SWAZI PRESS TELL PART OF THE TRUTH

The Times Sunday newspaper in Swaziland sticks its neck out a little today (8 November 2009) by publishing in some detail a severe attack on the kingdom’s human rights violations.

The attack from the International Trade Unions Confederation (ITUC) says that pro-democracy campaigners are being subjected to systematic harassment, with patronage and corruption rife in the kingdom. It says resources vital for health and education are diverted to sustain the lifestyles of individuals.

Good on the Times Sunday, part of Swaziland’s only independent newspaper group, for bringing this to the attention of the Swazi people. Unfortunately, the newspaper pulls its punches when it reveals, ‘Some of the descriptions [contained in the ITUC report] cannot be repeated because they are sensitive in nature.’

‘Sensitive’? I guess that must mean the report says something critical of King Mswati III, sub-Sahara’s last absolute monarch.

I’d like to tell you definitively what’s in the report, but I haven’t seen it and try as I might I can’t find it.

The Times Sunday says the ITUC publication was released on Wednesday (4 November 2009) and is a quarterly report on Swaziland sent to ITUC members internationally. It’s not the same report that I wrote about earlier this week so if anyone has a copy I’d be grateful to receive one (swazimedia@yahoo.com).

According to the Times Sunday, the ITUC accuses Swaziland of politicising culture and tradition to retain and sustain the system of governance.

It says with political parties driven underground, labour unions play a prominent part in the democracy movement working alongside the churches, human rights groups, banned politicians and even on occasion the employers’ organisation to demand change.

‘However, standing up for democracy can come at a price in Swaziland,’ the confederation says.

‘Although the authorities have carefully avoided the sort of violent crackdown on the opposition that has led to international condemnation and isolation for Zimbabwe, there is a pattern of coercion against dissidents. Jan Sithole, secretary general of the Swaziland Federation of Trade Unions, was arrested twice last year. Striking textile workers and student demonstrators have been subjected to brutal police responses to peaceful protest.’

The ITUC says opposition figures frequently face detention, police raids on their homes and threats of job losses, eviction or worse.

The ITUC recalls that Barnabas Dlamini, the illegally-appointed Prime Minister of Swaziland, announced in early March that all civil servants belonging to political parties or other organisations opposed to the system of governance would be rooted out and fired.

The international union went on to say that the level of oppression was cranked up in November last year when the government began the implementation of a new Suppression of Terrorism Act to silence dissenting voices.

FALSE HOPES FROM SWAZI RULERS

I wonder sometimes who King Mswati III thinks he’s kidding. And I’d say much the same about Barnabas Dlamini, the man the king illegally-appointed as prime minister of Swaziland.

For two days this past week the ruling elite in Swaziland has been engaged in what it likes to call a ‘Smart partnership’. In theory everyone who wanted to came together to discuss openly (without fear or favour etc) what ails Swaziland and what can be done about its problems.

The Weekend Observer, a paper in effect owned by King Mswati, sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch, led the cheers for the king and the prime minister yesterday (15 August 2009). Reporting on what a huge success the Smart Partnership was it told us also that the king and Dlamini were leading Swaziland to a bright future.

In particular the Observer pointed to the ‘gem’ that is the Swaziland National Development Strategy National Vision 2022. Don’t hold your breath but these two fellows are going to put Swaziland in the top 10 percent of nations in the world when it comes to ‘human development’ in terms of sustainable development, social justice and political stability.

They’d better gets their skates on if they’re going to meet the 2022 deadline.

A report out last month looking at Swaziland over the past year highlighted just how much work still needs to be done. Freedom House in its annual Freedom in the World report gave Swaziland five out of ten for civil liberties and declared that the kingdom was ‘not free’.

‘King Mswati III is an absolute monarch with ultimate authority over the cabinet, legislature, and judiciary,’ it reported.

It went on to state that political parties are banned; corruption is a major problem (Swaziland was ranked 72 out of 180 countries surveyed in Transparency International’s 2008 Corruption Perceptions Index); freedom of expression is severely restricted in practice, especially regarding political issues or the royal family; the government has restricted freedoms of assembly and association, and permission to hold political gatherings has often been denied; government pressure – including the repeated arrest of Swaziland Federation of Trade Unions leader Jan Sithole – has greatly limited union operations; and there were numerous incidents of police torture, beatings, and suspicious deaths in custody.

Of course the king and his illegal government have no intention of improving the ‘human development’ of Swaziland. They are the problem, not the solution. And that’s why so many in Swaziland decided to boycott the Smart Partnership and leave the king and his cronies to talk to themselves.

Freedom House’s Freedom in the World 2009 – Swaziland report is available here.

