MPs demand Govt. action as hunger spreads across Swaziland during coronavirus lockdown

The House of Assembly in Swaziland (eSwatini) has demanded immediate action from the government as hunger spreads across the kingdom and doctors and nurses continue to be without vital personal protective equipment (PPE) during the present coronavirus crisis.

Swaziland has been in a partial lockdown since 27 March 2020 with many businesses closed, bans on large gatherings and travel restrictions.

News has emerged of whole communities who have no work and no way of getting food. Hospitals do not have personal protection equipment such as face masks, gloves and gowns. 

As of 21 April 2020 one person had died from coronavirus and 31 tested positive.

Members of parliament in the absolute monarchy ruled by King Mswati III demanded an urgent report from government on how it intended to deal with the crisis. They want food parcels to be sent to the hungry and masks and hand sanitisers to be made available to the public.

They also voiced concerns about how money set aside to tackle coronavirus (COVID-19) had been spent. Some parliamentarians were reported to have been part of businesses who tendered for contracts to supply goods. In the past groups such as Transparency International have reported high levels of corruption in Swaziland.

The House of Assembly threatened to move a vote of no confidence in the government which in Swaziland is not elected but handpicked by King Mswati. In particular they were concerned that the government was giving preferential treatment to certain people and using the Bethel Court Hotel in Ezulwini as a quarantine centre. Other people were expected to use Lubombo Referral Hospital and the TB Centre in Manzini.

In recent days the Swazi media have reported cases of severe hunger across Swaziland. Out-of-work textile workers in Kwaluseni township were said to be facing ‘imminent death from hunger’.

People living on the border of Swaziland and South Africa around Lavumisa who usually travelled into South Africa for food and work had been stopped from doing so by Swazi soldiers because there is a coronavirus lockdown in South Africa. They were reported to be ‘struggling to stay alive, with virtually nothing to eat’.

Meanwhile. the Swaziland Democratic Nurses Union (SWADNU) is consulting with lawyers about suing the government for gross negligence in failing to supply nurses at Raleigh Fitkin Memorial (RFM) hospital and all health care workers across the country with adequate protection. A nurse at RFM died of the coronavirus and at least 26 healthcare workers at the hospital are in self-isolation. The union has already called for the hospital to be temporarily closed so that all healthcare workers can be tested and wards fumigated.

Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of a National Emergency Task Force set up to tackle coronavirus Themba Masuku denied the government was to blame for the shortage of equipment. He said there was an international shortage affecting most countries. 

He told a press briefing Swaziland had no capability to manufacture PPE but he had appealed to local companies to produce face masks.

See also

People face ‘imminent death from hunger’ in Swaziland as coronavirus lockdown hits poorest

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2020/04/people-face-imminent-death-from-hunger.html

Swaziland nurses’ union calls for closure of major hospital in fight against coronavirus

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2020/04/swaziland-nurses-union-calls-for.html

Swaziland Deputy Prime Minister tells poor people stop having children

The Deputy Prime Minister of Swaziland / eSwatini Themba Masuku has said poor people should stop having children because the kingdom cannot afford to support them.

The DPM’s office is responsible for child welfare among other issues.

Masuku told the Swaziland News, an online newspaper, that the Swazi government could not fulfil its obligations to the poor.

He told the newspaper, ‘The major problem we face as a country is that eMaswati [Swazi people] are having more and more children. Why do you have more children if you do not have the resources to look after those children? You can marry 10 wives but make sure all those wives are well looked after. Once we are able to manage the population, we could be a rich state. The government does not have a policy that talks about orphans.’

The Deputy Prime Minister, who was not elected but appointed to his post by King Mswati III the absolute monarch of Swaziland, said thousands of children in Swaziland were in need of food aid and other basic necessities of life and government had no financial muscle to meet their everyday needs.

The Swaziland News quoted him saying, ‘We have thousands of needy children today. The sad thing is that the parents of these children are not all dead. Some are still alive and poor, but they keep on producing more children every day. My advice to all eMaswati is that they must have a reasonable number of children. You can have one or two children. As long as you can love and maintain those children.’

