaths, up from 41 at the end of July.
The eSwatini Observer reported Lokotfwako said people needed to follow guidelines on
personal health, wearing facemasks and social distancing to keep the numbers down.
A partial lockdown introduced in Swaziland in March has been eased. The Observer
reported, ‘He mentioned that during the lockdown, the cumulative curve [the number of
people becoming infected] of the country was very low, however as the economy was
gradually eased, a lot of people contracted the virus.’
22
On Thursday (20 August 2020) Swazi Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini announced that more
school classes would reopen starting on Monday. Some classes already resumed on 6 July.
More university classes would also return from Monday.
School teachers’ leaders oppose the move. The Swaziland National Association of Teachers
(SNAT) already has a case before the High Court after the July reopening asking for schools
to be closed again because they continue to be unsafe for pupils and staff.
After the Prime Minister’s statement SNAT Secretary General, Sikelela Dlamini said the
teachers’ position had not changed.
In his statement the PM said, ‘Health teams have been deployed in all four regions to monitor
and attend to all schools’ concerns with regard to the pandemic, and a National Schools
Health team which consists of doctors is in place to assist all schools.’
He also said ‘a noticeable number’ of pupils had not returned to school when they reopened
‘mainly due to pregnancy’. He added others had taken illegal and informal jobs.
Swaziland public transport in chaos as bus workers strike over coronavirus lockdown
26 August 2020
Public transport in the Swaziland (eSwatini) city of Manzini was severely disrupted when bus
operators stopped work and barricaded the bus rank.
The action came amid confusion over how buses – known locally as kombis – would operate
as the lockdown of the kingdom due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis starts to be eased.
The problem concerned the route from Manzini, Swaziland’s main commercial city, to
Mbabane, the kingdom’s capital. Workers in Manzini wanted to operate normally but those in
Mbabane wanted to abide by existing restrictions.
The Times of Eswatini reported on Wednesday (26 August 2020), ‘It was gathered that kombi
operators that are registered under Manzini demanded that all their vehicles should be
allowed to operate while those in Mbabane were of the view that only 50 per cent of the total
number of kombis servicing the route should work.’
About 130 kombis service the route.
Swaziland Local Transport Association Chairperson Mandla Dlamini told the eSwatini
Observer an interim resolution had been made for the kombis continue operating until Friday
when the association’s executive would make a final decision.
Places of worship closed in Swaziland as coronavirus lockdown rules ignored

9 September 2020
The Swaziland (eSwatini) Government has closed five places of worship after police raided
them and found they were breaking coronavirus lockdown regulations.
The Swazi Ministry of Home Affairs said in a statement the police and the Ministry
conducted a random inspection in the southern Hhohho region.
23
A Ministry of Home Affairs spokesperson said five places of worship were visited and
immediately shut down for ‘flouting’ coronavirus (COVID-19) regulations. The action came
as the number of reported deaths from coronavirus in the kingdom continues to rise and is
approaching 100.
The spokesperson said, ‘Primarily, the affected places of worship either were without permits
to increase gatherings, were without hand sanitisers or running water for washing hands, did
not observe two-metre social distancing, had children below the age of 10 years in attendance
and some congregants were spotted without face masks.’
Guidelines are in place across Swaziland which has been in partial lockdown since March
2020. Random inspections will continue.
Meanwhile, the Swazi Government has extended for a further month the ban on the
production and sale of alcohol within the local market during the coronavirus crisis.
Manufacturers had petitioned the government for the ban to be relaxed.
In a statement the Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini said investigations had shown clusters of
coronavirus cases related to group alcohol consumption and some people had shared a single
drinking container.
Swaziland coronavirus deaths top 100 as number of tests undertaken falls

14 September 2020
The number of deaths from coronavirus in Swaziland (eSwatini) has broken through the 100
barrier to 101. Meanwhile, the number of test results announced by the Ministry of Health is
falling.
Three new deaths were reported by the Ministry on Monday. The number of tests reported
over the seven days ended 14 September 2020 were 1,751. This compared to 2,365 over the
previous seven days and 2,306 for the last week of August.
To date 5,104 people tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19), according to official
Ministry of Health figures. Of these, 4,374 had recovered.
Minster of Health Lizzie Nkosi reported on Monday a further three people – all aged in their
sixties – had died of the virus, taking the total number to 101.
The number of deaths has risen slowly over the past weeks. On 1 August the total number of
deaths was 43.
Swaziland has failed to get a grip on coronavirus. In March King Mswati III, the absolute
monarch, ordered a partial lockdown of the kingdom. School and businesses were closed and
restrictions on gatherings and travel were put into place. Many of these have since been
eased.
The economy is broke and in early August Swaziland secured a US$110 million loan from
the International Monetary Fund to help keep the kingdom going. It also got similar loans
from the World Bank and African Development Bank (AfDB).
24
To secure the IMF loan the Swazi Government in a letter promised the IMF, ‘We will contain
public wage spending, continuing our policies of gradual employment reduction and lower-
than inflation salary adjustments. We have commissioned an external review of the extra
budgetary sector with the aim of rationalizing spending and transfers to key state-owned
entities and merge entities with similar mandates over time.’
Later in August, Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini announced a strategic economic recovery
plan that would cost E30 billion (US$1.73 billion). The Swazi Government wants E23 billion
of this to be privately financed.
The plan listed 97 specific projects across eight sectors of the economy that ‘are ready to be
implemented within 18-months beginning of 1 July 2020.’ It said 40,126 jobs would be
created.
Observers were sceptical that the plan could be realised. Swaziland has been trying for more
than a decade to reduce the government’s spending and to encourage private investment,
especially from outside the kingdom. To date these efforts have largely failed.
Swaziland continuously scores poorly in surveys for the ease of doing business in the
kingdom.
Swaziland authorities ban march to protest ban on alcohol during coronavirus crisis
21 September 2020
A planned march in Swaziland (eSwatini) to protest the ban of manufacture and sales of
alcohol during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic was banned by police and the local
municipal authority.
The march through the capital city Mbabane to deliver petitions to the Swazi Prime Minister,
the South Africa High Commission and the European Union Commission was called off at
the last minute on Friday (18 September 2020).
It had been organised by the Swaziland National Liquor Association (SNLA). The sale of
alcohol is banned in the kingdom which went into partial lockdown in March to try to stop
the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). Much of the lockdown has been eased but the alcohol
ban remains.
SNLA said the ban had badly hit the alcohol industry with job losses and the future of some
businesses was in jeopardy.
SNLA was told it had not submitted on time a request to march. Public protests are severely
restricted in Swaziland which is ruled by King Mswati III as an absolute monarch.
Swaziland faces jobs and poverty crisis as coronavirus disruption continues

23 September 2020
25
The coronavirus crisis in Swaziland (eSwatini) is having widespread damaging effects on

unemployment and poverty and many jobs might not return, a United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) report fears.
The impact could last for generations.
UNDP looked at the way the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown imposed by the Swazi
Government in March 2020 had disrupted life throughout the kingdom. Employment has
been hit badly and hunger is spreading.
The report stated that in 2016 the national unemployment rate stood at 23 percent and the
formal sector employed 3.1 percent and the informal 60.3 per cent with the working-age
population consisting of 738,799 people of which 364,630 persons were out of the labour
force. Almost 82 percent of employment is in the private sector, which is dominated by small
and medium enterprises and factories.
The onset of coronavirus in March 2020 closed factories and other industries, including the
service industry such as hotels and catering services. Workers were paid only for the days
worked in March 2020, while the state of emergency declared on 17 March 2020 froze all
economic activities in a range of sectors. The impact of these measures on people was
immediate. The Ministry of Labour subsequently announced that 13 companies had laid off
over 8,400 workers and the Minister announced (on 4 May 2020) that 8,429 would be paid
salaries for April and May. The companies are mostly in the textile, hotels and catering
sectors. They are part of 43 companies that have applied to lay off staff and requested an
exemption from provident fund contributions to redirect the money to laid-off staff.
The UNDP report stated, ‘People living in or near poverty often lack disposable cash, and so
cannot easily stockpile food in times of crisis. Hunger, malnutrition, pneumonia and other
forms of health-related shocks and stresses compound vulnerability to the virus and
contribute to a vicious cycle of disease and destitution.
‘The coronavirus pandemic would increase poverty, inequality and unemployment due to its
adverse impact on people’s jobs and livelihoods in the economy. The non-provision of health
insurance for the poor generally and the majority of the rural dwellers in particular, would
exacerbate poverty and inequality.
‘Informal economy job losses are bound to happen as the government continues to implement
safety control measures, including restricted travel and partial lockdown. The effect of this on
the informal sector will be huge as their members are likely to suffer significant losses since
their incomes depend on daily labour. This development will further push the poor and the
vulnerable to the margins, particularly in urban areas as they live from hand to mouth, with
any day lost in trading time impacting directly on the household income. The recovery of this
sector may be difficult as they are likely to expend their capital on survival requirements
during the lockdown.’
It added, ‘A vital segment of the service industry is the tourism industry which employs about
5,000 people, of whom 3,500 work for members of the Hotel and Tourism Association
(HOTAS). The industry generates about E1 billion (US$60 million) revenue annually. The
closure of this sector because of COVID-19 has had a ripple effect on the cottage industry in
26
handcrafts and artefacts, which relies on tour buses for their income. Such income evaporated
overnight when borders were closed to tourists.
‘Painting a picture of the sector’s losses to the pandemic, The Ministry of Tourism
announced an estimated potential loss of E208.8 million out of which E95 million stems from
accommodation, E97 million from restaurants, E11 million from the entertainment of tourists,
and E62 thousand from transportation between February and July 2020.’
It added, ‘The 3,200-strong producers and exporters of homemade products such as
handicraft artefacts, jams and natural gourmet foods are just as badly affected. This sector is
an important contributor not only to the economy but also to the livelihoods of numerous
low-income households in the rural sector. In 2019, this network of artefacts producers
generated a turnover of E67 million and was looking to a more productive year in 2020.
Unfortunately, their incomes dried up suddenly when the borders were closed.’
The UNDP report stated, ‘It has been said that these shocks, sudden as they are, could have
long-lasting consequences on human development and can be passed to subsequent
generations. Even after an epidemic has ended and economic growth has returned, the
impacts of the shock could still leave lasting damage. What is certain, however, is that the
effects will be unequally distributed, with vulnerable groups disproportionately affected.’
Swaziland sees increase in sexual violence against children as schools closed by

coronavirus
24 September 2020
The closure of schools in Swaziland (eSwatini) because of the coronavirus pandemic has led
to an increase in sexual and gender based violence against children, a United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP) report suggests.
Schools across the kingdom were closed in March 2020 as part of a partial lockdown of
businesses and organisations because of the coronavirus (COVID-19). Some schools have
since reopened.
The disruption affected 909 primary and secondary schools, approximately 339,000 learners
and 15,945 teachers in Swaziland. Also affected were 12 government-aided tertiary
institutions that fall under the broad jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education and Training
(MoET) with a total of 13,959 students and 748 lecturers, the report stated.
It added, ‘School dropout rates might rise, school closures have higher social and economic
costs for communities, particularly to vulnerable boys and girls. The girl child faces higher
vulnerabilities than boys, and school closures increase the risk of hunger for orphaned
children.’
It added, ‘The impact is particularly severe for the most vulnerable and marginalized boys
and girls and their families. Some of them are exposed to gender based violence, especially
sexual violence.’
According to official Swazi police figures, during the period of lockdown between 27 March
and 19 April, 299 sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) cases were reported of which 53
27
were rape and 213 domestic violence cases. The age group 12 to 17 years has been more
vulnerable to sexual violence. In April alone, 30 out of 47 reported rape cases were from this
group. Some of them were exposed to gender based violence, especially sexual violence.
Some pupils from poorer backgrounds might not be able to return to education when the
coronavirus crisis ended, UNDP reported, because they had fewer educational opportunities
beyond school. ‘Their non-return, therefore, could deprive them of opportunities for growth
and development, end their hopes of escaping poverty for themselves and their families,
plunge them deeper into the inequality chasm and reduce overall human capital in the
economy. As a result, there most likely will be a rise in the school dropout rates due to
teenage pregnancies and child marriage.’
The report said that experience elsewhere in the past showed an increase in teenage
pregnancies attributed largely to the closure of schools.
Classes have been moved from classrooms to online. The introduction of this distance
education, using information and communications technology (ICT) such as computers and
the Internet, had its problems for pupils, teachers and parents, the UNDP reported.
‘Learning from home and using ICT for the first time is challenging and requires discipline
and motivation that is more suited to older learners. Anecdotal evidence shows that teachers
experience confusion and stress when schools close, especially unexpectedly and for
unknown durations. They are often unsure of their obligations and how to maintain
connections with students to continue to support the learning process.
‘Not being trained in the use of ICT, they find it messy and frustrating to make an easy
transition to the distance learning platforms even in the best of circumstances. In many
contexts, school closures lead to separation for teachers. They experience social isolation
because schools are hubs of social activity and human interaction. Thus, when schools close,
especially suddenly, many children and youths miss out on social contact, which is essential
to learning and development. This also affects their teachers, too, experience has shown.’
Poorer children suffer when schools move classes online. ‘Many households find it hard
enough to pay the school fees to keep their children in school not to talk of buying a
computer or smartphone or some other equipment required for e-Learning. Students who are
fortunate enough to scale the hurdle of acquiring computer facilities for e-Learning may be
said to have escaped a trap, a poverty-induced trap. But they still have other traps to escape,
the report stated. ‘Online learning is also not accessible to all children equally. Children from
poor households and those living with disabilities could easily be left behind.’
It added there were dangers exposing children to the Internet, including the possibility of
sexual exploitation, trafficking, grooming and potential cyberbullying with possible
destructive consequences.
See also
Swaziland teachers say Govt. plan to reopen schools from coronavirus lockdown unsafe
28
2 SOLDIERS WHIP CIVILIANS

