Swaziland democracy activists are calling for
international sanctions and a travel ban to be imposed on King Mswati III,
sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch, his Royal family, and his government
ministers.
The Swaziland Diaspora Platform says the king is ‘a
dictator’ who treats his kingdom ‘as his personal piggy bank’.
The call comes in the week that it was reported that
three of the king’s 13 wives will travel to Las Vegas with an entourage of about
65 people on a multimillion-rand spending spree and vacation.
Reports say the trip will cost the Swazi taxpayers at
least R36 million (US$4.6 million). Seven in ten of the king’s subjects
live in abject poverty, earning less than US$2 a day. Political parties are
banned in the kingdom and all forms of prodemocracy protest are quashed by
state forces.
The SDP, in a statement, said, ‘The King and government's lavish spending
continues whilst hundreds of thousands of Swazis are forced to continue to
struggle to make ends meet and depend on aid in a country that should be able
to sustain its people were it managed by an accountable and transparent government
delivering on a people's mandate.’
It added, ‘Public Service trade unions such as teachers
have been engaged in strike action in Swaziland for almost five weeks now over
demands for a small salary increase of 4.5 percent, which would be their first
increase in three years.
‘Government, under the authoritarian command of King
Mswati III has been brutal in response, setting the police and army on workers,
preventing them from exercising their rights to strike, freedom to assemble and
freedom of expression amongst others.
‘It is beyond deplorable that King Mswati III in the
midst of this crisis finds in appropriate to use millions to take a huge
entourage of his household on a luxury holiday and shopping trip to one of the
most expensive holiday resorts in the world - Las Vegas via a five-day trip to
Namibia.’
The SDP went on, ‘This trip will cost millions in cash
that could be used to address the plight of civil servants. Once again the poor
and struggling workers are left to bear the brunt of an economy that is in
crisis and a government that claims to be cash-strapped, yet continues with
purchases of luxury cars for government officials to the tune of US$20 million
and funding luxury trips for the monarch, and increasing the police salary
budget by US$2.5million, which will have no benefit for the impoverished
majority and financially distressed workers of Swaziland.
‘As King Mswati III travels to the United States of
America using millions of dollars that could address basic services due to the
people of Swaziland, the Swaziland Diaspora Platform urges governments like the
USA to seriously consider travel bans and sanctions on this authoritarian
government.
‘Whilst the US government issued sanctions on countries
like Syria and Iran because those regimes are censoring Internet activity on
social media such as Facebook and Twitter by human rights activists; Swazis
have long been censored.
‘Internet penetration even with cellphone technology is
very low, at less than 10 percent, yet media is controlled by the monarch and
his government. All radio and television broadcasting stations are owned by the
state and most newspaper media is constantly under pressure, therefore the use
of media to disseminate information that critique government or encourage
citizenship is not possible.
‘The banning of political parties, freedom of
association, freedom of expression and freedom of the media in Swaziland is
just as bad as the authoritarian regimes censoring Internet activism, it is
therefore within reason to request that King Mswati III, his children, family,
parliamentarians and senior government officials be penalized and sanctioned.’
See also
SWAZI QUEENS OFF ON SHOPPING SPREE