According to figures in the CIA Factbook there are about 374,000 children aged 14 or under in Swaziland. In a report in August 2018 the World Food Program said 45 percent of children in Swaziland were orphaned or vulnerable. Chronic malnutrition was a main concern and stunting affected 26 percent of children under the age of five. 

Seven in ten of the estimated 1.3 million population live in abject poverty with incomes less than the equivalent of US$2 per day. The global charity Oxfam named Swaziland as the most unequal country in the world in a report that detailed the differences in countries between the top most earners and those at the bottom.

See also

Fraud at Swazi Deputy PM’s office

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/03/fraud-at-swazi-deputy-pms-office.html

CAMPAIGN TO PROTECT SWAZI CHILDREN

World Vision Swaziland is preparing to launch a national campaign called ‘It takes a world to end violence against children’ before the end of 2017. 

The Christian organisation’s Advocacy and Justice for Children Manager Sakhile Malaza told local media, ‘We’ll be working with multiple stakeholders, the Government, traditional leaders, celebrities and other influencers to play a role to end violence.’

Malaza said not a week passed by without headlines in Swaziland of missing children, suicides or abuse cases.

The Swazi Observer reported on Thursday (24 August 2017) that Malaza said, ‘World Vision continues to raise awareness to all stakeholders that include parents, traditional leaders, religious leaders, law enforcers and the children themselves to be safe and ensure that their whereabouts are known at all times.’

Earlier this month, a UNICEF report revealed nearly nine out of ten children in Swaziland suffered violent discipline in the home, nearly four in ten suffered sexual violence and one in three were bullied. UNICEF (the United Nations Children’s Fund) reported that much of this was kept secret within the family.

UNICEF said according to national data, violent discipline in the home, which includes physical punishment and psychological aggression, affected more than 88 percent of all children in Swaziland. The study findings also revealed that sexual violence and bullying affected 38 per cent and 32 percent of children in Swaziland, respectively.

In March 2017, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in Swaziland said nearly a half of all abuse cases reported involved children, And, most abusers were parents or someone well-known to the victim.

A total of 357 cases were reported in the financial year 2016 / 2017.

A report tabled at the Swazi Senate revealed 71 percent of the victims were females.

The most common abuse with 90 cases was described as ‘emotional / verbal’. There were also 76 cases of physical abuse and 69 of neglect.

A total of 47 percent of the cases involved children aged up to 11.

The abuse of children in Swaziland is not new. Swazi culture condones sex abuse of children, especially young girls. Child rapists often blame women for their action.

The State of the Swaziland Population report revealed that women who ‘sexually starve’ their husbands were blamed for the growing sexual abuse of children.

Men who were interviewed during the making of the report said they ‘salivate’ over children wearing skimpy clothes because their wives refused them sexual intercourse.

‘According to the Swaziland Action Group against Abuse (SWAGAA), one in three girls and women between ages 13 and 24 had been a victim of sexual violence. Although rape is legally defined as a crime, many men regarded it as a minor offense. 

‘The number of reported cases was likely far lower than the actual number of cases, as many cases were dealt with at the family level. A sense of shame and helplessness often inhibited women from reporting such crimes, particularly when incest was involved. 

See also

9 IN 10 KIDS SUFFER VIOLENCE AT HOME

https://swazimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2017/08/9-in-10-kids-suffer-violence-at-home.html

SWAZI CHILD RAPE IS NOT UNUSUAL

http://swazimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2010/08/swazi-child-rape-is-not-unusual.html

 

‘INVESTIGATE PRINCE FOR CHILD SEX’

http://swazimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2010/08/investigate-prince-for-child-sex.html

CHILD VICTIMS IN HALF OF ABUSE CASES

Nearly a half of all abuse cases reported to the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office in Swaziland involved children, And, most abusers were parents or someone well-known to the victim.

A total of 357 cases were reported in the financial year 2016 / 2017.

A report tabled at the Swazi Senate revealed 71 percent of the victims were females.

The most common abuse with 90 cases was described as ‘emotional / verbal’. There were also 76 cases of physical abuse and 69 of neglect.

A total of 47 percent of the cases involved children aged up to 11.

The Swazi Observer newspaper said that the report, ‘showed that children were at a greater risk of being violated as the same individuals who had an obligation to protect were the ones who were in most cases the perpetrators. 