Swaziland Army investigates after video showing ‘soldiers whipping civilians’ goes viral
29 September 2020
The Swaziland (eSwatini) Army has started an investigation after video that appeared to
show two soldiers whipping two civilians circulated widely on social media.
The 30-second video shows two men laying on the ground while one is whipped with what
appears to be a branch of a tree. It is reported the assault went on for several minutes.
There is some confusion as to the role soldiers took. In some accounts the two men doing the
whipping are soldiers and in others it is said soldiers who are not seen on the video but whose
voices are heard were the soldiers.
According to a later report in the Times of eSwatini the incident is believed to have happened
in an area near Matsamo on Saturday (26 September 2020), close to the border with South
Africa.
The video also shows piles of South African banknotes in front of the two victims.
The Independent News, eSwatini, reported the Umbutfo Eswatini Defence Force (the official
name of the Army) had started an investigation. A spokesperson said, ‘The defence force has
since launched meticulous, internal investigations to determine the veracity of the clip.’
The News reported an unnamed male soldier saying that the defence force did not work like
the police who opened charges against suspects. ‘As soldiers they just deal with you on the
scene and set you free once you finish your punishment,’ the newspaper reported.
A still from the video circulating on social media
Soldiers in Swaziland have a long history of assaults on civilians, especially in border

regions. In November 2019 a pregnant woman was slapped and thrown to the ground by two
29
soldiers at Nsubane in the southeast of the kingdom. When she went to the army barracks to
report the matter she was assaulted again.
In March 2019 the High Court ruled the army should pay E70,000 damages to a man it
tortured. High Court Principal Judge Qinisile Mabuza also criticised the kingdom’s police for
not investigating alleged assaults on civilians by members of the army.
In October 2018 soldiers were said to have tortured farmers who crossed the border at
Dwalile to retrieve their straying cattle.
In a separate case in June 2018 three soldiers were charged with assault for burying a man
alive after they accused him of stealing a phone from them at Mbekelweni.
In December 2017 soldiers were accused of routinely sexually assaulting women as they
crossed border posts with South Africa. The Observer on Saturday reported at the time, ‘The
army troops have been accused by women of abusing their powers by touching them
inappropriately as they lay their hands on their buttocks just to allow to cross either to South
Africa or into Swaziland.
In July 2017 soldiers reportedly forced a bus-load of passengers to strip naked after it crossed
the Mhlumeni Border Gate into Mozambique. Local media reported it happened all the time.
In June 2017 it was reported women at the informal crossing situated next to the Mananga
Border Gate were made to remove their underwear so soldiers could inspect their private
parts with a mirror. The Swazi Army said it happened all the time. Soldiers were said to be
searching for ‘illegal objects’ using a mirror similar to that used to inspect the underside of
cars.
In September 2015, the Swazi Parliament heard that soldiers beat up old ladies so badly they
had to be taken to their homes in wheelbarrows. Member of Parliament Titus Thwala said
that the women were among the local residents who were regularly beaten by soldiers at
informal crossing points between Swaziland and South Africa.
See also
Army tortures recruitment cheats
Army sexual assaults at border posts
Soldiers inspect woman’s private parts
30
3 POLICE
Medical report says Swaziland police ‘suffocated’ fraud suspect with plastic bag, kicked
him
16 July 2020
Police in Swaziland (eSwatini) allegedly assaulted a government assistant accountant during

a fraud investigation by kicking him, beating him with fists and putting a plastic bag over his
head.
A doctor’s report from Nhlangano Health Centre on Simiso Zwane, 31, said, ‘Assaulted by
Police Officers all over the body, using fists and kicks today at 1pm. Also being suffocated
with plastic bag, now feeling chest pains, difficulty in breathing, dizziness and impaired
hearing. Blood came out from ears.’
The Swati Newsweek website reported Zwane, an assistant accountant based at Hlutsi
revenue office said, ‘I was tortured for more than five hours at Nhlangano Police Station. I
was kicked and punched by five police officers including a female officer. I was suffocated
by these police officers with a plastic bag.’
Police were investigating the disappearance of E90,000 cash.
Simiso Zwane’s medical record: Source: Swati Newsweek
There have been numerous reports across Swaziland about police torturing suspects during
investigations. In February 2020 the Times of eSwatini reported police in Siteki allegedly
31
threw a 20-year-old man into a fire after he allegedly assaulted a cousin. They were also
reported to have put a plastic bag over his head and assaulted him with fists.
Magistrates in Swaziland have a number of times criticised police for beating up suspects. In
January 2019, Magistrate Sindisile Zwane at Mbabane said she had noticed a number of
suspects came before her in court with bruises and swollen faces and other parts of their
bodies.
The Swazi Observer reported at the time the numbers were increasing significantly. The
newspaper added she said police should be able to question people without beating them up.
In March 2018 Principal Magistrate at Manzini David Khumalo told police they must not
beat suspects after a man appeared in court with injuries all over his body.
In June 2016 a United Nations review panel looking into human rights in Swaziland was told
in a joint report by four organisations, ‘In Mbabane [the Swazi capital], police tortured a 15-
year-old boy after his mother had reported him for stealing E85.00 (US$6). The boy alleges
that he was beaten with a slasher (metal blade tool for cutting grass) and knobkerrie [club] for
five hours. While enduring the pain, he alleges that he was made to count the strokes aloud
for the police to hear. Instead of being charged, the boy was physically assaulted and made to
sit in a chair for thirty minutes before he was sent back home.’
The report was submitted to the United Human Rights Council Working Group on the
Universal Periodic Review of Swaziland by the Swaziland Multi-Media Community
Network, Swaziland Concerned Church Leaders, Swaziland Coalition of Concerned Civic
Organisations and Constituent Assembly – Swaziland.
See also
Man ‘thrown into fire’ in latest case of alleged police torture in Swaziland
Police must not beat suspects: court
Baby kept in Swaziland police cell two nights after mother arrested for cannabis
possession
21 July 2020
A breastfeeding mother was kept in a Swaziland (eSwatini) police cell with her baby after she
was arrested on suspicion of possessing cannabis.
Celiwe Maduna was driving her car alongside her three children when police stopped it. They
smelt dagga (as the drug is known locally) and found 40kg of it on the back seat. Later they
found more in the car’s trunk.
The Times of eSwatini reported on Monday (20 July 2020) Maduna was taken to Mbabane
police station where her husband was called to take the children. It added, ‘Upon her
apprehension as a mother still breastfeeding her baby, Maduna was detained in the police
holding cells for two nights along with the baby.’
She was later sentenced to six years in prison with the option to pay a fine of E6,000
(US$360). Of this, two years and E2,000 were suspended.
32
The case is not unusual in Swaziland where police are often criticised for the way they deal
with mothers with babies.
In February 2018 a woman and her baby were held in a Mbabane police cell overnight along
with at least 10 other students after a protest about unpaid allowances.
In 2003 Swaziland made global news after five babies aged under 12 months were kept in the
Mbabane police station cells after their mothers were remanded in custody accused of
possessing illegal drugs.
See also
Police keep mum and baby in jail
Swaziland police kill another unarmed man reviving fears of shoot-to-kill policy
4 August 2020
Police in Swaziland (eSwatini) shot and killed a man while they were searching for an
alleged rapist.
It was the latest in a long line of shootings in the kingdom where observers say police have a
shoot-to-kill policy regarding crime suspects.
Simanga Mpila, aged 25, reportedly tried to block police officers as they searched for the
suspect.
It happened near Sidvwashini, the Times of eSwatini reported. Three police officers arrived to
arrest the alleged rapist. They could not find him but Mpila, described as a friend of the man
they were seeking, was there.
The unarmed man was shot during a scuffle with police. He later died at Pigg’s Peak
Government Hospital.
Police confirmed the shooting.
Police in Swaziland have a long history of killing. In January 2020 officers shot a man with
epilepsy in the neck at close range killing him after his family had called police to help
transport him to hospital for treatment. The killing happened in front of the family and
neighbours.
In July 2019 police were criticised in local media for shooting dead three men who escaped
from Big Bend Correctional Facility. They were hiding in a rondavel in a homestead at
Manyeveni, near Mpaka.
There is evidence that police in Swaziland routinely ‘shoot-to-kill’ suspects. In July 2018 at
least 30 officers shot and killed a man as he fled after they had stormed his home at
Matsebula.
This was not an isolated incident in Swaziland where police across the kingdom have a
growing record of killing or maiming suspects before arrest. The cases have largely gone
unreported outside of the kingdom itself.
33
In 2012 police shot a 34-year-old mentally disturbed man seven times, killing him. They had
been called to a disturbance at his home at Lubulini. The man’s family said they had trouble
controlling him and asked for police assistance in getting him to a hospital.
In one example, police executed a suspect Thabani Mafutha Dlamini at Nkwalini in Hlatikulu
in the presence of his colleagues and home boys in what local media called ‘cowboy style’.
The Swazi Observer newspaper reported the incident in December 2011 saying, ‘Police had
previously warned the mother of the dead man to “budget for funeral expenses” as they
intended to remove him. He was said to be on a police “wanted list”’. Dlamini was unarmed.
In a separate case in February 2011 a Swazi policeman shot Mbongeni Masuku, described in
media as a Form IV pupil, in the head in what was later described as ‘an execution-style
killing’. The killing happened outside a bar in Matsapha. Masuku’s uncle Sigayoyo
Maphanga said Mbongeni had been dragged out of his car by police. He told the Swazi
Observer, a policeman whom he named, ‘shot my nephew at the back of the left ear and he
fell on the ground with blood oozing from his mouth and ears. We were all shocked and
angered by such brutality from police officers.’
See also
Police killing, family demand answers
‘Police execute man cowboy style’
Police shoot surrendering man
Swazi police ‘murder’ suspect
Police ‘execute’ suspect in street
Swazi police shoot-to-kill again
Police shoot and kill mentally ill man
Police ‘shot accused rapist in head’
Police shoot-to-kill on bus
Police kill surrendering man
Swazi police shoot-to-kill
Swaziland police hitch-hike to crime scenes because of vehicle shortages

25 September 2020
Police across Swaziland (eSwatini) have to hitch rides from civilians to get to crime scenes or
perform other duties because the kingdom is broke and cannot pay for fuel or repairs to
vehicles.
Swazi Police spokesperson Superintendent Phindile Vilakati said ‘a majority’ of police
stations across the kingdom were affected by the shortage.
The situation is not new as there have been similar reports over the past two years.
Vilakati was responding to a newspaper report that there was only one vehicle available to
police in Mankayane and surrounding areas and ‘police officers are reportedly forced to walk
or hitchhike to crime and accident scenes because government has challenges with fuel or
vehicle repairs’.
34
The only vehicle available was shared among the General Patrol, Crime Investigation
Department (CID) and the Traffic Department. Traffic officers were reportedly using their
personal vehicles to mount roadblocks.
The Times of eSwatini reported, according to a source, ‘There had been three cases of armed
robberies where police were contacted but could not make it on time due to the fact that there
was a shortage of motor vehicles.’ This gave the robbers ample time to leave the crime scene
before the police could apprehend them.
Vilakati said, ‘The situation has become even worse as it has been exacerbated by the
COVID-19 pandemic to a point that we couldn’t service even the few cars that we have and
on top of that the issue of fuel shortage also contributed dearly.’
The problem is not a new one. In July 2019 it was reported police at Ngudzeni had been
without vehicles for a year. Officers were forced to either walk to crime scenes or to wait for
a day or so in order to get the one vehicle that was allocated to the nearby Dumako Police
Post.
Vilakati said at the time the police force faced challenges which she attributed to the
‘government’s obtaining economic crisis’.
In August 2018 it was reported police in the Siteki area were forced to walk or hitch-hike to
crime and accident scenes because the government had not paid for fuel or vehicle repairs.
Traffic officers used their personal vehicles to mount road blocks.
In May 2018 it was reported that Swaziland was so short of resources that police were unable
to secure voter registration centres in the runup to national elections and do their routine work
at the same time. Police officers were said to have been left stranded at registration centres in
the evenings because there were no vehicles available to take them home.
Police were unable to respond when a five-year-old was abducted and raped because they
were on election duty, according to the Swazi Observer at the time. It said a toddler was with
her mother at Mahlalini, an area in the outskirts of Nhlangano, when a man grabbed her and
disappeared into a thicket where he raped her.
See also
Police forced to hitch-hike to crime and accident scenes as government-induced financial
crisis bites
Media target Swazi Police shortages
Police in Swaziland walk to crime scenes because Govt. can’t afford to buy cars
Swaziland police teargas residents protesting about broken road bridge, fire rubber
bullets
26 September 2020
Police in Swaziland (eSwatini) fired teargas and rubber bullets to disperse a crowd protesting
that they were being made to pay fines for jaywalking while a broken pedestrian bridge was
left unrepaired.
35
It happened at Eteni on the major Manzini-Mbabane Highway.

