The Times
of Swaziland misled its readers when it reported that a ‘survey’
in Malawi concluded that Swaziland’s King Mswati III should ‘reject Western
democracy’.
No such survey was
undertaken.
The Times reported
the survey was conducted by what it called ‘Malawi’s leading newspaper’, the Nyasa Times.
It reported one person
who took part in the ‘survey’ said, “Mswati, don’t listen to these calls for
democracy. These are prophets of doom. Your country is much better the way it
is right now. Look at what is happening in Libya.’
The Times of Swaziland reporting suggested that a systematic scientific
poll had been conducted among the citizens of Malawi. If the survey had been
conducted in this way its ‘results’ might indicate the true feeling of people
in Malawi.
In fact, the Times deliberately distorted its story
to make it seem that there was general support for King Mswati’s regime in Swaziland.
The King rules as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch. Political parties
are banned from taking part in elections and the King chooses the government.
What the Times reported as a ‘survey’ was simply email
comments made by readers on a news story published online by the Nyasa Times. The story said that the former President of Malawi Bakili Muluzi had
visited Swaziland as part of a Commonwealth team to discuss how the kingdom
might move towards becoming a democratic state.
The comments were simply
the personal views of 12 people who taken it upon themselves to post to the
Internet. The Nyasa Times did not
claim it to be a survey.
The Times of Swaziland report demonstrates the measures that the media
are going to in Swaziland to try to convince the Swazi people that King Mswati’s
undemocratic regime has support from outside the kingdom.
The Commonwealth
is continuing to pressure Swaziland to democratise and allow political
parties to contest elections in the kingdom.
It is also urging a review of the kingdom’s
constitution to ensure that the country meets international standards of
democracy.
See also
COMMONWEALTH CALLS FOR DEMOCRACY
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