Swaziland
Newsletter No. 925 – 1 May 2026
News from and about Swaziland, compiled by
Global Aktion, Denmark (www.globalaktion.dk)
in collaboration with Swazi Media Commentary (www.swazimedia.blogspot.com),
and sent to all with an interest in Swaziland - free of charge. The newsletter
and past editions are also available online on the Swazi Media Commentary
blogsite.
eSwatini celebrates King Mswati III’s 40 years as
critics decry royal spending
By Tim Cocks and Lunga Masuku, Reuters, 24 April 2026
EZULWINI: Marching bands blew
horns, women ululated and men cheered on Friday to celebrate King Mswati III’s
40 years on Eswatini’s throne, an institution still revered despite criticism
of the high luxury sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch enjoys.
A choir decked in yellow, blue
and red to form an image of the national flag sang the king’s praises and held
up a sign wishing him a happy 58th birthday in the national stadium.
“We have been through thick
and thin as a nation,” Mswati told the crowd. “It is important we remain
united.”
Speech-makers praised the
king’s efforts to develop the mountainous, southern African nation of 1.5
million, which well-wisher Shabusiswa Sibambo, 19, said included free school
since 2022 and mobile clinics in operation since the following year.
“We are proud of our culture,”
she told Reuters, as the king passed in an open-top car in a British
military-style scarlet tunic.
Her aunt, Busiwe Maziya, 70, a
subsistence maize farmer, remembered Mswati’s ascent to the throne in 1986. Her
life had improved much since then, she said, thanks to government assistance
with agricultural inputs like tools and fertiliser.
“Even the rainfall has been
better,” Maziya said.
But critics say Mswati’s and
his dozen wives’ lavish lifestyle comes at the expense of a population a third
of whom live below the $2.15-a-day World Bank poverty line. His upkeep costs
tens of millions of dollars and this month the government awarded an extra $3
million for it.
Anger at this disparity boiled
over into protests in 2021, which were violently suppressed, while the kingdom
also attracted unwanted publicity for jailing deportees from the United States,
as part of President Donald Trump’s crackdown on immigration.
“Yet another public waste of
scarce resources,” Wandile Dludlu, leader of the country’s biggest opposition
party, told Reuters, listing what he said were unaddressed problems including
poverty, inequality and high HIV prevalence rates.
“What a lost opportunity.”
See also
Some AU countries
snub Mswati’s 40th throne celebration (Legal Brief, South Africa)
https://legalbrief.co.za/story/some-au-countries-snub-mswatis-40th-throne-celebration/
King Mswati III
turns 40 years on the throne this week and the sovereign wealth fund meant to
benefit the Swazi people runs as his personal family office (Billionaires
Africa)
TUCOSWA to descend on Hlatikhulu
By Timothy Simelane, Times of eSwatini, 30
April 2026
MANZINI: The Trade Union
Congress of Swaziland (TUCOSWA) is expected to put its differences with
affiliates aside and converge at Hlatikhulu for the 2026 May Day celebration on
1 May 2026.
TUCOSWA recently failed to
host its quadrennial congress as some affiliates challenged the subscription of
some members.
However, despite this, in a
statement TUCOSWA Secretary General Mduduzi Gina officially announced the
Shiselweni Region as the host for the 2026 Workers’ Day Commemoration, with the
main festivities set for Hlatikhulu.
Gina confirmed that the annual
gathering will be held at the Hlatikhulu Central High School Sports Ground. The
choice of venue brings the national spotlight to the southern region, as the
labour movement prepares to reflect on the current socio-economic landscape and
the rights of the emaSwati workforce.
To read more of
this report, click here
Journalists struggle to survive on E3,500 as Press
Club sounds alarm
By Sifiso Nhlabatsi, Independent News,
eSwatini, 30 April 2026
MBABANE: Journalists in
Eswatini are battling harsh economic conditions that threaten both their
livelihoods and the quality of news reporting, Press Club President Timothy
Simelani has revealed.
Speaking during World Press
Freedom Day commemorations held at Happy Valley on Wednesday, Simelane painted
a bleak picture of life inside the country’s newsrooms, where low pay, unstable
contracts and limited resources have become the norm.
Simelani said the average
journalist in Eswatini earns about E3,500 [US$210] per month, placing them
among the lowest-paid professionals in the country. He noted that many media
practitioners work without permanent or long-term contracts, while others are
paid per story, making financial stability difficult to achieve.
“In Eswatini, being a
journalist often means working with limited resources and without robust
infrastructure,” he said. “If we were driven by money, we would not survive in
this profession.”
He explained that the
financial constraints faced by media houses directly affect the type and depth
of stories journalists can pursue. According to Simelani, investigative
reporting—especially on sensitive issues such as human trafficking or tax
evasion—requires significant funding, sometimes exceeding E10,000 per story.
However, he said most
newsrooms are unwilling or unable to allocate such resources, limiting
journalists’ ability to uncover critical information and hold powerful
individuals accountable.
To read more of
this report, click here
See also
EU committed to
protecting media freedom, EU Ambassador tells eSwatini journalists (European
Union)
ICT minister warns
against ‘brown envelope’ journalism, calls for responsibility in media
(Independent News, eSwatini)
Back to class for UNESWA students
By Bongiwe Dlamini, eSwatini Observer, 28
April 2026
Lessons at the University of
Eswatini (UNESWA) Kwaluseni Campus resume tomorrow.
This follows the institution’s
decision to reopen the campus after a brief closure triggered by student
unrest.
The resumption of lessons was
communicated by the Registrar Bonginkosi Mkhonza in a notice issued yesterday.
He said the university’s
Senate had resolved to reopen the campus today (Tuesday, April 28), and that
students have been instructed to return to campus, with normal academic
activities resuming tomorrow morning.
The university further
indicated that the academic almanac would remain unchanged despite the
disruption.
The campus was abruptly closed
last Thursday after unsanctioned student protests erupted over the demand for a
mid-semester study break.
According to information that
had been issued earlier, the decision to shut down operations was taken by the
management in the interest of student safety and to safeguard university
property.
Students were ordered to
vacate the premises by 10am last Friday.
The protests stemmed from
growing frustration among students who argued that they required time off to
regroup academically and address mental health concerns.
However, the university
maintained that a scheduled study break had already been utilised earlier in
the semester during intervarsity games held in Lesotho from March 9 to 13.
Students had initially agreed
to forgo the traditional study break in order to participate in the games.
However, some later expressed
concern that the academic workload had become overwhelming, prompting renewed
calls for time off.
See also
Kwaluseni Campus
closed indefinitely (eSwatini Observer)
https://eswatiniobserver.com/uneswa-kwaluseni-campus-closed-indefinitely/
Education International condemns the arrest and
harassment of education union leaders
Education International, 24 April 2026
Education International (EI)
expresses its unwavering solidarity with the Swaziland National Association of
Teachers (SNAT), its leadership and members, following the most recent attack
against union leaders by the authorities in Eswatini. On 23 April, Eswatini
police arrested Lot Vilakati, the General Secretary of SNAT, and other public
union leaders as they were peacefully delivering a petition to the Prime
Minister’s office.
The union officials’ demands
are related to the government’s failure to honour its commitment to increase
the salaries of teachers and public service workers. According to SNAT,
Vilakati was severely beaten by the police and later dumped in a forest.
This anti-union attack
represents a grave escalation of repression and an unacceptable assault on
education union members.
Education International urges
the authorities of Eswatini to immediately halt the persecution of SNAT
leaders, guarantee their safety, and respect their fundamental human and trade
union rights.
To read more of
this report, click here
SWAZI
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