The residents complained that they were being charged for jaywalking by traffic officers
when there was a bridge they should be using to cross to the other side of the road. The
bridge was damaged a few weeks ago when one of the slabs fell off.
The broken bridge
Protestors lit fires to block the road. Pictures sourced from Facebook
They have to walk long distances to get to the other side of the road. If they cross the road
where the bridge is police can give on-the-spot fines of up to E60 for jaywalking. In
Swaziland about seven in ten people have incomes of less than E30 a day.
36
Residents blocked the road on Thursday night (24 September 2020) by lighting tyres. Traffic
was held up for several hours. Riot police were called to clear the road.
Police in Swaziland routinely use teargas and rubber bullets against protestors. They have
also used heavy-handed methods when dealing with members of the public during the present
coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown in the kingdom.
Police reportedly fired a shot and severely kicked and punched residents at Murray Camp,
outside the main commercial city Manzini in August. Residents were allegedly drinking
alcohol outside a homestead which is against lockdown regulations.
On 15 April Swazi Prime Minister Ambrose Dlamini endorsed police beating people during
the lockdown. He told a press briefing, ‘If you are found to be violating these regulations, the
law will definitely take its course, we won’t compromise on this. Maybe those who were
assaulted were found to be on the wrong side of the law by breaking the regulations put in
place by government.’
A 15-year-old boy was shot and wounded by police when he played football with friends on a
dusty field near Gege. The Times of eSwatini reported their game was being watched by two
adults. It said the police officer allegedly fired his weapon to disperse the spectators.
The youngster was struck by a bullet in his left arm and it was later reported he would be
maimed for life.
See also
lockdown continues
Swaziland armed police, army intimidate people to obey coronavirus lockdown. Woman,
85, dies
Swaziland security forces whip destitute woman searching for food during coronavirus
lockdown
37
4 CORRUPTION
Swaziland MPs fail in bid to suspend controversial organised crime law
24 July 2020
Ambrose Dlamini, the unelected Prime Minister of Swaziland (eSwatini), has announced the
House of Assembly decision to suspend a controversial law has been overturned.
He said the Swazi parliament had no right to demand an amendment to the Prevention of
Organised Crime Act 2018 (POCA).
POCA had been controversial because police and security forces in Swaziland which is ruled
by King Mswati III as an absolute monarch were using it to attack illegal dagga (cannabis)
growers.
In a statement on Friday (24 July 2020) Dlamini said the offices of the Prime Minister,
Speaker, Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Attorney General and House of
Assembly Sessional Committee together decided a resolution to suspend POCA was
ineffective because proper constitutional channels had not been followed.
The law led to a public outcry after reports that the state was seizing private properties owned
by dagga farmers. The House of Assembly through a motion moved by Hosea MP Mduduzi
Mabuza adopted a resolution to suspend the law. It wanted Justice Minister Pholile Dlamini
Shakantu to prepare an amendment to the act.
POCA was designed to fight corruption and organised crime through asset recovery.
However, POCA did not only target illegal dagga farmers. In 2019 the Asset Recovery Unit
in the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, reported it had seized or preserved assets
worth more than E5 million, since the act came into force. In addition to cash, assets seized
included 18 vehicles, liquor, cigarettes and houses in urban and rural areas.
See also
Rapes double in three months in Swaziland, violent crime on steady increase
More crime fears in Swaziland
Public sector corruption in Swaziland getting worse, Transparency International report
suggests
Vast amounts of money ‘looted’ from Swaziland independence celebrations as hunger

swept kingdom
7 September 2020
Vast amounts of cash may have been looted from public funds during the double celebration
to mark Swaziland’s 50th anniversary of independence from Britain and the absolute
monarch’s 50th birthday.
Members of the kingdom’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) want police to investigate.
38
The so-called 50/50 Celebrations took place over two days in April 2018. It was at this time
that King Mswati III declared Swaziland would be renamed eSwatini, a name change that has
been rejected by human rights activists.
The PAC identified a number of irregularities and lack of accountability by the Ministry of
Home Affairs. These included the flouting of procurement procedures, payment of over E1.5
million to civil servants unlawfully supplying government, payment of over E5.6 million for
decorations as well as the poorly supported and recorded payment of well over E600,000 for
over-priced groceries.
This was revealed during a meeting in the Swazi parliament last week.
The inflow and outflow of cash donations to fund the event amounted to nearly E17 million
(US$1 million) and as of March 2019 more than E327,000 remained in a bank account
specifically created for the event.
Investigations revealed that some of the companies awarded contracts were owned by public
officers which was illegal.
A parliamentary committee was told some of the supplied commodities were marked up by
over 300 per cent. As an example one supplier charged E169 for a 1kg chicken.
The main 50/50 Celebration took place on 19 April 2018. At a party for 700 guests, King
Mswati, who is sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch, wore a watch worth US$1.6
million and a suit studded with diamonds. Days earlier he took delivery of his second private
jet which with VIP upgrades is reported to have cost US$30 million.
King Mswati wears his watch and diamond-studied suit
39
In separate celebrations the Queen Mother (Indlovukazi) gave the King a dining room suite
made of gold for his 50th birthday and senior members of his government gave a lounge suite
trimmed with gold.
He also received cheques totalling at least E15 million (US$1.2 million) to help pay for his
birthday celebration.
Back in 2018, the Swazi Government was reluctant to reveal the full cost of the celebration as
online reports suggested it might cost as much as US$1 billion.
The Sunday Observer, a newspaper in effect owned by the King, reported that the Ministry of
Home Affairs would not comment on the total cost of 50/50.
Ministry of Home Affairs Principal Secretary Steven Masilela told the Sunday Observer,
‘People suggesting the event was a drain on the public purse are misleading the nation at
large.’
He would not give the true cost of the celebration but said ‘a large chunk’ of the money used
came from donations from the business community and other institutions. He said Taiwan
had given E15 million.
The newspaper reported, ‘Critics have claimed that the country’s priorities were not in order,
directing public funds to the national event much against the need to address poverty and
inequality.’
Funding of the event caused concerns in Swaziland. It was reported that the equivalent of
US$1.7 million (E22 million) of public funds would be used on the event. E1 million of
money intended to support poor and disabled people was donated by the Swaziland National
Provident Fund. Army and police personnel had funds deducted from their salaries.
In Swaziland, seven in ten of the 1.1 million population live in abject poverty with incomes
less than the equivalent of US$2 per day.
40
Swaziland is broke and Finance Minister Martin Dlamini in his budget speech on 1 March
2018 said the government would only spend on ‘the most critical expenditure items’ that
year. He acknowledged, ‘Government sending continues to outpace its ability to raise enough
revenues resulting in cash flow challenges and accumulation of arrears.’
In his speech opening Parliament in February 2018 the King commanded his government, ‘to
prepare a budget that is based on available resources’. Dlamini said, ‘Government has
conducted a thorough analysis of our expenditure in order to prioritise only the most pressing
concerns.’
The Swazi Government paid US$7.5 million for a fleet of luxury BMW cars to transport
dignitaries on the day. The cost of the cars alone bust the US$1.7 million budget the
government allowed itself for the festivities.
Two months before the celebration, children in Swaziland were warned to prepare themselves
for starvation as the government once again failed to deliver free food to schools. The Swazi
Observer reported at the time that schools relying on government aid – known as the zondle
programme – ‘must brace themselves for starvation as the Ministry of Education and
Training has failed to deliver food to schools on time’.
In a report in May 2017, the World Food Program estimated 350,000 people of Swaziland’s
population were in need of food assistance. WFP helped 65,473 of them. It said it was
regularly feeding 52,000 orphaned and vulnerable children (OVC) aged under eight years at
neighbourhood care points. About 45 percent of all children in thought to be OVCs.
It reported chronic malnutrition affected 26 percent of all children in Swaziland aged under
five.
Richard Rooney
41
See also
Swazi Cabinet’s gift of gold
Swazi King and Queens of bling
King wears watch worth US$1.6-million
King wears suit beaded with diamonds
Poor and sick pay for King’s birthday
King’s birthday cash ‘looted’
42
5 SENATE ELECTION BRIBERY

Candidate withdraws as bribery allegation hits another Swaziland Senate election
27 July 2020
Ngomuyayona Gamedze, a candidate for the vacant seat in the Swaziland (eSwatini) Senate,
has withdrawn from the race and says he was asked to pay bribes to secure votes.
In Swaziland the people do not elect the 30 members of the Senate; 20 are appointed by
absolute monarch King Mswati III and the others are elected by members of the House of
Assembly.
This is not the first time allegations of bribery during Senate elections have been made.
A seat became vacant after the death of Senator Mike Temple last year. Gamedze, a former
deputy Senate president, was one of five candidates.
Gamedze wrote to the Returning Officer, the Clerk to Parliament Ndvuna Dlamini, saying
‘the election is open to the highest bidder’.
He wrote, ‘I am of the opinion that the election will consequently not be fair, just and in
national interest. I therefore find myself with no option but to hereby respectfully withdraw
my candidacy for the election of a senator.’
In an interview with the Swaziland News, an online newspaper, Gamedze said he had been
asked to pay for votes. ‘Anyone who aspires to take over the Senate must be prepared to pay
not less than 15 MPs [members of the House of Assembly], E20,000 each (US$1,200),
minimum totalling E300,000.’
There were many reports of alleged bribery during the last Senate election in 2018. Police
were called after votes were said to have been sold for between E20,000 and E40,000. The
Times of Swaziland reported at the time the bribery allegations came to light after one
unsuccessful Senate candidate whom it did not name demanded her money back from
members of the House of Assembly.
The Observer on Sunday newspaper, which is in effect owned by King Mswati, said in an
editorial comment in October 2018, ‘It is now an open secret that the 10 seats available for
Senate, to be chosen by the MPs, are now sold to the highest bidder.’
Vusi Kunene, a columnist for the Times of Swaziland, criticised Swaziland’s Elections and
Boundaries Commission for not taking action. He wrote, ‘That it is no longer a secret that
there is a lot of vote buying and the institution, which is supposed to guard against such, is
silent, is worrying.’
The buying of Senate seats in Swaziland is common. In the run-up to the election Ncumbi
Maziya, a Commissioner at the EBC, told a workshop for election candidates that members
of parliament charged E60,000 for their vote.
The Swazi Observer newspaper reported in August 2018, ‘He said parliamentarians are the
most corrupt people. He said he has since gathered that parliamentarians are swindling money
from people who want to make it into Senate.’
43
It added, ‘Maziya said he learnt that people are made to fork out money amounting to
E60,000 if they want to get a vote to be elected into Senate. “If you have no money you
won’t make it into Senate,” Maziya stated.’
The election for the vacant Senate seat was expected to be concluded on Monday (27 July
2020).
See also
Swaziland King appoints eight of his family to Senate amid reports of widespread vote
buying elsewhere
Swaziland elections watchdog calls for widescale investigation into allegation of vote
buying in Senate
31 July 2020
An elections support network in Swaziland (eSwatini) has called allegations of bribery

