The Times of Swaziland,
the kingdom’s only independent daily newspaper, has for the second day running censored itself in its reporting of King Mswati III.
Today (9 May 2012), the Times reports on a Gallup poll that asked Swazi people whether they
approved of the King’s leadership.
According to the newspaper, the King ‘received a majority
vote from the Swazi people’.
Today’s publication follows a report in the Times yesterday that the Swazi Government had received only 40 percent of Swazi approval in the
same Gallup poll. The Times made no reference to the King’s poll rating in that
report.
The Times was
criticised yesterday by Swazi Media Commentary for censoring itself by not reporting the poll result for King Mswati, who is
sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch.
Today, the Times
responded with its report on the King’s rating.
But, although the report says the King received a ‘majority
vote’ of his people, it does not give the figures.
That is because the King received only 56 percent
approval – another 43 percent of the Swazis interviewed by Gallup disapproved
of the King’s leadership.
The real story is not the number who approve of the King,
but the 43 percent who disapprove.
In Swaziland, the mainstream media do not allow any
criticism of the King. Instead they are likely to play up the importance of the
King and report that his subjects unreservedly love him.
Also, the King has strict control over his subjects’
lives, especially the 75 percent who live in rural areas. Chiefs of areas are
the King’s representative and they can decide who is able to live and work in
the area. If you criticise the King, you upset the chief, and you can be sent
into exile.
This means that when people have criticisms of the King,
they keep them to themselves.
So, the fact that more than four in ten people are
prepared to tell a Gallup pollster they disapprove of the King’s leadership is
a significant development and might encourage others who have been too scared to
voice their objection.
The Times newspaper
knows this and that’s why it censored itself in the report.
See also
‘TIMES’ CENSORS SELF ON KING’S POLL
POLL SHOWS DISAPPROVAL OF SWAZI KING
MEDIA FREEDOM AMONG GLOBAL WORSE
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