[Onthebarricades] SWAZILAND: Pro-democracy protests, September 2008

Wed Sep 9 19:29:22 PDT 2009

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/05/world/africa/05briefs-PROTESTSTURN_BRF.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

Swaziland: Protests Turn Violent

By REUTERS
Published: September 4, 2008
Demonstrators stoned shops, looted a market and set off an explosion 
that damaged a bus, as a second day of protests for democratic change in 
Swaziland turned violent on Thursday. About 5,000 people marched in 
Mbabane, the capital, calling for a multiparty democracy and criticizing 
the lavish way of life of King Mswati III. The police used water cannons 
and tear gas to disperse the protesters, said a police spokesman, Vusi 
Masuku. Protest leaders promised more demonstrations and some strikes 
before a parliamentary election on Sept. 19.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L4412541.htm

Swazi protests turn violent, unions plan strike
04 Sep 2008 18:09:24 GMT
Source: Reuters
By Charles Matsebula
MBABANE, Sept 4 (Reuters) - Demonstrators stoned shops, looted a market 
and set off an explosion, damaging a bus, as a second day of protests 
for democratic reform in Swaziland turned violent on Thursday.
Some 5,000 people marched in Mbabane, capital of the southern African 
monarchy, calling for multi-party democracy and criticising the lavish 
lifestyle of King Mswati III.
Police spokesman Vusi Masuku said police had used water cannon and 
teargas to disperse protesters who had started to damage property.
A police bomb squad was sent in after a small blast damaged a bus. But 
there were no reports of any injuries during the protest, which forced 
banks, embassies and government offices to close for the day, while some 
shops only opened late in the afternoon.
Leaders of the march -- which followed a smaller rally in the main 
commercial city Manzini on Wednesday -- vowed more protests and a labour 
stoppage in the run-up to a Sept. 19 parliamentary election.
"We will continue on Saturday and from there we are calling for the 
biggest ever strike action from September 15 to 19, the day of the 
elections," Jan Sithole, secretary general of the Swaziland Federation 
of Trade Unions, said to a jubilant response from the protesters.
The People's United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO), which is fiercely 
critical of the government, said last month it would step up pressure on 
Mswati, saying he showed a "high appetite for leisure" while the economy 
declines.
"It has come to our attention that the current Tinkhundla (Swaziland 
governance) system has dismally failed to take care of the Swazi people 
so it is now time that we call for an immediate democratic change," 
Sithole told the demonstrators.
The protesters have criticised a costly 40th birthday celebration for 
Mswati this weekend, coinciding with the 40th anniversary of 
independence from Britain.
The Swazi monarch has courted controversy for his lavish lifestyle while 
two-thirds of his subjects live in poverty, in a nation where about 40 
percent of adults live with HIV.
Last month, Forbes magazine listed him as the 15th-richest monarch in 
the world. He was the only African on the list. (Editing by Muchena 
Zigomo and Mark Trevelyan)

http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2008-09/2008-09-19-voa4.cfm?CFID=86979132&CFTOKEN=60163970