around a Senate election ‘shocking’ and is demanding widescale investigations.
The eSwatini Election Support Network (EESN) wants investigations by the police, the
Elections and Boundary Commission, the Human Rights and Integrity Commission and the
Anticorruption Commission.
It made its call after Ngomuyayona Gamedze, a candidate for the vacant seat in the
Swaziland Senate, withdrew from the race and said he had been asked to pay bribes to secure
votes.
A seat became vacant after the death of Senator Mike Temple last year. Gamedze, a former
deputy Senate president, was one of five candidates.
In Swaziland the people do not elect the 30 members of the Senate; 20 are appointed by
absolute monarch King Mswati III and the others are elected by members of the House of
Assembly.
Tjengisile Shabangu, EESN Chairperson, said in a statement published on Facebook, ‘These
allegations are shocking. When money becomes a determinant factor to being elected into
public office, it perpetuates the inequality gap especially amongst women and other
vulnerable groups to participate fairly in the electoral process. This undermines fair
participation and transparency of an election. It also undermines electing people of calibre to
perform representation and oversight roles in Parliament.’
Shabangu called ‘for critical organs of government to conduct intensive investigations into
the credibility and fairness of elections and the applicability of electoral laws for reforms
where there is need’.
Shabangu added, ‘The allegations that Members of Parliament demanded to be paid because
they also spent lots of money points to a political system that is already not in the best interest
of the nation but is in pursuit of personal gain. People elected into public office must show
effectiveness in representing national interests as well as be critical of the country’s
governance structures.’
44
Shabangu said, ‘These allegations affirm the EESN observation in its 2018 elections report
that the elections were marred with malpractices especially using money to buy favour from
the electorate.’
Separately, Sifiso Mabuza, one of the three remaining candidates in the election, complained
that police had visited tenants at flats that he rents out and questioned them about him.
The Times of eSwatini reported, ‘Mabuza said he felt harassed as the police officers also
questioned his wife about him and they also went around calling pastors, his former teachers
to the extent of asking how far he had gone with his education.’
In Swaziland, police vet candidates for senate elections to see if they qualify for elections.
According to the Senate (Elections) Act, 2013, for candidates to qualify for nominations they
need to be registered voters, have no criminal record as well as be in compliance with
eSwatini Revenue Authority (SRA) regulations. Candidates who entered and lost the last
national elections also do not qualify for the nominations. Candidates who have contract
engagements with government would be disqualified if they fail to declare them. Also,
candidates who are members of the armed forces do not qualify for nominations.
The election was supposed to take place last Monday (27 July 2020) but was delayed because
of the vetting process.
45
6 KING MSWATI III
Swaziland King’s controversial oil storage project rises from the dead and could cost
kingdom E3bn
19 August 2020
The projected cost of building an oil facility in Swaziland (eSwatini), enthusiastically

supported by the kingdom’s absolute monarch King Mswati III, has risen to more than E3
billion (US$170 million) even though it was reported that the contract to build it had been
cancelled by the Swazi Government in 2017.
A strategic oil reserve facility to store about 90 million litres of fuel at Phuzumoya in eastern
Swaziland was originally estimated to cost E900 million.
The Sunday edition of the Times of eSwatini reported a private company called Kantey &
Templer had originally been contracted to build the facility but was dismissed from the
project in October 2017.
Now, the Times said the project was continuing and so far E54.89 million had been spent and
the Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy’s estimated costs could eventually reach E3.2
billion.
The project was controversial from the start when the contract was awarded without going
out to tender.
It had the enthusiastic backing of King Mswati who receives 25 percent of all mineral income
in Swaziland which he holds ‘in trust for the Swazi nation’. In reality he uses the money to
fund a lavish lifestyle. In November 2019 he purchased between 13 and 15 luxury Rolls-
Royce cars at an estimated cost of up to US$4 million. He also has two private airplanes, at
least 13 palaces and fleets of top-of-the-range cars. At his 50th birthday in 2018 he wore a
watch worth US$1.6 million and a suit beaded with diamonds that weighed 6 kg. Days earlier
he had taken delivery of his second private jet. This one, an Airbus A340, cost US$13.2 to
purchase but with VIP upgrades was estimated to have cost US$30 million.
In February 2018, the Observer on Saturday, a newspaper in effect owned by the King,
reported the Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy was in the process of terminating the
contract because little progress had been made.
In October 2013, King Mswati officially launched the construction of the project at a sod
cutting ceremony. He said at the time, ‘The project that I bring to you today is one that is
geared into transforming lives and take the entire region into higher heights.’
Construction was supposed to take two years and create 300 jobs.
Even though it had already missed its deadline, King Mswati, during the official opening of
parliament in 2016, encouraged investors to take advantage of the project.
Once completed the facility would have a capacity for 90 million litres of fuel, enough to last
Swaziland 90 days. No independent analysis had been undertaken to see if this was needed in
the kingdom.
46
In January 2015 media were excluded from a House of Assembly session where a special Act
of Parliament was passed to allow the Government to make the payment for the project.
Members of parliament had previously rejected a Bill to guarantee the payment.
Claims of malpractice circulated in the kingdom and members of parliament were concerned
that the lucrative contract had not put out to open tender. Media in Swaziland also reported
that some people had registered imposter companies as part of a plan to destabilise the
project.
After a year the project had not started. It emerged that the company originally contracted to
build the project American Tank and Vessel (AT&V) had withdrawn from the contract.
The reason for the withdrawal of AT&V has not been explained publicly, but it is believed
that the move was permitted under the terms of the company’s contract.
Then, without public consultation or going through the legal open tendering process, the
contract was awarded to South African Company, Kantey & Templer Consulting Engineers.
The Swazi Observer reported the Natural Resources and Energy Minister Jabulile Mshwama
saying that ‘since His Majesty had already announced that work had to begin by cutting the
sod, her ministry had been working round the clock that the project kick starts and according
to Swazi custom once the King has spoken, things have to be done’.
When a Government Bill was first introduced to the House of Assembly, members of
parliament threw it out. The Times of Swaziland, the only independent daily newspaper in the
kingdom, reported, ‘The MPs had tossed out the Bill after concerns had been raised about
why the tender for the construction of the about E900m facility had not been an open one and
they also questioned the particulars of Kantey & Templer Proprietary Limited (Swaziland) [a
company formed to oversee the project].’
The Times Sunday, an independent newspaper, reported, ‘MPs are unhappy that other
companies were not engaged, through an open tendering system, to bid for the multimillion
project. Suspicion reached high levels when the MPs learnt that a closed tendering system
was used to engage the South African company to embark on the project. The nature of the
suspicions cannot be repeated for now.’
The Sunday Observer, another newspaper in effect owned by the King, reported that
individuals were trying to destabilise the project. It reported, ‘Two prominent individuals
identified as being behind the hijack include a present cabinet minister and a businessman
who also happens to be a former cabinet minister.’
The newspaper reported, ‘An individual close to the project confided that there is serious
lobbying, by those who want a stake in the project, to have it stalled. “The very same people
who wanted to register impostor companies are the ones who are now lobbying members of
parliament and cabinet ministers to have the project grounded. They are doing this to serve
their own selfish interests. They want to create bad publicity around Kantey & Templer and
the project in the hope that the tender award would be cancelled,” the well-informed
individual said.’
Senators also questioned the awarding of the tender. The Observer on Sunday reported,
‘Senator Chief Kusa had also strongly questioned why the initial company AT&V had
47
suddenly withdrew from the project and questioned how the whole project was costed and
how the tendered company Kantey & Templer was eventually awarded tender.
‘Senator Chief Kekela also wondered if the credibility of the company was considered as the
country has experienced a number of projects that have failed as a result of companies whose
profiles and credibility was not considered. “We have seen companies that have come and
made heavenly promises that have however not come to effect and failed and I must say I do
not want to work on risks here as a risk is dangerous, we should not therefore risk with the
Swazi people,” the Senator said.’
In February 2018, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy told the Observer on
Saturday, ‘The contractor [Kantey & Templer] did not meet the agreed upon timelines and
we are working within the framework of the agreement for the next steps in this project. It is
envisaged that the project will be returned to tendering in the very near future.’
See also
Swazi King fell for US$5bn con-trick
U.S. Ambassador to Swaziland wants constitutional change to stop King’s lavish spending
27 July 2020
The US Ambassador to Swaziland (eSwatini) Lisa Peterson has called for the kingdom’s
constitution to be changed to stop absolute monarch King Mswati III’s lavish spending.
In November 2019 he purchased between 13 and 15 luxury Rolls-Royce cars at an estimated
cost of up to US$4 million. He also has two private airplanes, at least 13 palaces and fleets of
top-of-the-range cars. At his 50th birthday in 2018 he wore a watch worth US$1.6 million
and a suit beaded with diamonds that weighed 6 kg. Days earlier he had taken delivery of his
second private jet. This one, an Airbus A340, cost US$13.2 to purchase but with VIP
upgrades was estimated to have cost US$30 million.
Peterson who has criticised the King’s lifestyle in the past was speaking with newspaper and
magazine editors in a discussion streamed on Facebook on 23 July 2020. She said she had
previously had a private meeting with the King where she voiced her concerns.
The Ambassador said she had a ‘concern about Royal Family trips to Disneyworld in the
middle of the drought [and] the number of royal children who for some reason go to the UN
General Assembly’.
She said the US had given more than half a billion dollars in assistance to eSwatini over the
past 15 years. ‘It does reach a point where you ask yourself why are we putting this money in.
Why are my taxpayer’s dollars going to this, my children’s tax dollars, heaven forbid, my
grandchildren’s tax dollars go to pay for healthcare in this country when someone [the King]
clearly has a lot of money and doesn’t quite seem to know what to do with it all.’
Speaking about the Rolls-Royce cars she said, ‘I’m still not completely convinced they were
a purchase.’
48
She said all kinds of people talked about the purchase at the time. ‘There was anger, there
was disappointment, one person said they felt abandoned.’
US Ambassador to Swaziland Lisa Peterson
She added, ‘I thought it was a golden opportunity for people to mobilise to get something out
of this moment of collective anger / anguish, pick your word, and nothing really happened.’
She predicted, ‘I think you’re going to see another kind of gift or purchase that’s going to
raise ire again.’
She called on people to advocate for a law on limiting the gifts government officials and the
monarchy could accept. ‘[The] gift law should specify that it will apply to everyone,’ she
said.
In Swaziland it is impossible to take the King to court. The Ambassador said people needed
to send a message to the King, ‘We expect you to behave the way the rest of us have to
behave.’
She called for people to advocate to change S9 of the Swazi Constitution which deals with
royal emoluments – the amount of money the royal family gets from the national budget each
year. S9 (ii) states that the level of the King’s allowances can never be reduced.
She said, ‘That section of the constitution fundamentally takes away any power parliament
has over the purse and at a minimum people should be engaged on [saying] we think he has
enough already, we should place a cap on this. Change section nine of the constitution so
actually there’s some room to move it down if necessary when you are in times of dire fiscal
need.’
Ambassador Peterson had previously publicly criticised the King for his lavish spending.
Speaking about the purchase of the Rolls-Royce in an interview with The Nation, a monthly
magazine, in December 2019, she said, ‘My initial anger was at the excessive luxury enjoyed
by a tiny segment of the country, while 40 percent of the population lives on less than E29
per day [US$2], according to the World Bank.’
49
She added that people in Swaziland felt bound by ‘a cultural expectation’ to keep quiet while
more powerful people took advantage of their goodwill and respect.
She said, ‘Goodwill and respect should be earned based on a person’s actions, which must be
guided by giving the utmost consideration to human dignity.
‘They require that a person deal honestly with those around him, particularly those who
depend on his conscientious leadership. By always dealing honestly, a leader gains the trust
and respect of his public.’
Peterson also made comments while giving certificates to young entrepreneurs at Nhlangano
on 8 November 2019. A transcript of her speech issued by the US Embassy in Swaziland
quoted her saying, ‘While the government continued using its existing vehicle fleet, the
palace sees fit to acquire more than a dozen Rolls-Royce vehicles with a minimum price tag
of E52.5 million. To accompany this royal fleet, there is now an even larger fleet of official
escort vehicles, purchased with public funds.’
She said, ‘It is exceedingly difficult for development partners to continue advocating for
assistance to eSwatini when such profligate spending or suspicious giving is taking place.’
In an article published in November 2018 by both of Swaziland’s two national daily
newspapers she called for the decree that puts King Mswati in power as an absolute monarch
to be repealed. She also called for political parties to be allowed to contest elections.
See also
U.S. Ambassador to Swaziland renews criticism of King’s lavish spending while people
live in poverty
Threat to censor U.S. Ambassador to Swaziland after criticism of King’s lavish spending
U.S. Ambassador calls for repeal of decree that makes Swaziland an absolute monarchy
50
7 REED DANCE
Families of girls killed at Swaziland Reed Dance get no financial compensation

