The following is a statement issued today (5 May 2009) by the Swaziland Solidarity Network (SSN) calling on King Mswati III of Swaziland, sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch, to stay away from the inauguration of recently-elected South African President Jacob Zuma.
SSN says if he does turn up workers in South Africa should refuse to have anything to do with him.
‘THE DESPOTIC SWAZILAND KING MSWATI IS UNWELCOME IN SOUTH AFRICA’ - SSN
SSN calls on the authoritarian Swazi King to stay at home
The Swaziland Solidarity Network calls upon the Swazi tyrannical King Mswati III, not to set foot in South Africa for the inauguration of our President elect, Comrade Jacob Zuma. President elect Jacob Zuma is a seasoned democrat and a product of popular grassroots participatory struggles by ordinary members of the ANC, [African National Congress] backed recently by the electorate in large numbers. He has never spent R100 million [10 million US dollars] on his personal birthday and another R50 million on 20 luxury Mercedes Benz S600 with plasma screens and fridges inside, whilst his own people go hungry.
Many of our members are members of the ANC and its alliance partners, the SACP [South African Communist Party] and Cosatu [Congress of South African Trade Unions].
They have campaigned hard to set this truly democratic example. It is a victory for all forces of democracy in the entire region, including the oppressed people in Swaziland. The presence of Mswati the despot will be a major travesty. It will diminish our inauguration. Mswati must stay home, release Pudemo [People’s United Democratic Movement] President Mario Masuku who is jailed since November 15 2008. He must unban political parties and allow a new people centred constitutional development process and democratize Swaziland.
We call upon our allies to support our call not to handle anything for the benefit of Mswati, including members of Cosatu in our national airline, catering workers in hotels, drivers and securities in SATAWU [South African Transport and Allied Workers Union] and POPCRU [Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union] not to usher, feed, clean Mswati’s hotel room and drive him around with our taxpayers money. Should he insist on coming, he should cook for himself or buy take aways, clean his own room and drive himself to union buildings.
SSN calls on other democratically elected and dignified Presidents to refuse to sit next to him. Mswati must be isolated.
We will furthermore meet him on the streets at his embassy in Pretoria on Friday (8 May 2009) starting at 10am, to demonstrate for the world to see, as we have done every Friday since January this year.
We wish President elect Jacob Zuma a successful inauguration, whilst Mswati is preparing to stay home on Saturday the 9th May 2009.
We look forward to work with the new administration, in mobilizing South Africans from all corners, to end the authoritarian backward system of Tinkhundla, for the release of political prisoners and the democratisation of Swaziland.
Released by the Swaziland Solidarity Network [SSN]
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