OUTCRY AT SWAZI LESBIAN WEDDING

It will come as no surprise to observers of Swaziland to hear that ‘traditional authorities’ and the church have condemned in the strongest terms the news that two lesbian women have announced they are to marry.

There is a possibility that the ‘traditional authorities’ will try to stop the marriage going ahead.

Timothy Velabo Mtsetfwa, the acting ‘traditional prime minister’ told the Times of Swaziland, the kingdom’s only independent daily newspaper, ‘This is really worrying as we have never heard of such in the country. It is the first of its kind and we are not taking it lightly.’

Mtsetfwa refused to elaborate on his veiled threat not to take the couple’s decision to marry ‘lightly’. When the Times asked him if anything would be done to the couple, Mtsetfwa said it would be difficult for now to state if the matter would be taken up or not.

The fact that the couple’s decision is private and nothing whatsoever to do with the Swazi state was lost on Mtsetfwa.

As I have written before homosexuality is demonised by the media and those in power in Swaziland so again it is no surprise that Mtsetfwa went on to condemn the two women in very ugly terms.

He was joined in his condemnation by Bishop Steven Masilela, President of the Swaziland Conference of Churches (SCC).

Masilela, who clearly doesn’t get out enough, said, ‘It is shocking that there would be people who would have the guts of informing the whole nation that they are lesbians.’

Of course, in Swaziland gays and lesbians cannot legally marry so the proposed ‘wedding’ is purely symbolic, but that hasn’t stopped Masilela getting the church involved.

‘As a church, it shows that we have failed to transform our values. I believe we should have been the ones making sure that people understand what a sin is,” he told the Times.

So with the ‘traditional authorities’ and the church ganging up on them, we can expect a few more fireworks before the wedding takes place in six months time.

NOW THEY COME FOR THE PASTORS

First it was the journalists and now it’s the pastors.

Nobody in Swaziland is allowed to say a word against the king and if they do they get hauled before the traditional authorities to ‘explain themselves’.

The latest to feel the wrath of authority are pastors at the Swaziland Conference of Churches (SCC) who have been called before the ‘traditional authorities’ at Ludzidzini Royal Residence by acting Ludzidzini Governor (traditional prime minister) Timothy Velabo (TV) Mtsetfwa.

Members of the SCC executive had to explain why one of their pastors, Justice Dlamini dared to tell a congregation of 300 Christians that the Incwala ceremony was evil and witchcraft was practiced there.

The Incwala ceremony, which takes place each December is one of those national rituals (the Umhlanga Reed Dance is another) which traditional authorities claims unites the Swazi nation as they seek blessings from ancestors. It is also a time to renew the kingship of the nation which in practice means young men pay homage to King Mswati III, sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch.

The SCC executive members were told to explain what the purpose of Dlamini’s comments was and why they allowed him to talk about the Incwala during the prayer service. When they were released they were warned they could be called back for a further grilling.

Mtsetfwa has previously said that he took Dlamini’s comments seriously and his ‘loose tongue’ was a serious cause for concern.

I don’t know what Dlamini’s game was, he is, I think many readers would agree, more than a little eccentric at the best of times, but that doesn’t stop him having the right to speak as he pleases.

The SEC members are not the only ones to be hauled in to be given a grilling by the state and traditional authorities. Mfomfo Nkhambule, an outspoken critic of the ruling regime was also taken to task for articles he wrote in the Times of Swaziland, the kingdom’s only independent daily newspaper.

He was hauled in by Swaziland’s state police and threatened with torture if he continued to criticise the king. He was later dropped from his traditional regiment, threatened with banishment from his homeland, and his family was threatened because he refused to be silenced.