22 September 2020
The families of ten girls, mostly aged 11 to 16, who were killed in a road accident while
being transported on the back of a truck ‘like cattle’ during the Reed Dance for King Mswati
III in 2015 have received no financial compensation for their death.
The Sincephetelo Motor Vehicle Accidents Fund (SMVAF) will not make pay-outs because
the girls had no dependents.
The accident happened when the girls were going to Ludzidzini Royal Residence after cutting
reed for the kingdom’s absolute monarch.
The news of the non-payment was broken by the Times of Swaziland. It reported the SMVAF
guarantees no compensation for deceased people, other than funeral benefits, if they had no
source of income or dependants at the time of their death.
The deaths caused outrage in August 2015. The exact number of deaths in the incident is
disputed. The Swazi Government said 13 people, including children and adults, died but there
was widespread disbelief in Swaziland that the death toll was so low. The Swaziland
Solidarity Network, a prodemocracy group banned in Swaziland, citing the Swaziland
Defence Force as a source, put the figure of deaths at 38. It later revised this figure to 65,
citing medical officials as a source.
The official figures included an 11-year-old girl and seven girls aged 16 or under.
They died when they were loaded up onto the back of a truck. It was involved in a road
collision on 28 August 2015. They were taking part in the annual Reed Dance or Umhlanga
where they were expected to be among thousands of ‘virgins’ to dance in front of the King.
King Mswati came in for heavy criticism after the crash because journalists were prevented
from reporting the event. King Mswati rules Swaziland as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute
monarch and media are heavily restricted in his kingdom.
Thousands of young girls from across Swaziland were forced to travel in trucks standing up
in the open back cheek-by-jowl. There was no space to sit down or even to turn around.
Photographs show that at least sixty children were squashed onto the back of a single truck.
Many of the trucks that transported the girls were usually used to move building materials.
Young girls travel this way every year to attend the Reed Dance where they are expected to
dance topless in front of King Mswati. Media in Swaziland routinely describe the girls as
‘virgins’ or ‘maidens.’ The King was 46 years old at the time of the accident.
Media reports of the accident were inconsistent, but it was generally agreed that the children
were thrown from the back of the truck when it was involved in a collision. Police reported
that not all the girls died on the spot. International media reported that journalists in
Swaziland were stopped from gathering information about the accident.
51
(Below) A photograph issued by Reuters in 2015. The caption reads ‘Maidens riding in the
back of a dump truck arrive before the last day of the Reed Dance at the Ludzidzini royal
palace in Swaziland.’
See also
‘Cover-up on Swazi Reed Dance deaths’
Dead girls are victims, not heroes
Dead girls transported like cattle
52
8 MEDIA
Swaziland King in another press freedom row after website accuses him of business
wrongdoing
12 August 2020
The Swaziland (eSwatini) Government has said it will pursue a newspaper editor using ‘legal
channels’ after he wrote and published articles critical of absolute monarch King Mswati III.
Zweli Martin Dlamini, founder and editor of the Swaziland News, an online newspaper had
published several articles stating that the King had entered into a multi-billion cannabis deal
with a foreign company for his own benefit.
In an official statement Government Spokesperson Sabelo Dlamini called the reports
‘libellous, unfounded and factually incorrect’.
Sabelo Dlamini added, ‘Government continues to pursue legal channels to hold Zweli
Dlamini accountable for spreading misinformation.’
In the past in Swaziland journalists who criticised the king have been charged with sedition.
Swaziland News is hosted online in neighbouring South Africa because laws in Swaziland
restrict which publications may be printed in the kingdom.
This is not the first time Zweli Martin Dlamini has been in trouble with the absolute monarch.
In April 2020 he wrote and published reports that King Mswati had tested positive for the
coronavirus (COVID-19) and had been taken to hospital with breathing problems.
He had reportedly fled to neighbouring South Africa in March 2020 for the second time. He
said he had been arrested and tortured by Swazi police who accused him of sedition.
Also, on 7 February 2020, The Swaziland News reported Dlamini was being harassed and
receiving death threats from King Mswati’s first born daughter Princess Sikhanyiso, who is
the Minister of Information Communication and Technology.
Dlamini had previously fled to South Africa in fear of his life in 2017. He had received death
threats from a local businessman before his newspaper Swaziland Shopping was shut down
by the Swazi government when the newspaper’s registration under the Books and
Newspapers Act 1963 was declined by the Swazi Ministry of Information, Communication
and Technology.
Separately, on 23 April 2020 Eugene Dube, the editor of another online publication, Swati
Newsweek, was arrested and beaten by police. Police accused him of writing and publishing
critical articles about King Mswati. He later fled to South Africa to escape arrest.
Reporters Without Borders (RWB) named Dube one of 30 coronavirus ‘information heroes’
who it described as ‘whistleblowers and media outlets whose courage, perseverance or
capacity to innovate has helped to circulate reliable and vital information during the Covid-19
pandemic.’
Swazi police also charged Ncamiso Ngcamphalala, President of the Swaziland Economic
Freedom Fighters (EFF), with sedition for comments he made in an a article published by
Swati Newsweek.
53
In the report Ngcamphalala was quoted saying, ‘We want government to change people’s
lives, the Swazi Monarchy must know its place. We respect the King, but respect is earned
and when pushed into a corner; we will be forced to retaliate. We unapologetically stand for
multi-party democracy.’
See also
‘No media freedom’ in Swaziland, Reporters Without Borders annual report states
Swaziland journalist critical of King flees, hides in forest five days
Swaziland democracy leader charged with sedition for criticising absolute monarch on
news website
Independent audit shows ‘Times of eSwatini’ 300,000 daily sales claim is closer to 18,000
14 August 2020
The Times of eSwatini newspaper (formerly Times of Swaziland) which for years has claimed
to have daily sales of 300,000 copies in fact has fewer than 18,000, an independent audit of
its circulation revealed.
The Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC) in South Africa which independently audits
newspapers in that country and in the region reported the sales of the Times on Mondays to
Fridays averaged 17,985 copies in the second quarter of 2020. The sales were 11.8 percent
down on a year ago. The sales were 9.5 percent down since the start of the coronavirus
lockdown in Swaziland.
The ABC did not release figures for the Times’ Saturday or Sunday editions. The ABC
receives circulation data from newspapers and checks to verify its accuracy.
The sales figure contrasts with the claim the Times has made for years on its own website
about its sales. It says, ‘The newpaper [sic] has been running since 1968 and is Swaziland’s
leader in the deliver [sic] of printed news. The print edition is printed daily with a circulation
of over 300,000.’
The Times has also made the 300,000 circulation claim in advertisements.
The Times is one of only two daily newspapers in the kingdom. The other newspaper is the
eSwatini Observer (formerly Swazi Observer), which is in effect owned by King Mswati III,
the absolute monarch of Swaziland. It does not allow its sales to be independently audited.
The eSwatini Observer does not give details of its circulation on its website, but does say,
‘The market share of the readership is approximately 50 percent of the print media market.’
In 2016 in an entry published by Capro Media Representatives, a South African-based
company that markets newspapers to advertising agencies stated the Observer had ‘print
orders’ that were 8,280 copies for the Monday to Friday editions, 9,200 for the Saturday and
6,000 for the Sunday edition.
The population of Swaziland is about 1.1 million.
See also
54
Self-censorship at ‘Times’ newspaper

‘Times’ misleads on King’s London visit
Paper distorts story to protect King
Swaziland proposes law with 10 year jail term for publishing ‘fake news’
31 August 2020
The government in the absolute monarchy of Swaziland (eSwatini) has introduced a law
aimed at censoring all forms of media which could lead to a 10-year jail sentence for people
publishing ‘fake news’.
The kingdom ruled by King Mswati III as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch
already has been labelled ‘not free’ by human rights groups.
A government gazette has been published detailing the proposed law. The bill will be piloted
by the Ministry of Information, Communication and Technology which is headed by the
King’s daughter, Princess Sikhanyiso.
The Times of eSwatini reported that the bill states that any person who publishes any
statement or fake news through any medium, including social media, with the intention to
deceive any other person or group of persons commits an offence. On conviction a person
would be liable to a fine not exceeding E10 million (US$600,000) or imprisonment not
exceeding 10 years or both.
The new law would allow the courts to prosecute in some circumstances Swazi nationals who
live outside of Swaziland. It also covers a wide range of offences including spamming and
cyberstalking. Cyberstalking includes making false accusations, defamation and identity
theft.
King Mswati who has been widely criticised by human rights groups controls much of the
mainstream media in Swaziland. Nearly all broadcasting is state-controlled and one of the
only two daily newspapers in the kingdom is in effect owned by the King. Formal censorship
and self-censorship by journalists when reporting matters about the King is almost total.
In recent years news websites that call for human rights reforms in Swaziland have been
launched. The editors of two of them are in exile in neighbouring South Africa after
publishing articles deemed critical of the King. They face sedition charges if they return to
Swaziland. There are also a number of Facebook sites and other social media platforms that
carry material critical of the King.
Reporters Without Borders in its World Press Index released earlier in 2020 reported that
there was no media freedom in Swaziland. It reported, ‘No court is allowed to prosecute or
try members of the government, but any criticism of the regime is liable to be the subject of a
prosecution. Far from being an independent protector of rights and freedoms, the judicial
system is often used to undermine journalism.’
Freedom House scored Swaziland 16 out of a possible 100 points in its Freedom in the World
2019 report. It concluded that Swaziland was ‘not free’.
55
Freedom House stated, ‘The King exercises ultimate authority over all branches of the
national government and effectively controls local governance through his influence over
traditional chiefs. Political dissent and civic and labor activism are subject to harsh
punishment under sedition and other laws. Additional human rights problems include
impunity for security forces and discrimination against women and LGBT (lesbian, gay,
bisexual, and transgender) people.’
In Swaziland political parties are barred from taking part in elections. Groups advocating for
democracy are outlawed under the Suppression of Terrorism Act.
See also
Swaziland journalist critical of King flees, hides in forest five days
Swaziland journalist critical of absolute monarch, beaten, arrested, faces treason charge
‘No media freedom’ in Swaziland, Reporters Without Borders annual report states
Swaziland journalist ‘tortured by police after criticising absolute monarch in newspaper
articles’
Newspaper editor flees Swaziland for second time after arrest and police torture
Swaziland democracy leader charged with sedition for criticising absolute monarch on
news website
56
9 WOMEN
Swaziland High Court judge calls for debate on legalising abortion
30 September 2020
A High Court judge in the deeply conservative kingdom of Swaziland (eSwatini) has started a
debate about legalising abortion.
Judge Qinisile Mabuza heard a case involving a 26-year-old woman who was accused of
causing the death of her four-year-old son, by drowning him in a river.
The eSwatini Observer reported that the child’s father had denied paternity, leaving her to
rise the child herself. This prompted the judge to question what provisions were available for
women who found themselves in similar situations.
The Swazi Constitution provides that abortion might be allowed on medical or therapeutic
grounds, including where a doctor certifies that continued pregnancy will endanger the life or
constitute a serious threat to the physical health of the woman; continued pregnancy will
constitute a serious threat to the mental health of the woman; there is serious risk that the
child will suffer from physical or mental defect of such a nature that the child will be
irreparably seriously handicapped.
However, no law exists to put the constitutional provisions into effect.

