Only half the people eligible to vote in Swaziland election did so

Only half of the people eligible to vote at the national election in Swaziland / eSwatini in 2018 did so, official figures reveal.

A year after the election the full results of each individual constituency (known as tinkhundla) have not been publicly released. However, global figures on voting have been released by the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC).

Swaziland is ruled by King Mswati III as an absolute monarch. Political parties are banned from taking part in elections and the people are only allowed to select 59 of 69 seats in the House of Assembly. No members of the 30-strong Swazi Senate are elected by the people.

The statistics released show that 330,791 voted in the final round of elections (known as the secondary election). The EBC said that 650,000 people were eligible to vote. This meant only 50.8 percent of those eligible to vote did so.

The population of Swaziland is about 1.2 million.

The EBC stated that of the 650,000 people eligible, 546,784 people registered to vote. This meant that 215,993 people (nearly four in ten) who registered to vote did not do so in the secondary election.

The turnout in the election is important as voting is the only way people in Swaziland have of demonstrate their support (or lack of it) for the political system. In 1973, King Sobhuza II tore up the constitution, banned political parties and began to rule by decree. Although a new constitution came into effect in 2006, little has changed and King Sobhuza’s son King Mswati III continues to rule as an absolute monarch. Political opposition is banned in Swaziland and those who campaign for democracy are charged under the Suppression of Terrorism Act.

The secondary election was marred by accusations of bribery, vote-rigging and other malpractice. There were also outbreaks of violence. Police fired gunshots, stun grenades and rubber bullets as voters at Sigwe protested against completed ballot papers being taken away from a polling centre. In Ndzingeni polling stations voters were dispersed using teargas during counting as voters threatened to enter the polling station where counting was taking place. APA news agency reported outbursts of violence started as early as noon time on election day and intensified in the evening when the counting of votes was about to resume.

Following the election the King appointed Ambrose Dlamini as Prime Minister and a cabinet of ministers in contravention of the Swaziland Constitution. He also appointed six members of his Royal Family to the House of Assembly and eight more to the Senate.

In a report on the election, the United Nations Human Rights Committee stated the ‘legitimacy and credibility’ of the election was ‘significantly hampered’ because political parties were banned. The King had ‘excessive powers’ in the appointment of the Government, Parliament and the judiciary, it stated.

It added, ‘The legitimacy and credibility of the elections was significantly hampered by the design of the electoral mechanisms as a culture of political pluralism is lacking. There is no freedom of genuine and pluralistic political debate, political parties are unable to register, contest elections, field candidates or otherwise participate in the formation of a Government.’

See also

Violence, corruption, vote-buying reported in Swaziland election. Journalists barred from entering counting centres

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/violence-corruption-vote-buying.html

 

Swaziland (Eswatini) Election 2018: Links to Information and Analysis From Swazi Media Commentary

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/swaziland-eswatini-election-2018-links.html

Swaziland absolute king declares national election ‘success’ but full results not released

King Mswati III, the absolute king of Swaziland / eSwatini, has declared last September’s national election in his kingdom a ‘success’, even though the full results have never been published.

The King told the state opening of parliament on Friday (8 February 2019) there was ‘over 60 percent’ voter turnout. 

However, there is no way to confirm this because the Kingdom’s Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) has not published the full results, nearly five months after the poll.

After the House of Assembly election took place on 21 September 2018 the EBC promptly announced the winners at the 59 constituencies (known as tinkhundla) but no break-down giving the number of votes cast for each candidate has been released.

This is not new in Swaziland: the full results of the previous election held in 2013 have never been published.

In Swaziland, political parties are banned from taking part in elections and the people are only allowed to select 59 members of the House of Assembly; the King appoints a further 10. No members of the 30-strong Swazi Senate are elected by the people; the King appoints 20 members and the House of Assembly elects 10. Following the election King Mswati appointed six members of his Royal Family to the House of Assembly and eight members to the Senate.

