Democracy advocates in Swaziland should
put forward policies that would attract people to support political parties,
the US Ambassador to the kingdom said.
Explaining why political parties were
needed was not enough, Lisa Peterson told a meeting on multiparty democracy,
good governance and human rights at the Happy
Valley Hotel, Ezulwini, on Saturday (10 March
2018).
Peterson said a poll conducted in 2015 by
Afrobarometer had suggested about 36 percent of those questioned supported
political parties in Swaziland.
King Mswati III rules Swaziland as sub-Saharan
Africa’s last absolute monarch. Political parties are banned from taking part
in elections and the King chooses the Prime Minister and senior ministers.
Advocates for democracy continue to be arrested under the Suppression
of Terrorism Act.
Peterson said many people in Swaziland did not
support political parties, ‘in part because they lack
experience with what parties can accomplish and how advocacy can succeed.
‘In addition to the various efforts the
parties have underway, they need to be paying particular attention to this part
of the equation. Because if a person living in a small village does not
understand how a party can help him approach local leaders on an issue such as
youth unemployment, the answer to that poll question is going to continue to go
against the multiparty option.
‘You also should not fall into the trap of
thinking that simply explaining to people why parties are important, or holding
a march to rally public opinion, will move the needle more in your
direction.
‘People need to experience policy advocacy
in order to appreciate the advantages of a coalition. Otherwise, they will carry on doing things
the way they always have, perhaps believing that no action can really make a
difference.
‘People have a tendency to want to stay
with something they know, even if it’s not working well, because they fear that
a change will bring something worse.
This is as true in the United States as it is here. But if you show them how advocacy is done, if
you highlight for them their civic potential, you will have made an incredible
investment in the country’s future. And
through this investment, attitudes toward the multiparty question are sure to
improve.’
Swaziland faces an election in 2018. Swaziland’s most recent election in 2013 was
considered ‘not free and fair’ by a number of international organisations,
including the Commonwealth Observer Mission and African
Union which called
separately for a review of the kingdom’s constitution to allow political parties
to compete.
In 2008, the European
Union declined an invitation to observe the honesty of the Swaziland elections because of ‘shortcomings’
in the kingdom’s democracy.
In 2013, the
EU which is a
major donor of aid to Swaziland told King Mswati he must allow political
parties to operate in his kingdom as it was important that international
principles of democracy were upheld in Swaziland.
Three political
parties
have already announced their intention to seek a court ruling to un-ban parties ahead of
the next election. They are the People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO);
the Swaziland Democratic Party (SWADEPA) and the Ngwane National Liberatory
Congress (NNLC) have joined forces to take the government to court.
See also
U.S. AMBASSADOR SUPPORTS PARTIES
https://swazimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2015/11/swaziland-political-parties-facts.html
PARTIES STILL BANNED FROM ELECTION
PARTIES STILL BANNED FROM ELECTION
https://swazimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2017/03/parties-still-banned-from-election.html
ONE IN THREE WANT POLITICAL PARTIES
ONE IN THREE WANT POLITICAL PARTIES
SWAZIS
WANT DEMOCRACY - SURVEY
EU
TELLS KING: ‘FREE PARTIES’
UK
CALLS FOR PARTIES TO BE UN-BANNED
NO
PARTIES AT SWAZILAND ELECTION
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