According to the Observer, ‘In her subsequent remarks, she [Judge Mabuza] hinted that she
viewed the current situation as shackling women’s autonomy, making an undertaking to
tackle the current ban on abortion before she retires from the bench.
‘In fact, the learned judge believes it would be reasonable to allow women to make a decision
on whether to perform an abortion.’
The Observer reported, she added some of the rights of women had been addressed through
the 2018 Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Act and it was time that society explored
the possibility of legalising abortion as well.
Later, a number of representatives from organisations within Swaziland supported the idea of
a debate. Acting Director Bongani Msibi of the Family Life Association of Swaziland
(FLAS), a leader in Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights delivery and youth
programming in Swaziland, said the illegality of abortion often posed serious risks to women,
and that legalisation could help to protect their reproductive and health rights.
Acting Director Zanele Thabede of Women and the Law of Southern Africa (WLSA) said
abortion law reform should be discussed. She told the Observer it was important to have
meaningful conversations whatever your beliefs about abortion.
Head of the Human Rights and Integrity Commission Sabelo Masuku said the group was in
support of the call by the judge to have Swaziland revisit its position on abortion.
Because abortions are illegal in Swaziland it is difficult to say accurately how many are
performed in the kingdom. However, in August 2018 the Times of Swaziland reported that
57
every month, nurses at the Raleigh Fitkin Memorial (RFM) Hospital in Manzini attended
more than 100 cases of young women who had committed illegal abortions.
The IRIN news agency, quoting FLAS reported that in October 2012 more than 1,000 women
were treated for abortion-related complications at a single clinic in Swaziland.
See also
Death of Swaziland schoolgirl after illegal abortion highlights suffering of women in
kingdom
U.S. halts funding to Swaziland NGO as anti-abortion policy bites
Swaziland college principal reveals role abortions play in lives of his students
Health expert warns Swaziland women might contract cancer from unregulated
contraceptives
2 September 2020
Women in Swaziland (eSwatini) are using unregulated family planning products that might
cause cancer, a leading sexual health expert warned.
Bongani Msibi, Acting Executive Director of Family Life Association of Swaziland (FLAS),
said unregulated products were available in the kingdom that often came without instructions
for their safe use. The products were designed to prevent pregnancy.
Msibi told a parliamentary forum in Manzini misuse of the products increased the risk of
cervical or breast cancer.
Msibi said the government provided regulated family planning products for free, but some
people still used unregulated ones.
Women’s sexual health is a controversial topic in Swaziland where abortion is illegal but pills
that purport to induce abortions are openly on sale. In February 2020 a woman was sentenced
to 30 years in jail with the option of an E45,000 (US$2,700) fine for selling Cytotec pills
which induced abortion.
Under the Swazi Constitution abortion is illegal in Swaziland except under strict
circumstances, including where a mother’s life is in danger.
Because abortions are illegal in Swaziland it is difficult to say accurately how many are
performed in the kingdom. However, in August 2018 the Times of Swaziland reported that
every month, nurses at the Raleigh Fitkin Memorial (RFM) Hospital in Manzini attended
more than 100 cases of young women who had committed illegal abortions.
The IRIN news agency, quoting the FLAS, reported that in October 2012 more than 1,000
women were treated for abortion-related complications at a single clinic in Swaziland. Many
of the deaths were the result of haemorrhaging, while others resulted from the patient’s delay
in seeking medical treatment for other complications stemming from illegal terminations.
In November 2012 the IRIN reported that 16 percent of all women deaths in the government
hospital in Mbabane that year were the result of botched abortions. It said that this figure was
only those cases that were reported, there were certainly other deaths unreported.
58
In December 2018 the Swazi Observer reported the number of illegal ‘backstreet’ abortions
taking place in Swaziland was ‘escalating’ because social media had made it easier to obtain
abortion pills.
59
10 HUNGER
Hunger sweeping across Swaziland and is going to get worse, new report suggests
24 August 2020
Nearly one in three people in Swaziland (eSwatini) face severe hunger in the coming months
and the situation is getting worse.
The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is only partly to blame. Before the virus struck in
March 2020 the kingdom already faced a crisis because of poor harvests. But, the impact on
jobs of the command by King Mswati III, the kingdom’s absolute monarch, to partially shut
down the economy because of the virus has hit hard.
The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) in a report just published said about
366,000 (32 percent of the population) faced ‘high acute food insecurity’ in the coming
months.
The IPC analysis was undertaken for rural and urban areas in Swaziland; comprising of four
rural districts: (Manzini, Shiselweni, Lubombo and Hhohho); and two urban districts;
(Hhohho urban and Manzini urban). At present, 32 percent of the rural population (292,794
people) and 17 percent of the urban population (37,424 people) are in crisis.
Compared with 2019, the kingdom’s food insecurity situation has deteriorated.
IPC reported The COVID-19 pandemic had compounded the food insecurity situation,
leading to an estimated 37 percent of households with reduced income and 26.9 percent with
reported loss of employment.
‘High prevalence of HIV and AIDS and its effects on the productivity of most rural
households in the country continue to pose a great threat to a large proportion (26 percent) of
the rural population. Lower than normal rainfall, coupled with a high prevalence of disease,
during the production season negatively affected food production and availability.’
It added the kingdom had recorded a shortfall in maize production of 71.93 metric tons to
meet the 162.32 metric tons domestic requirement for the staple crop. Planned import
requirements amount to 61.7 metric tons, with an uncovered food gap of 10.22 metric tons.
The report stated, ‘COVID-19 restrictions continue to disrupt food supply chains in the
country, negatively impacting food availability. Humanitarian assistance programmes have
been initiated to provide cash and food relief to ease the COVID 19-induced food challenges.
‘The greater impact of the pandemic weighs heavily on the rural poor due to the disruption of
the informal sector – the mainstay of rural livelihood.’
Hunger continues to sweep across Swaziland, one third of population badly hit
3 September 2020
Hunger continues to grip Swaziland (eSwatini) and the European Union has donated 1.4
million euros (US$1.6 million) to help feed up to 94,000 families in the coming year.
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The money will be used to support the World Wood Programme’s (WFP) efforts in rural and
urban areas of Manzini, Lubombo and Hhohho regions.
Cash will be transferred monthly to destitute families. About one third of the kingdom’s
estimated 1.1 million people are reported to be vulnerable to hunger. Poor crops and the
effects of coronavirus (COVID-19) are mostly blamed for the situation.
Cissy Byenkya, WFP’s Head of Office in Swaziland said, ‘This timely contribution will help
us address deepening food insecurity and malnutrition in children, particularly orphans,
pregnant and breast-feeding women, and people living with HIV and AIDS.’
Hunger is reportedly sweeping across Swaziland. The Integrated Food Security Phase
Classification (IPC) in a report published in August 2020 said about 366,000 people faced
‘high acute food insecurity’ in the coming months.
The IPC analysis was undertaken for rural and urban areas in Swaziland; comprising of four
rural districts: (Manzini, Shiselweni, Lubombo and Hhohho); and two urban districts;
(Hhohho urban and Manzini urban). At present, 32 percent of the rural population (292,794
people) and 17 percent of the urban population (37,424 people) are in crisis.
Compared with 2019, the kingdom’s food insecurity situation has deteriorated.
IPC reported The COVID-19 pandemic had compounded the food insecurity situation,
leading to an estimated 37 percent of households with reduced income and 26.9 percent with
reported loss of employment.
See also
EU steps up to feed destitute during coronavirus crisis as Swaziland Govt. stumbles to
deliver aid
deadline
poorest
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11 INDEPENDENCE DAY
As Swaziland marks the anniversary of Independence, what happened to the optimism?
6 September 2020
As Swaziland (eSwatini) marks the 52nd anniversary of its independence from Great Britain I
can’t help but wonder what happened to all the optimism that was voiced in 1968?
In 1968, the New York Times reported ‘Swaziland achieves independence today with much
brighter immediate prospects than the other two former British High Commission territories
in south Africa.’
It added, ‘It is smaller (area 6,705 sq miles: population 400,000) than Botswana or Lesotho,
but commands far greater natural resources and a robust foreign trade and payments surplus.’
Those prospects were soon extinguished. Even before the present coronavirus (COVID-19)
emergency all but destroyed the economy the International Monetary Fund was reporting
Swaziland’s economic situation was dire. In February 2020 the IMF reported the economy in
Swaziland continued to be in free-fall. Public debt was still rising, domestic arrears had
grown, and international currency reserves had fallen ‘below adequate levels’.
The growth in private investment was slowing and declining external competitiveness was
hindering the kingdom’s growth prospects. Now, 40 percent of the 1.1 million population are
living in extreme poverty and unemployment is high.
The political situation is equally dire. In 1973 the then king, Sobhuza II tore up the
constitution and began to rule by Royal Proclamation. Despite a new constitution that came
into effect in 2006 that proclamation has not been repealed.
The present king, Mswati III rules as an absolute monarch. Political parties are barred from
contesting elections and groups that advocate for democratic reform are banned under the
Suppression of Terrorism Act.
People only elect 59 of the members of the House of Assembly; the King appoints a further
ten. None of the 30-member Senate are elected by the people. The King chooses the Prime
Minister and his Cabinet as well as top judges and civil servants.
King Mswati and his family continue to use public money to fund their own lavish lifestyles.
Back in 1968, people hoped for so much more (no, expected so much more from
Independence). The New York Times reported (6 September 1968), ‘Swaziland achieves
independence today with much brighter immediate prospects than the other two former
British High Commission territories in south Africa. It is smaller (area 6,705 sq miles:
population 400,000) than Botswana or Lesotho, but commands far greater natural resources
and a robust foreign trade and payments surplus.
‘This is not to suggest that the Swazis lack problems. Their position as almost an island
within South Africa would by itself insure long-range headaches. They currently enjoy
political stability under the shrewd if traditional leadership of King Sobhuza II and the
royalist Imbokodvo party of Prime Minister Mahkosini Dlamini.’
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Swaziland was seen as a stable, peaceful country. Much of the credit for this was put at the
feet of the then king, Sobhuza II.
The New York Times reported. ‘The 69-year-old King has been on the throne since 1921. He
personifies his country: one foot in the past and the other in the future.
‘The king of the Swazis, once one of Africa’s great warring tribes, is equally at home in
formal Western clothes or Mahia, the colourful national costume. He is reported to have
about 170 wives and platoons of children. Statistics are sketchy, but the records do show that
the king took his 50th bride in 1933.’
The Financial Times, London, UK, reported, ‘If, then, today [1968] the King reigns supreme
in this tiny country ... it is very largely because it was he, and not some populist movement,
that provided the impetus, back in 1960, which set his country on the road to independence.
‘This is important, for it meant that the King and his men were able to a large extent to call
the tune in their negotiations with the British Government – the one attempt to impose a
Whitehall-inspired constitution in 1964 was very short lived. Furthermore, by being
identified from the start with the ‘struggle’ for independence in the minds of the people, the
Imbokodvo has been able to stay one jump ahead of any local opposition – notably the Pan-
Africanist Ngwane National Liberatory Congress – and in the end to annihilate it.’
It was the control exerted over Swaziland by King Sobhuza that for many was the key to the
stability in Swaziland.
The Financial Times pointed out that it is arguable that the Whites in Swaziland would not
have been willing to abandon their demand for an entrenched representation in parliament
without the influence of Sobhuza.
‘There can be little doubt that Swaziland’s Whites draw great comfort from the knowledge
that a conservative monarch who makes little secret of his appreciation for the White’s
continuing economic contribution to the country is in charge.’
It was generally recognised internationally that ‘democracy’ in Swaziland in 1968 had
shortcomings. The Financial Times put it like this, ‘In theory, he [King Sobhuza II] is only a
constitutional monarch, and as Head of State he will have to live with a Parliament consisting
of a 12 man Senate and a 30-man House of Assembly. But, in practice, it is very difficult to
see the legislature going against the king’s wishes; for in practically every sense it is the
King’s Parliament. To start with, all 24 elected members in the Assembly belong to the
Royalist Imbokodvo National Movement, founded in early 1964, and headed by Prince
Makhosini Dlamini, a member of the Royal family and now Swaziland’s first Prime Minister.
‘Secondly, the King has the power to appoint six Senate members with the remainder being
elected by the House of Assembly.
‘Thirdly, there is his influence in the Swazi National Council, the body of chiefs and elders
through which kings have traditionally governed the Swazi nation. And as long as Swaziland
retains its unitary tribal structure, the SNC is likely to remain an important body for it is here
that the vast majority of the people will make their grievances immediately felt, which will
then be transmitted via the king to parliament, rather than the other way round...’
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History tells us that this confidence in Sobhuza was misplaced. In 1973, after the people of
Swaziland freely elected members of parliament of whom he disapproved, the King
abandoned the parliament, tore up the constitution and ruled by decree. Swaziland is still
(technically, at least) ruled by this decree.
The total lack of democracy in Swaziland, the banning of political parties and the stripping of
power from Parliament dates from 1973. Most of the kingdom’s present day shortcomings
can be directly attributed to the crushing lack of democracy that stifled debate and penalised
those who dare to have a view contrary to those of the ruling elite.
The lack of political sophistication in Swaziland was noted by the Financial Times, ‘the very
lack of political sophistication in the country – no small reason for the King’s strong hold
over its affairs – is likely to bolster this stability in the short term.’
Even in 1968 there were concerns about whether the people of Swaziland were being truly
represented in Parliament. Elections in 1967 had seen the Ngwane National Liberatory
Congress (NNLC) get 20 percent of the vote, but no seats.
The Financial Times reported with more foresight than it probably realised at the time,
‘Votes came mainly from the tiny, but growing, white-collar urban working class.
‘Moreover, with hindsight it is now apparent that the vote was not so much for the NNLC but
against the Establishment, so that even if Dr Zwane [the NNLC leader] disappears from the
scene, the forces which had been channelled through his party, will remain.’
Richard Rooney
See also
Anniversary of day Swaziland stopped being a democracy and became absolute monarchy
Swazis did not choose political system
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12 ... AND THE REST