He also appointed a Prime Minister in contravention of the Swazi Constitution.

The EBC has not released the results of the House of Assembly election, although they are known. The two national newspapers in Swaziland published some results from individual tinkhundla as they were announced on the night of the election. 

The EBC has the capacity to publish the results. After the first round of the election (known as the Primary Election) on 24 August 2018, the EBC uploaded on its website all the results. An analysis of that data discovered a total of 156,973 people voted for members of the House of Assembly at the Primary Election; 28.83 percent of those who had registered.

In June 2018 after revising the figure the EBC announced that 544,310 people had registered to vote. It said earlier that 600,000 people in the kingdom were eligible to register. This meant, according to EBC figures, that 90.7 percent of eligible people had done so. The EBC figure was questioned after allegations were made of election law breaking. No copy of the national electoral roll was made public.

The size of the turnout in the Primary Election is important as voting is the only way people in Swaziland have to demonstrate their support (or lack of it) for the political system. In 1973, King Sobhuza II tore up the constitution, banned political parties and began to rule by decree. Although a new constitution came into effect in 2006, little has changed and King Sobhuza’s son King Mswati III continues to rule as an absolute monarch. Political opposition is banned in Swaziland and those who campaign for democracy are often charged under the Suppression of Terrorism Act.

The voting figures for the Primary Election suggested a lack of support for the political process. The results of the primary Election have since been removed from the EBC website.

The final round of the election (known as the Secondary Election) was marred by violence and accusations of bribery, vote-rigging and other malpractice.

 

Following the election the United Nations Human Rights Committee (HRC) reported the ‘legitimacy and credibility’ of the election was ‘significantly hampered’ because political parties were banned. It said the King had ‘excessive powers’ in the appointment of the Government, Parliament and the judiciary.

In its report the HRC said, ‘The legitimacy and credibility of the elections was significantly hampered by the design of the electoral mechanisms as a culture of political pluralism is lacking. There is no freedom of genuine and pluralistic political debate, political parties are unable to register, contest elections, field candidates or otherwise participate in the formation of a Government.’

In its election report the African Union (AU) called on Swaziland to end the ban on political parties. AU mission head James Michel, the former Seychelles president, said, ‘The mission encourages the eSwatini authorities to consider reviewing the 1973 decree on the ban on political parties and allow them to freely participate in the election.’ 

The Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) Election Observation Mission in its report said the election had been successful, ‘in line with the Constitution of the Kingdom of Eswatini, and the guiding Legal Framework’. Unlike the AU, it did not have a mandate to consider whether Swaziland was a democracy.

The Eswatini Elections Support Network which operates under the auspices of the Coordinating Assembly of NGOs (CANGO) made no comment about the election being ‘free and fair’.

Richard Rooney

See also

Swaziland election observer groups say vote was ‘peaceful’ but fall short of ‘free and fair’

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/swaziland-election-observer-groups-say.html

 

Violence, corruption, vote-buying reported in Swaziland election. Journalists barred from entering counting centres

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/violence-corruption-vote-buying.html

 

Swaziland (Eswatini) Election 2018: Links to Information and Analysis From Swazi Media Commentary

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/swaziland-eswatini-election-2018-links.html

Organised Certainty, Why elections in Swaziland are not democratic

https://www.scribd.com/document/384752084/Organised-Certainty-Why-Elections-in-Swaziland-Are-Not-Democratic

Results of Swaziland election not published one month after poll questioning kingdom’s claim to democracy

The results of the House of Assembly election in Swaziland / Eswatini have still not been published one month after the vote took place.

It is further evidence that the kingdom ruled by King Mswati III as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch is not a democracy.

The election took place on 21 September 2018. The kingdom’s Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) promptly announced the winners at the 59 constituencies (known as tinkhundla) but no break-down giving the number of votes cast for each candidate has been released.

This is not new in Swaziland: the full results of the previous election held in 2013 have never been published.

