It is uncanny how similar the build up to Swaziland’s independence in 1968 was to the present preparations for the celebrations to mark its 40th anniversary.
In 1968, Swaziland wanted to put on a good impression for the international community – and to get good media coverage.
Not much has changed. In 1968 the Times of Swaziland reported (22 March 1968) that up to 100 foreign journalists were to be invited to the ceremony in September that year. Someone (perhaps as a joke) had suggested the members of the Press should be expected to pay their own way into the many events that were planned for five days of celebrations. Let them pay for their own meals and drinks, it was suggested.
The Times – a bit po-faced if you ask me – thought this was a very bad idea. In an editorial it moaned, ‘It would be a mistake to underestimate the importance of the visiting press corps or to dismiss the valuable contribution they could make in presenting a fine picture of Swaziland to their readers in other countries.’
Not much has changed as we approach the 40th anniversary, leaders in Swaziland are still hoping for a ‘good press’, the only problem for them now is that there are so many obvious human rights abuses (just look at the ban on political parties at the election as an example) for them to hide.
The Swazi King, Mswati III has also scored a couple of ‘own goals’ this time around. Allowing eight (or nine depending on which paper you read) of his wives to go on a spending spree ahead of the celebrations has led to a massive street protest in the kingdom and bad media publicity across the world.
A separate decision to allow the Swazi Government to buy 20 top of the range BMW cars for the birthday bash has exposed the King once again as someone who is irresponsible with money.
It hasn’t helped that last week it was revealed that for the second year running that King Mswati has a net worth of 200 million US dollars (about E1.4 billion).
Now, we await the party itself. Today’s Times of Swaziland (27 August 2008) reports that students at the University of Swaziland (UNISWA) have protested about the cost of the celebration, preferring the money to be spent on their scholarships.
Independence in 1968 was also planned as one big party, the Times reported at the time. There would be three days of festivities, followed by a day of ‘national prayer’ and then the actual independence ceremony. Among the festivities was an international soccer competition, a tennis contest, children displaying gymnastic skills and traditional Swazi dancing.
Beacons were to be lit across the kingdom, although the po-faced Times did warn that the beacons might cause unwanted fires because the grass was very dry.
Just as in 2008, the celebrations were organised for the people and not by the people. The Times in an editorial (21 June 1968) asked why the ‘ordinary man’ (no gender equity in those days) was not more involved in planning activities to mark independence.
It said, ‘While it is essential to coordinate festivities at a high and official level, there seems to be no reason why chiefs and societies should not press on with their own celebrations.
‘And there is no reason why individuals should not enjoy parties and get-togethers to toast the great day.
‘We feel that the ordinary man has been asked to do very little so far towards the preparations for independence celebrations.
‘“Independence belongs to you” is a theme and a slogan that should be adopted by us all as we look forward to the great times that are now only a few weeks ahead.’
So why did ‘ordinary men’ boycott the preparations for celebration? I suspect enough of them knew that ‘independence’ offered them very little. And this is how it turned out to be.
I know why today nobody outside of official circles is making preparations for the 40th anniversary. When four in ten of the population, according to a recent United Nations Development Programme report, are facing starvation, and when seven out of ten are so poor they earn less than one US dollar (E7) a day, while at the same time King Mswati III is reported to have a net worth of 200 million US dollars (E1.4 billion) and when the kingdom has the highest rate of HIV infection in the world, there is very little to celebrate.
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