Swaziland Protesting Union Leaders Arrested Ahead of Parliamentary Election
By Peter Clottey
Washington, D.C.
19 September 2008
Clottey Interview With Vincent Dlamini - Download (MP3)
Clottey Interview With Vincent Dlamini - Listen (MP3)
The people of Swaziland go to the polls Friday to elect members of 
parliament amid government crackdown against pro-democracy demonstrators 
who are calling for political reforms under King Mswati III. Swazi 
police arrested several protest leaders Thursday, saying the protesters 
were causing Anarchy.But the demonstrators say today’s parliamentary 
election is a façade calculated to deceive Swazis into believing that 
absolute monarch, King Mswati III, is interested in democracy.
Vincent Dlamini is the main proponent of the protest march. He tells 
reporter Peter Clottey from the capital, Mbabane that the protests would 
continue unabated until their demands for democratic reforms are met.
“Some of the union leaders were arrested during our protests and 
demonstration around the country’s border post yesterday. Some of the 
were released later on after their detention, but I’m not quite sure 
what happened to the others. We are still trying to locate where they 
are at the moment. What we can also report is that quite a number of 
workers, in the southern part of the country in Mshangano were brutally 
assaulted by the police as they were conducting the demonstration 
against the election that would be held this morning in our country,” 
Dlamini said.
He said the union workers are protesting against he called an 
undemocratic system, which he said clamps down on their right to a free 
democratic society.
“We are protesting against the current Nikunda system, which we believe 
is undemocratic, and we are demanding that elections must be held under 
a multi-party democratic system. This current system came into place by 
the banning of the political parties in 1973 by the previous King 
Sobhuza II. In this particular state of emergency, one significant thing 
that happened was that all three branches of government were transferred 
to the king. That is the judiciary, legislature and all other executive 
powers were vested in the king by that particular decree, which banned 
political parties in the country,” he said.
Dlamini said the protesters want to enjoy democracy just like most 
people in other parts of the world do.
“We are saying that we want elections to be conducted in a multi-party 
democratic environment,” Dlamini pointed out.
He sharply denied that Friday’s parliamentary election is an attempt by 
the government to bring about some democratic reforms.
“No, no, no, there is no reform at all. What is happening in our country 
is that the majority of the people reside in the rural areas, which is 
about 70% of the population. And therefore quite a number of them are 
participating in this election because they are intimidated by the 
chiefs who are appendages of the monarch. The chiefs run the rural areas 
and the villages on behalf of the monarch and they tend to intimidate 
and evict people who do not conform to the dictates of the regime,” he said.
Dlamini accused the government of not educating the masses on the 
benefits of democracy.
“What is happening is that the regime in our country currently thrives 
on the ignorance of the masses. In the rural areas there are high level 
of poverty and people are being abused in the sense that what is 
happening, they are given food passes and all that and are being bribed 
so to speak,” Dlamini noted.
He said union workers would not stop protesting to ensure their voices 
for democratic reforms are heard.
“What we are going to do next is that we will continue in engaging in 
mass action, we will have mass demonstrations at certain intervals. And 
we are going to be educating our people in terms of what is best for our 
country, as well as making sure that the international community 
understands our plight and understand that Swaziland is still an 
undemocratic country,” he said.
Some political observes say although the monarch remains popular among 
many of his subjects, there is rising discontent over his extravagant 
lifestyle, refusal to adopt democratic reforms and to tackle Swaziland’s 
numerous social problems.

http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=80469

SWAZILAND: Ignoring protests will not make them go away

Photo: Taurai Maduna/IRIN

King Mswati - ridiculing opposition
MANZINI, 18 September 2008 (IRIN) - Swazi police on Thursday detained 
trade union leaders and pro-democracy activists attempting to blockade 
the landlocked country's border with South Africa, to press their 
demands for political reform in the kingdom.

"Whilst it may be within the rights of workers to engage in protest 
action, it is certainly unacceptable to exercise this right by 
disrupting the free flow of goods and services and infringing on the 
rights of others to conduct their business freely," said Prime Minister 
Themba Dlamini in a media statement.

Jan Sithole, Secretary General of the Swaziland Federation of Trade 
Unions, and Mario Masuku, president of the banned political party, the 
People's United Democratic Movement, were reportedly detained after the 
government declared the demonstration illegal. Police prevented 
protestors from getting near the four key border posts with South Africa.

Road freight firms contacted by IRIN said they had taken the blockade 
threat seriously, but had no choice but to attempt normal operations. 
Around 90 percent of Swaziland's imports come from South Africa, 
including all petroleum products. The Congress of South African Trade 
Unions held demonstrations on the South African side of the border in 
solidarity with Swazi workers.

The border demonstrations were held on the eve of the country's 
parliamentary elections, in which political parties are banned from 
campaigning. King Mswati, sub-Saharan Africa's last absolute monarch, 
appoints cabinet ministers from the ranks of elected and 
palace-appointed members of parliament, and selects the prime minister, 
who is a member of the ruling Dlamini clan.

Growing protest

The government's attempt to ban demonstrations two weeks ago in the 
capital, Mbabane, and the central commercial town, Manzini, was thwarted 
by the largest turnout for a political rally in the nation's history. A 
combined 25,000 protestors marched in both cities to demand political 
reform.

The government subsequently ridiculed the event by saying the number 
represented a small minority of the 970,000 population. Political 
activists responded by pointing out that fewer people – 15,000 - had 
turned out for the recent controversial celebrations marking Mswati's 
40th birthday and the country's 40 years of independence.

"Both groups are right and wrong. The political demonstrations were 
historic and should be taken seriously. But the average Swazi is more 
impacted by hunger, AIDS and unemployment," said Joshua Khoza, a 
political writer from Manzini. Swaziland has the highest HIV prevalence 
rate in the world and more than two-thirds of the population depend on 
foreign food aid.