In Swaziland, political parties are banned from taking part in elections and the people are only allowed to select 59 members of the House of Assembly; the King appoints a further 10. No members of the 30-strong Swazi Senate are elected by the people; the King appoints 20 members and the House of Assembly elects 10. Following the election King Mswati appointed six members of his Royal Family to the House of Assembly and eight members to the Senate.

The EBC has not released the results of the House of Assembly election, although they are known. The two national newspapers in Swaziland published some results from individual tinkhundla as they were announced on the night of the election. 

The EBC has the capacity to publish the results. After the first round of the election (known as the Primary Election) on 24 August 2018, the EBC uploaded on its website all the results. At the time the Swazi Media Commentary (SMC) blogsite analysed the data and found a total of 156,973 people voted for members of the House of Assembly at the Primary Election; 28.83 percent of those who had registered.

In June 2018 after revising the figure the EBC announced that 544,310 people had registered to vote. It said earlier that 600,000 people in the kingdom were eligible to register. This meant, according to EBC figures, that 90.7 percent of eligible people had done so. The EBC figure was questioned after allegations were made of election law breaking. No copy of the national electoral roll was made public.

SMC reported that the size of the turnout in the Primary Election was important as voting was the only way people in Swaziland had of demonstrating their support (or lack of it) for the political system. In 1973, King Sobhuza II tore up the constitution, banned political parties and began to rule by decree. Although a new constitution came into effect in 2006, little has changed and King Sobhuza’s son King Mswati III continues to rule as an absolute monarch. Political opposition is banned in Swaziland and those who campaign for democracy are charged under the Suppression of Terrorism Act.

The voting figures for the Primary Election suggested a lack of support for the political process. The results of the primary Election have since been removed from the EBC website.

The final round of the election (known as the Secondary Election) was marred by accusations of bribery, vote-rigging and other malpractice. There were also outbreaks of violence. Police fired gunshots, stun grenades and rubber bullets as voters at Sigwe protested against completed ballot papers being taken away from a polling centre. In Ndzingeni polling stations voters were dispersed using teargas during counting as voters threatened to enter the polling station where counting was taking place. APA news agency reported outbursts of violence started as early as noontime on election day and intensified in the evening when the counting of votes was about to resume.

Some journalists and official independent election observers were barred from entering voting counting centres and told they must sign a declaration of secrecy form.

Following the election official complaints were made to the EBC about malpractice. Residents at Ntfonjeni said people were bussed in and allowed to vote after the election had closed. At Ndzingeni residents complained of vote-rigging.

 

See also

Swaziland Police Fire Gunshots, Set Off Grenades and Rubber Bullets as Voters Protest During Election

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/swaziland-police-fire-gunshots-set-off.html

Violence, corruption, vote-buying reported in Swaziland election. Journalists barred from entering counting centres

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/violence-corruption-vote-buying.html

 

Swaziland (Eswatini) Election 2018: Links to Information and Analysis From Swazi Media Commentary

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/swaziland-eswatini-election-2018-links.html

Organised Certainty, Why elections in Swaziland are not democratic

https://www.scribd.com/document/384752084/Organised-Certainty-Why-Elections-in-Swaziland-Are-Not-Democratic

Swaziland King appoints six of his own family to House of Assembly and more expected in Senate House

King Mswati III, Swaziland’s absolute monarch, has appointed six members of his own family to the kingdom’s House of Assembly.

This follows elections held in Swaziland (the kingdom he renamed Eswatini on his 50^th birthday) on 21 September 2018.

In Swaziland the people are only allowed to elect 59 members of the House of Assembly; the King appoints another 10. On Tuesday (2 October 2018) the Elections and Boundaries Commission announced that six of these would be Princes and Princesses from the Royal Family.

None of the 30 members of the Swazi Senate are elected by the people. The King will appoint 20 members at a later date and 10 will be elected by the House of Assembly. The King also appoints the Prime Minister and government as well as top civil servants and judges.