Swaziland democracy leader and former MP Jan Sithole dies
13 September 2020
Jan Sithole, the former Manzini North Member of Parliament and President of the Swaziland
Democratic Party (SWADEPA), has died. He was taken ill at home and later died in hospital.
He was 67 years old.
He was one of the best-known campaigners for democratic reform in Swaziland (eSwatini)
which is ruled by King Mswati III, as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch.
In 2013, Sithole was elected to the Swaziland House of Assembly. Political parties are
banned from taking part in elections and King Mswati appoints the Prime Minister and
government ministers.
Sithole had campaigned for many years for multi-party democracy and came in for much
criticism at the time from prodemocracy campaigners for standing for parliament and giving
the poll legitimacy.
In an interview at the time with writer / journalist Shaun Raviv, Sithole said his change in
strategy was a continuation of his past actions and beliefs.
Jan Sithole who has died
‘I still subscribe to social justice, human dignity, democracy, rule of law, separation of
powers. I believe in seeing a Swaziland that is economically vibrant, with jobs for all. And a
Swaziland that provides equality for men and women and respects the international covenants
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that it has ratified. That’s me in the past, that’s me now. What has changed is the forum that I
want to use to achieve the same principles.’
Sithole came to international attention in when he was leader of the former Swaziland
Federation of Trade Unions (SFTU) which led a series of national strikes in the kingdom
during 1995-1997 which had ‘27 demands’, for economic and social changes.
His campaign for democracy continued for years and he was arrested many times. The most
recent was in December 2019 when he and other prodemocracy leaders had their homes
raided by police and were arrested. They had recently formed the Political Parties Assembly
(PPA) to advocate for change.
See also
Democracy leaders detained by Swaziland police as illegal march halted
Swaziland political parties unite in bid to end absolute king’s power
Interview with new MP Jan Sithole
Former Swaziland Govt minister in court on double murder charges

12 September 2020
Former Swaziland (eSwatini) Minister of Public Works and Transport Ntuntuko Dlamini has
appeared in court on two charges of murder and one of attempted murder following a
shooting during a land dispute.
The alleged crimes happened on 7 September 2020 in the Mhlabubovu area in the Manzini
region. The Manzini magistrates court remanded Dlamini, aged 49, in custody.
On the first count he was charged with shooting and killing Andreas Themba Tsabedze once
with a pistol on the chest. In the second charge he is alleged to have shot Sikhulu Shongwe
four times with a pistol, killing him. On the third count he was charged with attempted
murder by shooting Simon Dlamini three times with a pistol, twice on the stomach and once
on the left hand.
The alleged crimes happened during a dispute over land involving two chiefdoms.
Campaigners criticise UK for allowing arm sales to undemocratic Swaziland

10 September 2020
The undemocratic absolute monarchy of Swaziland (eSwatini) is among a list of countries

that have received arms from the United Kingdom, the Campaign Against Arms Trade
reported.
More than £16 billion (US$20.5bn) worth of arms had been licensed by the UK over the past
ten years to countries listed ‘not free’ by Freedom House, the human rights monitoring group,
the Campaign reported.
Arms worth £178,000 were sent to Swaziland. Further details have not been released.
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However, the Campaign Against Arms Trade website lists two companies that have applied
for military export licenses to Swaziland. One was the Safariland Group which the Campaign
reported ‘is a US company whose primary focus is law enforcement equipment. Its products
include body armour, holsters, and an extensive range of CS gas rounds and grenades under
the Defense Technology brand.’
The other firm was Boeing which is described as ‘the second largest arms company in the
world’. It specialises in products and tailored services that include commercial and military
aircraft, satellites, weapons, electronic and defense systems, launch systems, advanced
information and communication systems, and performance-based logistics and training.
Andrew Smith of Campaign Against Arms Trade said, ‘It has been yet another decade of
shameful arms sales and disgraceful alliances. By arming these regimes, Downing Street
[London] is sending them a clear message of political and military support. These weapons
are not just numbers on a trade sheet, they have been used to empower dictatorships and
inflict repression on pro-democracy campaigners.’
Freedom House scored Swaziland 16 out of a possible 100 points in its Freedom in the World
2019 report. It concluded that Swaziland was ‘not free’.
Freedom House stated, ‘The king exercises ultimate authority over all branches of the
national government and effectively controls local governance through his influence over
traditional chiefs. Political dissent and civic and labor activism are subject to harsh
punishment under sedition and other laws. Additional human rights problems include
impunity for security forces and discrimination against women and LGBT (lesbian, gay,
bisexual, and transgender) people.’
Freedom House scored Swaziland one point out of a possible 16 for ‘political pluralism and
participation’ stating, ‘The king has tight control over the political system in law and in
practice, leaving no room for the emergence of an organized opposition with the potential to
enter government. The vast majority of candidates who contested the 2018 general elections
were supporters of the king.’
In November 2019, it was reported that King Mswati III, was investigating buying weapons
from Russia. Members of a Swazi delegation attended an arms trade fair at the Black Sea city
of Sochi on the opening day of the inaugural Russia-Africa Summit.
Swaziland is a desperately poor kingdom where seven in ten of the estimated 1.3 million
population have incomes less than the equivalent of US$2 per day. Military spending by
Swaziland, according to estimates published by the Stockholm International Peace Research
Institute (SIPRI), for 2019 was expected to reach US$87.8 million (E1.3bn in local currency).
For 2017, spending was estimated at US$88.7 million and for 2016, US$86.3 million.
The figures amount to about 1.5 percent of Swaziland’s total gross domestic product (GDP).
Swaziland which is not a democracy has been criticised for many years for the way state
forces oppress the people. Political parties are banned from taking part in elections and
groups that advocate for democracy are outlawed under the Suppression of Terrorism Act.
Swaziland is a landlocked country and has no disputes with neighbours.
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See also
Swaziland King investigates possible purchase of military arms while at Russian summit
Swaziland’s massive military spending
Swazi ‘secret arms deal for Iran’
Swaziland ‘becoming military state’
Nearly half the people with tuberculosis in Swaziland don’t know they have it, report
suggests
30 August 2020
Nearly half of the people in Swaziland (eSwatini) who have the disease tuberculosis (TB) do
not know it, according to a new report.
TB in the kingdom is a prominent threat to public health. The situation is serious, especially
because it often goes undetected.
TB is a bacteria that usually attacks the lungs, but it can attack any part of the body such as
the kidney, spine, and brain.
A report published by Borgan from Seattle, United States, states some people with TB are
asymptomatic (they show no signs of it). ‘Thus, there is a disparity between individuals who
unknowingly have tuberculosis and others who can become very ill. Common symptoms
include chest pain, a strong cough lasting three or more weeks and coughing up blood or
sputum.’
The US Centre for Disease Control (CDC) in 2017 estimated that the incidence of TB in
Swaziland was 308 per 100,000 people. However, the mortality rate for tuberculosis was low
at only 10 per 100,000 people in 2019. This is significantly lower than the 2003 mortality rate
of 18 per 100,000 people. The National Tuberculosis Control Programme (NTCP) estimates
that children account for only 10 percent percent of all Swazis with tuberculosis.
The report stated, ‘Though these rates may seem low, tuberculosis in Eswatini is still a
serious public health issue. Swazis may not be dying from the disease as they once were, but
they continue to live with it. Approximately 47 percent of Swazis with tuberculosis have
gone undetected.’
The CDC is one organization that works directly with the Swazi Ministry of Health to
address tuberculosis infection. It especially focuses on providing technical assistance to
promote combined tuberculosis and HIV aid. This assistance includes testing, preventative
treatment, and antiretroviral treatment. Its efforts have been effective as the organization
reported the tuberculosis treatment rate of success to be 83 percent in 2016.
The Borgan report concluded, ‘Tuberculosis in eSwatini remains a prominent threat to public
health. The situation is serious, especially because it often goes undetected.’
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See also
Nurses catch TB from patients
Likely new U.S. Ambassador to Swaziland will press for political reform in kingdom
7 August 2020
Jeanne Marie Maloney, the woman who is set to become the next United States Ambassador
to Swaziland (eSwatini), has pledged to press the kingdom on political reform.
She told a US Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing that if her
nomination for the position was confirmed, ‘I will continue to engage broadly on the need for
political reform, open discourse, transparency, and inclusivity.’
She added, ‘I am committed to working to improve democracy, governance, and
transparency, in order to help create an economic climate that benefits the entire population.’
King Mswati III rules Swaziland as an absolute monarch. Political parties are banned from
taking part in elections and the King appoints the Prime Minister and Cabinet ministers. He
also appoints top judges and public servants.
If confirmed, as expected, Maloney would replace Ambassador Lisa Peterson who has
angered the King’s supporters by publicly calling for political parties to be allowed to contest
elections and for highlighting the lavish lifestyles of the King and members of his family
while the majority of Swazi people live in abject poverty. She has also called for
constitutional changes to rein in the King.
Maloney told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday (6 August 2020), ‘I will
also seek to expand our dialogue with the country’s youth, who make up more than half the
population.’
She added, ‘The percentage of its population living in poverty remains stubbornly high. If
confirmed, it will be important to coordinate with international organizations like the
International Monetary Fund and World Bank, as well as like-minded partners to help
eSwatini create an environment that fosters broad-based economic growth and opportunities
for US trade and investment.’
She said, ‘I will do my best to continue to strengthen our partnership with the Government
and the people of eSwatini in support of US goals and interests.’
In a profile published on the US Department of State website Maloney is described as a
career member of the Senior Foreign Service. She most recently served as the Foreign Policy
Advisor to the US Army Africa in Vicenza, Italy. Previously, she was the Director of the
Office of Security Affairs in the Department of State’s Bureau of African Affairs.
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Jeanne Marie Maloney
Maloney has served in a broad range of leadership positions over the course of her 26-year
career. ‘Her knowledge of issues affecting the African region, demonstrated record of
leadership, and success working with interagency and foreign partners make her well-
qualified to serve as US Ambassador to the Kingdom of eSwatini,’ the website states.
See also
U.S. Ambassador to Swaziland wants constitutional change to stop King’s lavish spending
U.S. Ambassador to Swaziland renews criticism of King’s lavish spending while people
live in poverty
Threat to censor U.S. Ambassador to Swaziland after criticism of King’s lavish spending
U.S. Ambassador calls for repeal of decree that makes Swaziland an absolute monarchy
More work needed in Swaziland to eliminate human trafficking, new report states
1 August 2020
Swaziland (eSwatini) has a long way to go before it eliminates human trafficking, but it is
making progress, according to a new global report.
The United States Department of State stated in its annual Trafficking in Persons Report that
as with the past five years, human traffickers continue to exploit domestic and foreign victims
in Swaziland, and traffickers exploit victims from Swaziland abroad. Trafficking victims
come primarily from poor communities with high HIV/AIDS prevalence rates.
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Traffickers exploit Swazi girls, particularly orphans, in sex trafficking and domestic
servitude, primarily in Swaziland and South Africa. Traffickers force Swazi boys and foreign
children to labour in agriculture, including cattle herding, and market vending within the
country.
Mozambican boys migrate to Swaziland for work washing cars, herding livestock, and
portering; traffickers exploit some in forced labour. Traffickers use Swaziland as a transit
country to transport foreign victims to South Africa for forced labour. Traffickers reportedly
force Mozambican women into commercial sex in Swaziland, or transport them through
Swaziland to South Africa.
Some traffickers force Swazis into commercial sex in South Africa after voluntarily
migrating in search of work. Reports suggest labour brokers fraudulently recruit and charge
excessive fees to Swazi nationals for work in South African mines, means often used to
facilitate trafficking crimes. Swazi men in border communities are recruited for forced labour
in South Africa’s timber industry.
The report stated there had been some progress. In the past year a trafficker in Swaziland was
sentenced to 15 years imprisonment for forced labour and the Swazi Government trained
front-line responders on how to identify trafficked people. It also launched a five-year
national action plan.
‘However, the government did not meet the minimum standards in several key areas. The
government did not have shelter policies or guidelines to ensure quality of care for trafficking
victims, and the primary shelter available was inadequate. While the government did take
action against a government protection officer who assaulted and traumatized three foreign
victims while they were in a government shelter, overall lack of protection efforts and
oversight created the environment in which the assault took place,’ the report stated.
The report added, ‘While there were general reports of government corruption, including
immigration officials seeking bribes to issue government documents such as visas, there were
few reports of direct official complicity in trafficking. The government investigated a senior
official for sex trafficking.’
The report listed a number of recommendations for improvement. These included increasing
efforts to identify, investigate, and prosecute more trafficking crimes, including internal
trafficking cases; implement the national anti-trafficking action plan; address leadership
issues at the anti-trafficking secretariat and enable the taskforce to fulfil its statutory
responsibilities; ensure all victims of trafficking are provided appropriate and comprehensive
care.
See also
University lecturers ‘forced to weed fields of Swaziland absolute monarch’
Swazi Govt misleads on child labour
Kids forced to weed King’s fields
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ABOUT THE EDITOR