A Commonwealth Secretariat observer team to the last parliamentary 
elections in 2003 concluded that the polls were not free and fair.

http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/News/0,,2-11-1447_2396250,00.html
Protest outside Swazi embassy
19/09/2008 12:02 - (SA)

Pretoria - A small group of protesters picketed outside the Swazi 
Embassy, in Pretoria, on Friday, in opposition to the country's "sham" 
elections, said the Swaziland Solidarity Network.
Spokesperson Lucky Luckhele said the protesters included representatives 
of the ANC Youth League, the Young Communists' League, SACP, Congress of 
South African Trade Unions, South African Students' Congress and 
Congress of South African Students.
"We demand a democratic election for the people of Swaziland," said 
Luckhele.
He said the protesters were demanding the unbanning of all political 
parties, the unconditional release of political prisoners and the return 
of exiles.
They also wanted the removal of laws inhibiting political activity in 
the country.
- SAPA

http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/News/0,,2-11-1447_2395761,00.html
Swazi cops stop protestors
18/09/2008 21:14 - (SA)
Oshoek - Swaziland police stopped dozens of demonstrators trying to 
blockade border posts in protest against elections on Friday in Africa's 
last absolute monarchy.
An AFP journalist, travelling to the Oshoek border post with South 
Africa, saw a 65-seater bus pulled over and ordered to return to 
northern Swaziland on Thursday.
Unions and banned political parties planned to blockade major border 
posts ahead of parliamentary elections which they have called "a sham".
More than 200 people were stopped from going to border posts including a 
number of leaders of organisations, said Lucky Lukhele of the Swaziland 
Solidarity Network, a South African body.
"What the police are doing is arresting them and dumping them in remote 
areas," Lukhele said.
Some 200 people held a protest on the South African side of the Oshoek 
border crossing, carrying banners and placards and dressed in red 
t-shirts. One placard read: "Mswati stop abusing culture for your 
personal and sexual needs."
Swaziland is ruled by King Mswati III, who ascended the throne at age 
18, and keeps a strong traditional grip on power, with responsibility 
for appointing the prime minister, legislature and judiciary.
His country is one of Africa's poorest, with one of the world's highest 
HIV rates, and some have blamed the king's state-sponsored extravagant 
lifestyle for draining Swaziland's finances.
Friday's poll is the first to take place under a rewritten constitution, 
put into effect in 2006, which allows for freedom of association.
However, candidates can only stand for elections as individuals, not as 
part of political parties.
- AFP

http://www.news24.com/News24/Africa/News/0,,2-11-1447_2395549,00.html

Swazi monarch face protests
18/09/2008 13:36 - (SA)

Sibongile Khumalo
Mbabane ? Swaziland, Africa's last absolute monarchy, faced protests on 
Thursday on the eve of elections with anger growing in a country that 
remains deeply impoverished despite the king's lavish lifestyle.
Unions and banned political parties planned to blockade border posts 
ahead of parliamentary polls on Friday that those who have been pushing 
for change say will be meaningless.
"How these elections are called democracy is beyond me," said Mario 
Masuku, leader of People's United Democratic Movement (Pudemo), one of 
Swaziland's banned political parties.
"The country's political system makes it a mockery of democracy in the 
region. In Swaziland there are no elections just selections of people 
who dance to the king's tune."
King Mswati III, who ascended the throne at age 18, keeps a strong 
traditional grip on power, with responsibility for appointing the prime 
minister, legislature and judiciary.
Highest HIV rates
His country is one of Africa's poorest, with one of the world's highest 
HIV rates, and some have blamed the king's state-sponsored extravagant 
lifestyle for draining Swaziland's finances.
Friday's poll is the first to take place under a rewritten constitution, 
put into effect in 2006, which allows for freedom of association.
However, candidates can only stand for elections as individuals, not as 
part of political parties.
Opposition and civil society groups have been fighting for plural 
politics and the abolition of the monarchy, which they claim is 
dictatorial.
Swaziland United Democratic Front general secretary, Vincent Ncongwane, 
this week questioned the sending of observers to what he called a "sham" 
election.
Observers from the 15-nation Southern African Development Community, Pan 
African Parliament (Pap), the Commonwealth and the AU will monitor the 
vote.
"It puzzles the mind as to why they are endorsing this joke," he said.
Homegrown political system
Political parties in the landlocked southern African country were banned 
in 1973 by the late King Sobhuza after he dissolved the country's 
constitution, declaring it was unworkable as it promoted hatred among 
Swazis.
Swaziland is currently run on a homegrown political system called 
Tinkhundla with parliamentary elections held every five years after 
which the king appoints a new prime minister.
With an unemployment rate of 40%, the upcoming poll means nothing to 
most Swazis, said analyst Thembinkosi Dlamini.
"People want to see an end to the hunger gripping country, access social 
grants, health care. They have voted before, but nothing has changed," 
said Dlamini.
"These elections do not embrace the virtues of modern democracy and the 
will of the people."
Mswati III, who rules the country side by side with his mother, has been 
named by Forbes magazine as one of the 15 richest royals in the world, 
with a fortune of $200m.
- AFP

http://africa.reuters.com/top/news/usnBAN835729.html
Swaziland union leaders detained, protest blocked
Thu 18 Sep 2008, 8:56 GMT