The move to appoint members of his own family is nothing new in Swaziland. At the previous election in 2013, King Mswati named two princes, a princess and three members of his own Dlamini clan among his 10 appointees to the House of Assembly. He also appointed six members of his family to the Senate. He then appointed another 16 members of his Royal Family to top political jobs; effectively carving up public life in the kingdom in his favour.

There were nine princess and princesses and a further seven from the family Dlamini in the 24-strong Liqoqo (the Swaziland National Council), the most powerful of the committees that advises the King. There were four princes and princesses and four Dlaminis in the Ludzidzimi Council, which advises the Queen Mother. The Border Restoration Committee which exists to try to get South Africa to give some of its territory to King Mswati had three princes and princesses and five Dlaminis among its 14 members. 

 

The official announcement of the appointments to the House of Assembly

 

See also

Swazi King keeps it in the family

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2008/10/swazi-king-keeps-it-in-family.html

 

King’s family get top political jobs

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/11/kings-family-get-top-political-jobs.html

 

King appoints six of his family to Senate

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/10/king-appoints-6-of-his-family-to-senate.html

Government Group Calls For Investigation Into Violence During Swaziland Election

Swaziland’s Commission on Human Rights and Public Administration Integrity (CHRPAI) has called for an investigation into the violence that occurred during the recent election.

CHRPAI Commissioner Sabelo Masuku urged the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) to investigate the causes of violence and take necessary action. 

He was delivering a report on the conduct of the election. He said it was important to maintain peace and order during such an important national event.

CHRPAI is a group that comes under the kingdom’s Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs.

 

There were numerous media reports of violence at polling centres on election day (21 September 2018) in Swaziland (recently renamed Eswatini by absolute monarch King Mswati III). The APA news agency reported outbursts of violence started as early as noontime which intensified in the evening with the counting of votes.

APA reported, ‘In some areas protesters who were not satisfied with certain procedures blocked vehicles transporting ballot papers to counting stations, resulting to delays in starting the counting process.

‘The bone of contention varied from last-minute change of counting centres to suspicions of malpractice by some candidates or their campaigning agents.’

APA reported at Manzini North, Manzini South, Sigwe and Ekupheleni centres the police had to request for backup from the Operational Services Support Unit (OSSU) after vehicles from the EBC were forced to turn back to polling stations for safety after roads leading to counting centres were blocked with stones and tree trunks by protesting crowds. 

At Malindza in the Lubombo region, an intoxicated member of the army drove over a male voter and further crashed onto two cars that were parked within the polling station premises, APA reported. 

Police fired gunshots in the air and grenades and rubber bullets as voters at Sigwe protested against completed ballot papers being taken away from a polling centre, the Observer on Saturday reported.

The Eswatini Elections Support Network which operates under the auspices of the Coordinating Assembly of NGOs (CANGO) in a report on the conduct of the election said the election was ‘relatively peaceful’.

However, it added, ‘The environment outside the polling station was peaceful except for Ndzingeni during counting and Hillside polling stations where violence was experienced throughout the day and hence, OSSU was called in to retain order.

‘In Hillside, police kept vigilance throughout the day to maintain peace and order.

‘In Ndzingeni polling stations, voters were dispersed using teargas during counting as voters threatened to enter the polling station where counting was taking place.’

In Swaziland political parties are banned from taking part in the election. People are only allowed to elect 59 members of the House of Assembly; another 10 are appointed by the King. None of the 30 members of the Swazi Senate are elected by the people.

King Mswati chooses the Prime Minister and Cabinet members. He also chooses top civil servants and judges.