Richard Rooney was associate professor at the University of Swaziland 2005 – 2008, where
he was also the founding head of the Journalism and Mass Communication Department.
He has taught in universities in Africa, Europe and the Pacific. His academic research which
specialises in media and their relationships to democracy, governance and human rights has
appeared in books and journals across the world.
His writing regularly appears in newspapers, magazines and on websites. He was a full-time
journalist in his native United Kingdom for 10 years, before becoming an academic.
He has published the blog Swazi Media Commentary since 2007 and also has other social
media sites that concentrate on human rights issues in Swaziland.
He holds a Ph.D in Communication from the University of Westminster, London, UK.
He edits a weekly email newsletter with news from and about Swaziland, compiled in
collaboration with Global Aktion, Denmark (www.globalaktion.dk) and sent to all with an
interest in Swaziland - free of charge. To subscribe mail to: SAK-Swazinewsletter-
subscribe@yahoogroups.co.uk
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OTHER PUBLICATIONS
Swaziland: Striving for Freedom, volume 38, April to June 2020 is available free of
charge here
The coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis dominated events in Swaziland during the second quarter
of 2020. A partial shutdown of the kingdom ordered by absolute monarch King Mswati led to
widespread job losses and hunger. The government which is not elected by the people but
directly appointed by the King largely failed to bring the virus under control. Police and
soldiers were deployed on the streets of towns and cities to force people to obey instructions
to stay at home. Roadblocks were set up across the kingdom to stop people travelling.
Widespread human rights abuses were reported.
The number of people testing positive and the death rate due to coronavirus in Swaziland is
not accurately known. The Ministry of Health has been supervising the collection of test
results but it does not give details of who is allowed to be tested and who is not. By 30 June
2020 the Ministry had reported a total of 812 cases and 11 deaths.
Elsewhere, the United States’ State Department reported the Swazi Government and its
agents committed ‘arbitrary or unlawful killings’. It highlighted cases of police brutality in its
annual report on human rights. In June a prisoner was allegedly killed by prison warders
during disturbances among gang members at the Sidwashini correctional facility.
Separately, the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) reported Swaziland had one
of the worst records on workers’ rights in the world.
The LGBTI group eSwatini Sexual and Gender Minorities continued to fight for recognition
in Swaziland and asked the High Court to overturn a decision by a government agency not to
register it so that it could operate legally. The case continues.
Swaziland has no media freedom according to Reporters Without Borders in an annual report.
Meanwhile, Eugene Dube, a journalist critical of King Mswati was beaten by police, arrested
and faced a treason charge for reports published on the Swati Newsweek website. He fled to
neighbouring South Africa. Ncamiso Ngcamphalala, President of the Economic Freedom
Fighters-Swaziland (EFF), was charged with sedition for criticisms he made of the King on
the same website.
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Swaziland: Striving for Freedom, Vol. 37, January to March 2020 is available free of
charge here
Although there were no reported deaths and only nine reported cases of coronavirus
(COVID-19) by the end of March, King Mswati III, the absolute monarch of Swaziland
(eSwatini) declared a state of emergency.
Many civil liberties were suspended; school, colleges and universities were closed
indefinitely. Many businesses were forced to close and severe travel bans were placed on
people. Gatherings, including attendance at churches and other places of worship, were
curtailed.
Almost immediately, members of the police, army and other security forces were beating and
intimidating ordinary civilians. Some businesses reported they also demanded bribes to allow
them to stay open.
The response to the coronavirus was the main topic in the period January to March 2020.
Elsewhere, even before coronavirus struck, the Swaziland economy continued in freefall. In
the annual budget spending on internal security was increased as, ‘Support to our security
forces as we pursue economic stability and growth in the country.’
As in previous years, the Auditor General highlighted shortcomings in the way government
departments recorded their spending, with billions of emalangeni not properly accounted for.
The education sector continued in crisis as government ran out of money. Many pupils were
unable to attend primary school because the government did not pay fees.
King Mswati continued to exert his power over his subjects. University lecturers were forced
to weed his fields; his chief of police threatened social media users with the wrath of the law
if they dared to criticise the king; in February the King told his parliament to ignore calls for
democracy and to stick with him.
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Swaziland: Striving for Freedom: Vol. 36 October to December 2019 is available free of
charge here
Campaigning against Swaziland’s absolute monarch King Mswati III with renewed calls for
democratic reform dominated the final three months of 2019. A new grouping of political
parties – some banned in the kingdom – called the PPA – Political Parties Assembly launched
and engaged in a number of public meetings and demonstrations.
In a statement the PPA said it wanted to end the kingdom’s form of government, known as
Tinkhundla, or monarchical democracy. They want power returned to the people. PPA stated,
‘We unanimously observed that the royal project Tinkhundla has reached a point of no return
in dragging down our dignity and stretching beyond limits our patience as a people.’
King Mswati received global condemnation when he bought himself and his family at least
15 luxury Rolls-Royce cars (early reports suggested as many as 20 had been purchased). The
state then bought 126 BMW cars and motorbikes for ‘escort duties’ in the kingdom. US
Ambassador to Swaziland Lisa Peterson criticised the lavish spending in a public speech and
unleashed a torrent of criticism from the King’s supporters. There may be attempts to censor
her future public statements.
In other events, police attacked workers on legal strikes, using teargas, water cannon and
rubber bullets. There were reports of live bullets being fired. Police shot one union leader in
the back even though he had his hands raised and pleaded: Don’t shoot.
Police also fired live ammunition and shot a university student with a rubber bullet as class
boycotts against the government’s non-payment of allowances swept the kingdom.
Swazi Media Commentary is published online, updated most weekdays. It is operated entirely
by volunteers and receives no financial backing from any organisation. It is devoted to
providing information and commentary in support of human rights in Swaziland.
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Swaziland: Striving for Freedom Vol. 35 July to Sept 2019 is available free of charge here
Police in Swaziland attacked striking public servants with live ammunition, rubber bullets,
teargas and water cannon as a long-running dispute over pay dragged on. The police
behaviour has become typical in the kingdom ruled by King Mswati III as an absolute
monarch. The number of injured was initially estimated as 15, but that more than doubled as
more information became available. Separate from this there were new fears that police had a
‘shoot-to-kill’ policy after three men who escaped from a correctional facility were gunned
down.
These were some of the main events in the period July to September 2019 and contained in
Swaziland: Striving for Freedom, volume 35.
The kingdom continues in financial meltdown, with health and educational services crippled.
Schools and hospitals have run out of supplies and staff have been sacked and other
vacancies left unfilled. Up to 200 teachers had reportedly died from stress-related illness over
the past two years as a result. Cancer patients have been refused treatment because the
government has not paid hospital bills. At least 11 children died of diarrhoea because of drug
shortages.
Elsewhere, Lisa Peterson, United States Ambassador to Swaziland renewed her call for the
Royal Decree that keeps King Mswati in power as an absolute monarch to be scrapped.
Oxfam, the international anti-poverty charity, named Swaziland as the country with most
income inequality in Africa. Human Rights Watch reported restrictions on freedom of
association and assembly continued in Swaziland although the kingdom had signed the
African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance in January.
An extensive survey revealed LGBTI people in Swaziland suffer mental health issues and
many have attempted suicide because of the way they are discriminated against in the
kingdom.
76
Swaziland: Striving for Freedom Vol. 34 April to June 2019 is available free of charge
here
Public services throughout Swaziland are close to meltdown as the government, handpicked
by absolute monarch King Mswati III, fails to get a grip on the economy. Health services
have been especially hit over the past three months with reports that people have died as
medicines run out because the government did not paid suppliers. Drugs for HIV are in short
supply, even though the kingdom has the highest rate of infection in the world. Patients in
public hospitals have also gone unfed.
These are some of the reports that have appeared on the Swazi Media Commentary website in
the second quarter of 2019 and are contained in this compilation, Swaziland: Striving for
Freedom Vol 34. Also included: the International Trade Union Confederation placed
Swaziland near the bottom of countries across the world for workers’ rights. It said in the past
year ‘police brutality reached unprecedented levels’ and ‘security forces fired live
ammunition at protesting workers’. Elsewhere, public service unions marched on the
government demanding cost-of-living salary increases.
The absolute monarch King Mswati maintained his grip on power by appointing 28 members
of his family to the kingdom’s committees and boards, including 10 princes and princesses to
the 23-member Liqoqo, a supreme traditional advisory body which is also known as the
Swazi National Council Standing Committee. This was in addition to the eight members of
his Royal Family he appointed to the Senate and six to the House of Assembly last year.
Meanwhile, the United States in its annual report on human rights in Swaziland found there
was no appetite to investigate human rights abuses or corruption. Swaziland was controlled
by the King and ‘political power remained largely vested with the king and his traditional
advisors,’ the report, stated.
77
Swaziland: Striving for Freedom Vol. 33 January to March 2019 is available free of
charge here
The gap between rich and poor is widening and the kingdom faces ‘an unprecedented
economic crisis’: these were two of the main concerns of Finance Minister Neal Rijkenberg
in his national budget for Swaziland where the ‘economic outlook remains subdued’. He went
on to threaten to cut public service jobs if workers did not fall into line and accept his
programme to reduce debts.
Meanwhile, the Auditor General Timothy Matsebula in his annual report stated the finances
of the Government were in such a mess that billions of emalangeni could not be accounted
for.
Public service across Swaziland are in freefall with hospitals and clinics short of vital drugs.
Schools are unable to feed vulnerable children. All because the government has not paid
suppliers.
These were some of the major themes from Swaziland over the first three months of 2019 and
published in Swaziland: Striving for Freedom: volume 33, the latest quarterly compilation
from the pages of Swazi Media Commentary.
The international spotlight has been shone on Swaziland, where King Mswati III rules as sub-
Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch. The kingdom continues to be riddled with
corruption, according to Transparency International. Freedom House once again declared
Swaziland ‘not free’ in its annual Freedom in the World Index.
Closer to home, the Law Society of Swaziland Secretary Thulani Maseko criticised recent
appointments of judges, saying there was no transparency in the choices and the Swazi
Constitution was ignored.
78
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Swaziland: Striving for Freedom

As seen through the pages of Swazi Media Commentary

Some schools in Swaziland (eSwatini) began to reopen from coronavirus lockdown on

Swaziland teachers go to court in bid to stop schools reopening during coronavirus

Thursday, 9 July 2020

EU steps up to feed destitute during coronavirus crisis as Swaziland Govt. stumbles to

Global financial analyst Moody’s warns of social unrest in Swaziland as coronavirus

Swaziland ambulances grounded by lack of fuel as coronavirus death toll rises

Swaziland hospitals close to overwhelmed by coronavirus, says Heath Minister

Another Swaziland police assault on people allegedly breaking coronavirus lockdown

Swaziland passes grim milestone for coronavirus deaths, no end in sight

He also promised improved care of suspected cases in regional hospitals by deploying

Swaziland police fire teargas to break up coronavirus prayer meeting

Swaziland’s plan to revive economy after coronavirus ambitious, but unrealistic

Places of worship closed in Swaziland as coronavirus lockdown rules ignored

Swaziland coronavirus deaths top 100 as number of tests undertaken falls

Swaziland faces jobs and poverty crisis as coronavirus disruption continues

The coronavirus crisis in Swaziland (eSwatini) is having widespread damaging effects on

Swaziland sees increase in sexual violence against children as schools closed by

2 SOLDIERS WHIP CIVILIANS

A still from the video circulating on social media

Soldiers in Swaziland have a long history of assaults on civilians, especially in border

Police in Swaziland (eSwatini) allegedly assaulted a government assistant accountant during

Simiso Zwane’s medical record: Source: Swati Newsweek

Swaziland police hitch-hike to crime scenes because of vehicle shortages

It happened at Eteni on the major Manzini-Mbabane Highway.

The broken bridge

Vast amounts of money ‘looted’ from Swaziland independence celebrations as hunger

King Mswati wears his watch and diamond-studied suit

5 SENATE ELECTION BRIBERY

An elections support network in Swaziland (eSwatini) has called allegations of bribery

6 KING MSWATI III

The projected cost of building an oil facility in Swaziland (eSwatini), enthusiastically

US Ambassador to Swaziland Lisa Peterson

Families of girls killed at Swaziland Reed Dance get no financial compensation

Self-censorship at ‘Times’ newspaper

However, no law exists to put the constitutional provisions into effect.

12 ... AND THE REST

Jan Sithole who has died

Former Swaziland Govt minister in court on double murder charges

Campaigners criticise UK for allowing arm sales to undemocratic Swaziland

The undemocratic absolute monarchy of Swaziland (eSwatini) is among a list of countries

Jeanne Marie Maloney

ABOUT THE EDITOR

He holds a Ph.D in Communication from the University of Westminster, London, UK.

Swazi Media Commentary

Containing information and commentary in

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