By Charles Matsebula
MBABANE (Reuters) - Police in Swaziland, one of the world's last 
absolute monarchies, detained several union leaders on Thursday and 
blocked others from a pre-election protest to demand democratic reform, 
one of the union leaders said.
Swazi authorities had said the protest could cause anarchy in the 
southern African kingdom the day before a parliamentary election.
Armed police pulled labour activists from buses and cars at a roadblock 
en route to a border crossing with South Africa, taking union leaders 
into vans and sending others back to the capital Mbabane, the union 
leader said.
"We are at Piggs Peak prison inside the back of a van and don't know 
why," Jan Sithole, the general secretary of the Swaziland Federation of 
Trade Unions, told Reuters by telephone, after he was stopped and taken 
away with other union leaders.
"This is detention without trial and execution of an unlawful order," he 
said.
There was no immediate comment from police.
The unions, backed by South Africa's powerful COSATU labour federation, 
had vowed to block traffic at the border, a commercial artery between 
the two nations.
King Mswati III rules the country of 1.1 million people with a free 
hand, choosing the country's prime minister and cabinet from those 
elected to parliament. Political parties have been banned in the country 
since 1973.
Although the monarch remains popular among many of his subjects, there 
is rising discontent over his extravagant lifestyle, refusal to adopt 
democratic reforms and to tackle social problems, including one of 
Africa's worst AIDS epidemics.
Swaziland's economy grew by about 3.5 percent in 2007 but has been 
buffeted in recent months by higher prices for fuel and food and a 
slowdown in South Africa, its main trading partner.
There are fears that unemployment and poverty could rise as a result of 
the economic difficulties. About 40 percent of Swazi workers are unemployed.
Frustrations boiled over into rare violent protests earlier this month 
when demonstrators stoned shops, looted a market and set off an 
explosion that damaged a bus.
Mswati, listed as the world's 15th richest monarch by Forbes magazine, 
is not seen loosening his grip soon.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/7622667.stm
Thursday, 18 September 2008 17:20 UK

Police hold Swazi poll protesters

Pro-democracy activists held protests earlier this month
Police in Swaziland have detained a number of pro-democracy activists 
planning a border blockade ahead of parliamentary elections in the kingdom.
Several union leaders were bundled into police vans at the main border 
crossing with South Africa, organisers of the planned blockade said.
Political parties are banned in Swaziland, one of the world's last 
absolute monarchies.
There have been recent protests calling for change and multi-party 
democracy.
In Friday's elections, 55 unaffiliated candidates are due to be chosen 
for Swaziland's national assembly.
King Mswati III, who has been in power since 1986 and recently 
celebrated his 40th birthday, hand-picks a further 10 people.
The assembly then chooses 10 representatives for the Senate, with a 
further 20 selected by the king.
Correspondents say the king remains popular with many of his subjects, 
though opposition has been growing to his lavish lifestyle in a country 
where most people live in poverty.
Border protest
Early on Thursday, authorities detained union leaders and other 
activists after they arrived at Oshoek, Swaziland's main point of trade 
with South Africa.
Among those being held was Jan Sithole, the secretary-general of the 
Swaziland Federation of Trade Unions, who said he had been driven about 
120km from the border to Piggs Peak.

The whole world was making noises about Zimbabwe. It's the same problem 
with Swaziland

Kesco Mataba
South African union leader
Other would-be protesters in buses and cars were turned back by Swazi 
authorities.
The BBC's Thulani Mthewa, who is at the border, said some 200 people - 
both South African and Swazi - protested on the South African side of 
the crossing, but the demonstration on the Swazi side had been blocked 
and the border remained open.
South African unionists from the umbrella organisation Cosatu are 
demonstrating in solidarity with their Swazi counterparts.
"The problem of Swaziland is our problem because the current regime is 
not resolving many problems - HIV/Aids, unemployment - their people are 
flocking in our country," said Kesco Mataba of the South African Young 
Communist League.
"The whole world was making noises about Zimbabwe," he said. "It's the 
same problem with Swaziland."
Riot police have been deployed on both sides of the border crossing, our 
reporter says.
Landlocked Swaziland is almost entirely surrounded by South Africa.
Ahead of the planned blockade, Swazi government spokesman Percy Simelane 
said the protest was illegal.
"No one is allowed to wake up in the morning and go and close borders 
leading to another country, not even the government is allowed to do 
that," he told the BBC's Focus on Africa programme.
But the secretary-general of the Swaziland Federation of Labour, Vincent 
Ncongwane, said protesters wanted to demonstrate that Friday's elections 
would not be inclusive.
"We still have in Swaziland this myth that you can have a democracy 
where there isn't the participation of other political parties," he told 
the BBC.