See also

Violence, corruption, vote-buying reported in Swaziland election. Journalists barred from entering counting centres

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/violence-corruption-vote-buying.html

Swaziland Police Fire Gunshots, Set Off Grenades and Rubber Bullets as Voters Protest During Election

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/swaziland-police-fire-gunshots-set-off.html

Swaziland (Eswatini) Election 2018: Links to Information and Analysis From Swazi Media Commentary

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/swaziland-eswatini-election-2018-links.html

Organised Certainty, Why elections in Swaziland are not democratic

https://www.scribd.com/document/384752084/Organised-Certainty-Why-Elections-in-Swaziland-Are-Not-Democratic

People Offer Bribes to Members of Swaziland’s House of Assembly For Seat on Kingdom’s Senate

Credible evidence is emerging that people are offering bribes to members of the House of Assembly to be given a seat on the Swaziland Senate.

Swaziland is an absolute monarchy and none of the 30 members of the Swazi Senate are elected by the people. Twenty are appointed by King Mswati III (who recently renamed the kingdom Eswatini) and the rest are elected by the House of Assembly.

Following the election of the House of Assembly on Friday (21 September 2018) people have approached the new members with bribes, the Times of Swaziland reported on Tuesday.

It said offers of bribes in ‘the region of E10,000’ (US$700) were made to one member of parliament for his vote. It was refused, the newspaper added.

The Times reported one anonymous MP saying, ‘I have already met a few people who have expressed their wish to be voted into Senate.’

It added, ‘Unconfirmed allegations have been to the effect that Senate seats could go as high as E60,000 paid to each MP.’

The Times reported another new MP said ‘he had received the calls to meet certain individuals, they were sceptical in case it could be a trap’.

The report is not the first suggesting bribes are offered for Senate seats. In the run-up to the election Ncumbi Maziya, a Commissioner at the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC), told a workshop for election candidates that members of parliament charged E60,000 for their vote.

 

The, Swazi Observer newspaper reported in August 2018, ‘He said parliamentarians are the most corrupt people. He said he has since gathered that parliamentarians are swindling money from people who want to make it into Senate. 

It added, ‘Maziya said he learnt that people are made to fork out money amounting to E60,000 if they want to get a vote to be elected into Senate. “If you have no money you won’t make it into Senate,” Maziya stated.’

Corruption is believed to be widespread in Swaziland. In December 2017, Swaziland’s Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) issued a report suggesting that 79 percent of 3,090 people interviewed in a survey believed that corruption within government was ‘rife’.

The survey suggested that corruption was perceived to take place mostly in rural councils. The perceived major causes of corruption were poverty (58 percent), unemployment (54 percent) and greed (41 percent). The survey was conducted by the Swazi Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs through the ACC.

In June 2017, the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA) reported the kingdom, was riddled with corruption in both private and public places.

It said, ‘The results of grand corruption are there for all to see in the ever increasing wealth of high-level civil servants and officers of state.’ 

It added, ‘For a long time the police, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Trade as well as the Department of Customs and Excise have often been implicated in corrupt practices.’

It gave many examples including the case of the government propaganda organisation Swaziland Broadcasting and Information Service (SBIS) where E1.6 million was paid to service providers for the maintenance of a machine that was neither broken nor in use.  The officer who authorised the bogus job cards has since been promoted and transferred to another government department. 

The report called The effectiveness of anti-corruption agencies in Southern Africa stated, ‘This type of behaviour is common albeit covert and therefore difficult to monitor as goods and services are undersupplied or rerouted for personal use. The results of grand corruption are there for all to see in the ever increasing wealth of high-level civil servants and officers of state.’

See also

Swaziland Election Officer Reveals MPs Sell Their Votes When Electing Kingdom’s Senators

 https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/swaziland-election-officer-reveals-mps.html

 

Swaziland ‘Riddled With Corruption’

https://swazimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2017/06/swaziland-riddled-with-corruption.html

Swaziland Heading For Lowest Election Turnout as Ordinary People Support Democratic Change

Swaziland could be heading for the lowest election turnout in its modern history on Friday (21 September 2018).

Swaziland (recently renamed Eswatini by King Mswati III) is ruled by an absolute monarch, political parties are banned from taking part in the election and no members of the Swazi Senate are elected by the people.

The King chooses the Prime Minister and Government. The people are only allowed to elect 59 members of the House of Assembly with another 10 appointed by the King. No members of the Swazi Senate are elected by the people.