ORDINARY SWAZIS DEMAND CHANGE

Ordinary Swazis meeting for their first ever ‘People’s Dialogue’ have drawn up a list of demands to further the cause of human rights and civil liberties in the kingdom.

The ‘Manzini Declaration’ was launched yesterday (31 July 2009) by trade unions, churches and civic organisations including the Swaziland Coalition of Concerned Civic Organisations (SCCCO).

The main points of the Manzini Declaration are:

· At least 15% of the national budget should be spent on health

· An education system that meets the demands of the 21st century

· Land reform as a means to ensure food security

· Decent work for all

· Proper equality and respect for women

· Recognition of the importance of the informal trading sector to the economy

· A credible democracy where the people alone choose their government

· Respect for Human Rights

· Adequate and professional policing that makes crime prevention and protection of human rights its priority

· An end to reckless privatisation

· Proper engagement with the youth of the country

· Respect for Swazi culture as a vibrant expression of our uniqueness

· Adherence to ratified international obligations

The declaration follows the People’s Dialogue held in Manzini two weeks ago today which covered a number of issues of importance in Swaziland today including gender equality, child sexual abuse, and human rights generally.

Although organisers stressed that the People’s Dialogue was not meant as an attack on the Swazi state, police nonetheless infiltrated the meetings and two people were arrested and charged with offences under the Suppression of Terrorism Act. One was alleged to have chanted political slogans and the other wore a T-shirt supporting the banned People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO).

At the launch of the Manzini Declaration yesterday secretary general of the Swaziland Federation of Trade Unions Jan Sithole said the declaration sets out the people’s vision of what we need in the country.

‘It makes demands on government while also committing the SCCCO to working with government to turn the people’s demands into reality. Proper and credible social dialogue and social partnership cannot happen overnight, but we have taken that first step.

‘We know what the people want. It is our job to start advocating and negotiating for their needs. We call on the government to take its first step, take the Manzini Declaration seriously and meet with us as a matter of urgency. They will find us helpful, respectful and constructive.’

CALL TO DISSOLVE SWAZILAND CABINET

MANZINI— Civil society on Saturday (18 July 2009) called for the repeal of the country’s constitution in favour of a new inclusive supreme law.

The members of civil society who come from various organisations in the country said the current cabinet should be dissolved and an interim government set up to pave way for a multi-party system of governance, under the new constitution.

At their social dialogue held at the Bosco Skills Centre in Manzini, they first assembled in groups and discussed specific and various topics in their interests.

Representatives of the groups were mandated to report back to the close to 1 000 people who attended the event, which Musa Hlophe, the co-ordinator of the coalition for concerned civic organisations (SCCCO) described as a process that would go a long way in addressing the ills of Swazi society.

The event cost more or less E100 000 on food, hiring the hall, getting equipment, transport and others, disclosed Hlophe in an interview with the Times SUNDAY.

Meanwhile, the enthusiastic gathering, which included workers from the two main federations, the SFTU and SFL, together with churches, political parties, youth, educators, informal traders, ex-miners and teachers, charged the current constitution lacked a wider stakeholder input.

They said it was also a pity that government defied its own crafted constitution. The director of ceremonies was secretary general of the Council of Swaziland Churches Khangezile Dlamini.

The representative of the group that looked into good governance, S’phasha Dlamini, said impediments that infringed on their fundamental right to hold consultative meetings with rural and urban dwellers should be abolished.

“We resolved that the constitution that we have should be repealed because it does not represent our interests,” charged Dlamini who is a secondary school teacher and secretary general of the People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO).

Zamokuhle Lukhele who represented the youth said young men felt political prisoners should be released from prison unconditionally. He did not mention the names of the political prisoners but the crowd, mainly from the section of the youth roared: ‘Release Mario Masuku’.

Also facing charges related to sedition is Thulani Maseko, an attorney and coordinator of the National Constitutional Assembly (NCA) who is currently out on bail. Maseko was present and chaired the group that discussed good governance.

The civil society called for equal opportunities and respect of the rule of law. They charged that every Swazi should have a title deed for the land on which he or she had set up a structure; rural or urban land. They said chiefs had powers to evict them and they were unable to get loans from banks because they did not have collateral, hence the land could serve as a tangible security for the bank loan.

They vowed to fight privatization, which they described as an entry point for corruption, nepotism and mass retrenchments. They suggested that government should buy food for donations from local farmers, saying it was disappointing to see government and international agencies donating food to Swazis that has been purchased from foreign farmers.

Secretary General of the SFTU Jan Sithole pitied the defiance of the constitution by government.

He said free education should have been introduced this year but government went against a court decision to grant this right to children this year as stipulated in the constitution.

Sithole said the recommendations would be reduced to a declaration and petition that would be presented to government. It was the feeling of the gathering that the recommendations were made known to the public and government.

Source: Times Sunday