Confirmation
that King Mswati III, aged 49, is to take a teenager as his latest
wife shines
the spotlight firmly on the King’s marital history.
His
latest choice is Siphelele Mashwama, aged 19, who is the daughter of a
Swaziland Cabinet minister, Jabulile Mashwama. In 2013 the King chose an 18-year-old
‘former beauty pageant contestant’ Sindiswa Dlamini as his wife. Both the
teenagers are younger than some of the King’s own children.
There is
some confusion as to whether King Mswati’s latest bride will be his 14th
or 15th. The confusion is excusable since the number of wives the King
has is considered a state secret in Swaziland and it is ‘un-Swazi’ to talk
openly about the King’s polygamy.
The new bride is reported to be a graduate of Swaziland’s Waterford Kamhlaba World University College. She went with the King this week to the United Nations General Assembly meeting in the United States.
She was introduced at the annual Reed Dance where tens of thousands of women described as ‘virgins’ danced bare-breasted for the King.
King Mswati has been ridiculed outside of Swaziland for his likening of teenage women. Media in South Africa nicknamed Sindiswa Dlamini ‘naughty Sindie’.
The Sunday Sun newspaper in South Africa in 2014 reported she had affairs with two of King Mswati’s sons, Prince Majaha and Prince Bandzile, who were both in their early twenties. One unnamed source told the newspaper, ‘Sindi has dated both these boys. She’s a party girl used to having fun.’
The new bride is reported to be a graduate of Swaziland’s Waterford Kamhlaba World University College. She went with the King this week to the United Nations General Assembly meeting in the United States.
She was introduced at the annual Reed Dance where tens of thousands of women described as ‘virgins’ danced bare-breasted for the King.
King Mswati has been ridiculed outside of Swaziland for his likening of teenage women. Media in South Africa nicknamed Sindiswa Dlamini ‘naughty Sindie’.
The Sunday Sun newspaper in South Africa in 2014 reported she had affairs with two of King Mswati’s sons, Prince Majaha and Prince Bandzile, who were both in their early twenties. One unnamed source told the newspaper, ‘Sindi has dated both these boys. She’s a party girl used to having fun.’
Another informant told the Sunday Sun, ‘Sindi is no virgin. She
drinks and smokes a lot and has tattoos on parts of her body I cannot mention.’
One source told the newspaper,
‘She is only doing it [marrying the King] because she comes from a poor
background.’
The media
in Swaziland never report about the King without his permission. This means
people across the world are better informed than the King’s subjects, the Swazi
people. Most media in the kingdom are under direct state control, opposition
political parties are banned as ‘terrorist’ organisations and any political
dissent is quickly crushed by police and the army.
In 2011, the Independent group of newspapers in South Africa reported that three of the King’s 13 queens had abandoned him since he took the throne in 1986. And more of his wives were trying to break out of the palace.
The Independent reported, ‘A royal source says some of the queens are frustrated as the King has allowed many months to pass without “visiting” them. They accuse him of seeking his pleasures outside the palace instead.’
In 2011, the Independent group of newspapers in South Africa reported that three of the King’s 13 queens had abandoned him since he took the throne in 1986. And more of his wives were trying to break out of the palace.
The Independent reported, ‘A royal source says some of the queens are frustrated as the King has allowed many months to pass without “visiting” them. They accuse him of seeking his pleasures outside the palace instead.’
The
Independent added, ‘This comes after revelations about the recent unceremonious
departure from the palace of LaDube, the King’s estranged 12th wife, after she
had been accused of having a relationship with former minister of justice and
constitutional affairs Ndumiso Mamba. To make matters worse, Mamba was the
king’s business confidant and friend.
‘After
the affair came to the King’s attention, he denied LaDube conjugal rights,
according to insiders. They say he was trying to make palace life intolerable
for her so that she would leave.
‘She is
officially no longer part of the royal family and has been dumped at her
maternal grandmother’s home in Hhohho.’
The
newspaper reported, ‘LaDube was the third of Mswati’s wives to leave the
palace. She
followed LaMagwaza and LaHwala, who both now live in South Africa.
‘LaMagwaza
was accused of having a steamy sexual relationship with a South African toy
boy. Sources claimed that she was sex starved, as the King would not visit her.’
It added,
‘LaHwala was also neglected by the king who would deny her conjugal rights for
six months at a time.’
See also
KING’S
WIFE THROWN OUT OF PALACE
NO FOOD
OR BEDDING FOR KING’S WIFE
SWAZI KING’S
WIFE ‘BEGS FOR RESCUE’
SEX SCANDAL
QUEEN SEEN IN PUBLIC
SWAZI QUEEN’S
SORRY TALE OF ABUSE