This will be the third election since Swaziland’s constitution came into effect in 2006 and there is mounting evidence that ordinary people in the kingdom want more democracy.

In the first round of this year’s election for seats in the House of Assembly (held on 24 August 2018) 156,983 people voted (of the 600,000 the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) said were eligible). That compared to the 251,278 people who voted in the final round of elections in 2013 and 189,559 who voted in 2008.

In June 2018 after revising the figure the EBC announced that 544,310 people had registered to vote this year. In the first round (known as the Primary Election) only 26.16 percent of those eligible voted.

People head for the final round of elections on Friday and there is no evidence of a surge in interest. The turnout in elections is important as voting is the only way people in Swaziland have to demonstrate their support (or lack of it) for the political system. The King and his supporters say that the ordinary people in Swaziland support the system that the King calls ‘Monarchical Democracy,’ and which he says is a partnership between himself and the people.

All debate on democratising the kingdom is ruthlessly crushed by King Mswati’s state police and security forces. Meetings called to discuss democratic change are routinely disrupted by police and prodemocracy activists are jailed. Groups that support democracy are banned under the Suppression of Terrorism Act. 

No news media in Swaziland support allowing political parties to contest elections.

Despite the closing down of political debate in Swaziland, one independent international group called Afrobarometer has run a number of polls in recent years surveying the views of ordinary Swazi people.

In 2015, it reported only seven in a hundred Swazi people said they were ‘very satisfied’ with the way democracy worked in Swaziland.

More than half (51 percent) did not think the kingdom was a democracy or it was a democracy with major problems.

Nearly six in ten people (59 percent) said they were ‘not at all free’ to say what they think.

And nearly three-quarters (73 percent) said they were ‘not at all free’ or ‘not very free’ to join any political organisation they wanted.

Afrobarometer is a pan-African, non-partisan research network that conducts public attitude surveys on democracy, governance, economic conditions, and related issues across more than 30 countries in Africa. It conducts face-to-face interviews.

This was not the first time Afrobarometer found a desire for democracy in Swaziland. In 2014 in a report called ‘Let the People Have a Say’ it said more than six people in ten in Swaziland said they were not satisfied with the way democracy worked in the kingdom.

The research surveyed 34-countries in Africa and asked a series of questions about what people thought about democracy and how democratic they thought their own country was.

But, only in Swaziland were researchers not allowed to ask a question about whether people rejected ‘one man rule’. In its report Afrobarometer said this was because ‘a near-absolute monarch resists democratization’ in the kingdom.

A total of 22 percent of people interviewed in Swaziland said they believed non-democratic governments can be preferable to democracies.

Dissent in Swaziland is often put down by police and state forces, but 86 percent of people rejected military rule for Swaziland.

In 2013, Afrobarometer reported two thirds of Swazi people wanted the kingdom to become a democracy and they wanted to choose their own leaders ‘through honest and open elections’. They also strongly disapproved of allowing King Mswati, who rules Swaziland as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch, to decide on everything in Swaziland.

An opinion poll conducted by Afrobarometer asked 1,200 Swazis aged 18 or over from across the kingdom how democratic they thought Swaziland was. Only 12 percent said that at present Swaziland had ‘high levels’ of democracy. When asked where they would like the kingdom to be ‘in the future’, 67 percent said they wanted to see ‘high levels’ of democracy.

Afrobarometer reported that 75 percent of people interviewed agreed with the statement, ‘We should choose our leaders through open and honest elections.’

Despite King Mswati’s stranglehold on political life in Swaziland, 46 percent of respondents agreed that, ‘Members of Parliament represent the people; therefore they should make laws for the country, even if the King does not agree.’

A total of 77 percent of respondents disapproved of abolishing elections and Parliament, ‘so that the King can decide on everything’.