‘The most commonly reported survivor/perpetrator relationship was that of parent (mother/father).’

The abuse of children in Swaziland is not new. Swazi culture condones sex abuse of children, especially young girls. Child rapists often blame women for their action.

The State of the Swaziland Population report revealed that women who ‘sexually starve’ their husbands were blamed for the growing sexual abuse of children.

Men who were interviewed during the making of the report said they ‘salivate’ over children wearing skimpy clothes because their wives refused them sexual intercourse.

In Swaziland rape is against the law but Swazi Law and Custom allows a husband to rape his wife. This is contained in the 317-page document The Indigenous Law and Custom of the Kingdom of Swaziland (2013). 

The United States Department of State report on human rights in Swaziland looking at 2016 stated, ‘The law criminalizes rape, but no law specifically addresses spousal rape. Rape was common, and the government rarely enforced the law effectively. 

‘According to the Swaziland Action Group against Abuse (SWAGAA), one in three girls and women between ages 13 and 24 had been a victim of sexual violence. Although rape is legally defined as a crime, many men regarded it as a minor offense. 

‘The number of reported cases was likely far lower than the actual number of cases, as many cases were dealt with at the family level. A sense of shame and helplessness often inhibited women from reporting such crimes, particularly when incest was involved. 

‘The maximum sentence for conviction of rape is 15 years in prison, but the acquittal rate for rape was high, and sentences were generally lenient. Prosecutors reported difficulty obtaining the evidence required to try rape and domestic violence cases because witnesses feared testifying against accused rapists. There were few social workers or other intermediaries to work with victims and witnesses in order to obtain evidence.’

In 2015, a report from A US organisation ABCNewspoint stated that Swaziland had the fourth highest rate of rape in the world. It said there were 77.5 registered cases of rape among 100,000 people.

See also

CUSTOM LAW LETS HUSBANDS RAPE WIVES

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2016/08/custom-law-lets-husbands-rape-wives.html

 

SWAZI CHILD RAPE IS NOT UNUSUAL

http://swazimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2010/08/swazi-child-rape-is-not-unusual.html

 

‘INVESTIGATE PRINCE FOR CHILD SEX’

http://swazimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2010/08/investigate-prince-for-child-sex.html

SWAZILAND GVT BLOCKS INFORMATION

It’s easier to get blood out of a stone than get information from the Swazi Government.

That seems to be the conclusion of a report into access to information undertaken by the kingdom’s leading media freedom group.

The office of the Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) was rated the most secretive and inaccessible to information seekers.

The Media Institute of Southern Africa Swaziland Chapter (MISA) said attempts to access information were met with hostility and uncooperativeness.

The DPM’s office was one of five institutions randomly surveyed for a month earlier this year to determine the levels of access to information.

Others were the Ministry of Education and Training, Ministry of Agriculture, NERCHA and the Swaziland Electricity Company. They were rated based on information available on their website and responses to questionnaires.

MISA yesterday (28 September 2010) presented the findings of its report ‘2010 Most Transparent and Secretive Public Institutions’ in Southern Africa. The DPM’s office was awarded the 2010 Golden Padlock Award of the Most Secretive Public Institution in Swaziland.

MISA Information Officer Michael Motsa told a media conference the DPM webpage was the ‘worst webpage of government ministries. It only had one page with basic information and a big picture of the DPM. The links provided did not have any information.’

Overall, the DPM’s office received a rating of zero out of a possible 20 points.

The survey reminds us that in Swaziland people are not allowed access to even the most basic information – no one will even confirm the number of wives King Mswati III, sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch, has.

There is clearly a need for more access to information in Swaziland. It is not a free country and even though the constitution enshrines freedom of expression, people are not able to discuss openly many topics. Nor are people able to hold their government to account. One reason for this is that the people are not entitled to get information from government, public bodies and suchlike institutions.

In 2007, the Swazi Parliament issued a draft bill on freedom of information. The first objective of this bill was to ‘Encourage a culture of openness, transparency and accountability in public bodies by providing for access to information held by these bodies in order to enable every citizen to fully exercise and protect their constitutional right of freedom of expression.’

And what happened to that Bill? Don’t ask me it’s a secret.