King Mswati III, the absolute monarch of Swaziland /eSwatini,
continues to hold a tight grip on power and all aspects of life in the kingdom,
a review of
human rights has concluded.
Freedom House scored Swaziland 16 out of a possible
100 points in its Freedom in
the World 2019 report. It concluded that Swaziland was ‘not free’.
Freedom House stated, ‘The king exercises ultimate
authority over all branches of the national government and effectively controls
local governance through his influence over traditional chiefs. Political
dissent and civic and labor activism are subject to harsh punishment under
sedition and other laws. Additional human rights problems include impunity for
security forces and discrimination
against women and LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender)
people.’
National
elections took place in Swaziland in 2018. Freedom
House scored Swaziland zero out of a possible 12 points for its ‘electoral
process’. It stated, ‘The king, who remains the chief executive authority, is
empowered to appoint and dismiss the prime minister and members of the cabinet.
The prime minister is ostensibly the head of government, but has little power
in practice. Ambrose Dlamini was appointed prime minister in October 2018,
although he was not
a member of Parliament at the time of his appointment, as required by the
constitution.
‘Traditional
chiefs govern their respective localities and typically report
directly to the king. While some chiefs inherit their positions according to
custom, others are appointed through royal interventions, as allowed by the
constitution.
‘The 69-member House of Assembly, the lower chamber of the bicameral
Parliament, features 59 members elected by popular vote within the tinkhundla
system, which allows local chiefs to vet candidates and influence outcomes in
practice; the king appoints the other 10 members. The king appoints 20 members
of the 30-seat Senate, the upper chamber, with the remainder selected by the
House of Assembly. All members of Parliament serve five-year terms. After the
parliamentary elections in September 2018, the king appointed
six members of the royal family to the House of Assembly, and eight to the
Senate. The elections, which were tightly controlled and featured a
slate of candidates almost entirely loyal to the king, did not offer voters a
genuine choice.
‘In August, a senior official at the Elections and Boundaries Commission
(EBC) reported that members of the House of Assembly were
accepting bribes in exchange for their votes in Senate elections. At
year’s end, no apparent consequences had followed.’
Freedom House scored Swaziland one point out of a possible 16 for
‘political pluralism and participation’ stating, ‘The king has tight control
over the political system in law and in practice, leaving no room for the
emergence of an organized opposition with the potential to enter government.
The vast majority of candidates who contested the 2018 general elections were
supporters of the king.’
Political parties are banned from taking part in elections. Freedom
House stated, ‘Over the years, political parties seeking legal recognition have
suffered court defeats, including a Supreme Court ruling in September 2018 rejecting
a challenge by the Swazi Democratic Party (SWADEPA) to the ban on political
parties competing in elections.’
Swaziland scored zero out of a possible 12 points for ‘functioning of
government.’ The king appoints the Prime Minister and government ministers. Freedom
House stated, ‘The king and his government determine policy and legislation;
members of Parliament hold no real power and effectively act as a rubber stamp
in approving the king’s legislative priorities. Parliament cannot initiate
legislation and has little oversight or influence on budgetary matters. The
king is also constitutionally empowered to veto any legislation. The absolute
authority of the king was demonstrated by his decision
to rename the country in April 2018 [from Swaziland to eSwatini] without
any constitutional process or parliamentary approval.
Freedom House is not the only international
organisation to highlight the lack of human rights in Swaziland. The United
States in its annual
report on the kingdom for 2017 (the most recent available) stated,
‘The most significant human rights issues included: arbitrary interference with
privacy and home; restrictions on freedoms of speech, assembly, and
association; denial of citizens’ ability to choose their government in free and
fair elections; institutional lack of accountability in cases involving rape
and violence against women; criminalization of same-sex sexual conduct,
although rarely enforced; trafficking in persons; restrictions on worker
rights; and child labor.
‘With few exceptions, the government did not prosecute
or administratively punish officials who committed abuses. In general
perpetrators acted with impunity.’
Amnesty
International in a review of Swaziland for 2017 / 2018
stated, ‘Forced evictions continued to be carried out. The Public Order Act and
the Suppression of Terrorism Act (STA) severely limited the rights to freedom
of expression, association and peaceful assembly. A ban on opposition parties
continued. Gender-related violence remained prevalent.’
It added, ‘King Mswati approved the Public Order Act on 8 August, which
curtailed the rights to freedom of assembly and association, imposing
far-reaching restrictions on organizers of public gatherings. The Act also
failed to provide mechanisms to hold law enforcement officials accountable for
using excessive force against protesters or public gatherings.’
Human
Rights Watch in its report on events in Swaziland in 2016
stated Swaziland, ‘continued to repress political dissent and disregard human
rights and rule of law principles in 2016. Political parties remained banned,
as they have been since 1973; the independence of the judiciary is severely
compromised, and repressive laws continued to be used to target critics of the
government and the king despite the 2005 Swaziland Constitution guaranteeing
basic rights.’
See also
Swazi
law used against human rights
https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/05/swazi-law-used-against-human-rights.html
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