In 2016, Afrobarometer reported that Swaziland came a long way last in a survey of 36 African countries looking at political freedom. Of those asked, ‘In this country how free are you to join any political organisation you want?’ only 7 percent responded, ‘completely free.’

In addition, only 18 percent of those surveyed said they had complete freedom of speech and 56 percent said they had complete freedom to vote.

Afrobarometer reported that its survey coincided with the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). With the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), it formalizes the right to peaceful assembly (Article 21) and freedom of association (Article 22), among other fundamental human rights. 

The report quoted the UN Special Rapporteur saying, ‘freedoms of assembly and association “are a vehicle for the exercise of many other civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights, allowing people to express their political opinions, engage in artistic pursuits, engage in religious observances, join trade unions, elect leaders, and hold them accountable.” As such, they play “a decisive role” in building and consolidating democracy. 

Richard Rooney

See also

Low Turnout At Swaziland Election Fuels Doubts About Support For King’s Absolute Monarchy

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/low-turnout-at-swaziland-election-fuels.html

Swaziland (Eswatini) Election 2018: Links to Information and Analysis From Swazi Media Commentary

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/swaziland-eswatini-election-2018-links.html 

Organised Certainty, Why elections in Swaziland are not democratic

https://www.scribd.com/document/384752084/Organised-Certainty-Why-Elections-in-Swaziland-Are-Not-Democratic

Women Election Candidates in Swaziland Forced to Address Voters on Their Knees to Show Respect For Men

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/women-election-candidates-in-swaziland.html

Vote-Rigging Claims During Swaziland’s Election Grow. Calls For Some Polls To Be Re-Run

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/vote-rigging-claims-during-swazilands.html

Swaziland’s Independent Observation Group Says Election ‘Free And Fair’ But Identifies Many Shortcomings

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/swazilands-independent-observation.html

Swaziland Heading For Lowest Election Turnout as Ordinary People Support Democratic Change

Swaziland could be heading for the lowest election turnout in its modern history on Friday (21 September 2018).

Swaziland (recently renamed Eswatini by King Mswati III) is ruled by an absolute monarch, political parties are banned from taking part in the election and no members of the Swazi Senate are elected by the people.

The King chooses the Prime Minister and Government. The people are only allowed to elect 59 members of the House of Assembly with another 10 appointed by the King. No members of the Swazi Senate are elected by the people.

This will be the third election since Swaziland’s constitution came into effect in 2006 and there is mounting evidence that ordinary people in the kingdom want more democracy.

In the first round of this year’s election for seats in the House of Assembly (held on 24 August 2018) 156,983 people voted (of the 600,000 the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) said were eligible). That compared to the 251,278 people who voted in the final round of elections in 2013 and 189,559 who voted in 2008.

In June 2018 after revising the figure the EBC announced that 544,310 people had registered to vote this year. In the first round (known as the Primary Election) only 26.16 percent of those eligible voted.

People head for the final round of elections on Friday and there is no evidence of a surge in interest. The turnout in elections is important as voting is the only way people in Swaziland have to demonstrate their support (or lack of it) for the political system. The King and his supporters say that the ordinary people in Swaziland support the system that the King calls ‘Monarchical Democracy,’ and which he says is a partnership between himself and the people.

All debate on democratising the kingdom is ruthlessly crushed by King Mswati’s state police and security forces. Meetings called to discuss democratic change are routinely disrupted by police and prodemocracy activists are jailed. Groups that support democracy are banned under the Suppression of Terrorism Act. 

No news media in Swaziland support allowing political parties to contest elections.

Despite the closing down of political debate in Swaziland, one independent international group called Afrobarometer has run a number of polls in recent years surveying the views of ordinary Swazi people.

In 2015, it reported only seven in a hundred Swazi people said they were ‘very satisfied’ with the way democracy worked in Swaziland.

More than half (51 percent) did not think the kingdom was a democracy or it was a democracy with major problems.

Nearly six in ten people (59 percent) said they were ‘not at all free’ to say what they think. And nearly three-quarters (73 percent) said they were ‘not at all free’ or ‘not very free’ to join any political organisation they wanted.

Afrobarometer is a pan-African, non-partisan research network that conducts public attitude surveys on democracy, governance, economic conditions, and related issues across more than 30 countries in Africa. It conducts face-to-face interviews.

This was not the first time Afrobarometer found a desire for democracy in Swaziland. In 2014 in a report called ‘Let the People Have a Say’ it said more than six people in ten in Swaziland said they were not satisfied with the way democracy worked in the kingdom.

The research surveyed 34-countries in Africa and asked a series of questions about what people thought about democracy and how democratic they thought their own country was.

But, only in Swaziland were researchers not allowed to ask a question about whether people rejected ‘one man rule’. In its report Afrobarometer said this was because ‘a near-absolute monarch resists democratization’ in the kingdom.

A total of 22 percent of people interviewed in Swaziland said they believed non-democratic governments can be preferable to democracies.

Dissent in Swaziland is often put down by police and state forces, but 86 percent of people rejected military rule for Swaziland.

In 2013, Afrobarometer reported two thirds of Swazi people wanted the kingdom to become a democracy and they wanted to choose their own leaders ‘through honest and open elections’. They also strongly disapproved of allowing King Mswati, who rules Swaziland as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch, to decide on everything in Swaziland.

An opinion poll conducted by Afrobarometer asked 1,200 Swazis aged 18 or over from across the kingdom how democratic they thought Swaziland was. Only 12 percent said that at present Swaziland had ‘high levels’ of democracy. When asked where they would like the kingdom to be ‘in the future’, 67 percent said they wanted to see ‘high levels’ of democracy.

Afrobarometer reported that 75 percent of people interviewed agreed with the statement, ‘We should choose our leaders through open and honest elections.’

Despite King Mswati’s stranglehold on political life in Swaziland, 46 percent of respondents agreed that, ‘Members of Parliament represent the people; therefore they should make laws for the country, even if the King does not agree.’

A total of 77 percent of respondents disapproved of abolishing elections and Parliament, ‘so that the King can decide on everything’.

In 2016, Afrobarometer reported that Swaziland came a long way last in a survey of 36 African countries looking at political freedom. Of those asked, ‘In this country how free are you to join any political organisation you want?’ only 7 percent responded, ‘completely free.’

In addition, only 18 percent of those surveyed said they had complete freedom of speech and 56 percent said they had complete freedom to vote.

Afrobarometer reported that its survey coincided with the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). With the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), it formalizes the right to peaceful assembly (Article 21) and freedom of association (Article 22), among other fundamental human rights. 

The report quoted the UN Special Rapporteur saying, ‘freedoms of assembly and association “are a vehicle for the exercise of many other civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights, allowing people to express their political opinions, engage in artistic pursuits, engage in religious observances, join trade unions, elect leaders, and hold them accountable.” As such, they play “a decisive role” in building and consolidating democracy. 

Richard Rooney

See also

Low Turnout At Swaziland Election Fuels Doubts About Support For King’s Absolute Monarchy

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/low-turnout-at-swaziland-election-fuels.html

Swaziland (Eswatini) Election 2018: Links to Information and Analysis From Swazi Media Commentary

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/swaziland-eswatini-election-2018-links.html

 

Organised Certainty, Why elections in Swaziland are not democratic

https://www.scribd.com/document/384752084/Organised-Certainty-Why-Elections-in-Swaziland-Are-Not-Democratic

Women Election Candidates in Swaziland Forced to Address Voters on Their Knees to Show Respect For Men

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/women-election-candidates-in-swaziland.html

Vote-Rigging Claims During Swaziland’s Election Grow. Calls For Some Polls To Be Re-Run

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/vote-rigging-claims-during-swazilands.html

Swaziland’s Independent Observation Group Says Election ‘Free And Fair’ But Identifies Many Shortcomings

https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2018/09/swazilands-independent-observation.html