ELECTION ORGANIZER’S SUSPECT PROMISES

King Mswati’s propaganda machine is still trying to convince the world that the elections taking place in Swaziland, that started this week, are not a shambles.

The Swazi Observer, a newspaper in effect owned by the king, is reporting that the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC), whose members were chosen by the king, will have no problems conducting  the primary elections that take place on Saturday (24 August 2013).

This is after thousands of people were unable to vote on Thursday (22 August 2013) because voting officials turned up late and ballot papers were not available.  

The EBC had decided that its own workers and members of state security forces should vote early because they would be on duty on the day everyone else was expected to vote.

Up to 7,000 people were affected by the shambles and the EBC was forced to close polling venues and ask people to return the next day.

The newspaper described the election process as ‘well planned’.

Now, the Observer has reported categorically that, ‘All material needed to run the primary elections have been delivered to the (EBC) and no delays and disturbances, like those experienced [on Thursday], are expected [on Saturday].

It quoted an EBC source saying, ‘All my polling stations have now been supplied with their ballot papers and we expect to begin as early as 7am, helping voters to cast their votes.’

It also quoted EBC’s Programme Director Richard Phungwayo saying, ‘the delays experienced would not be repeated. He said the nation must be prepared to vote smoothly and without delays.’

It remains to be seen what happens at polling stations on Saturday, but at least the Swazi people will be able to judge the EBC’s performance against the clear promises it has made to them.

See also

KING’S PAPER IN PROPAGANDA OVERDRIVE

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/kings-paper-in-propaganda-overdrive.html

 

ELECTION GRINDS TO A HALT

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/election-grinds-to-halt.html

 

ELECTION NOMINATIONS CREDIBILITY DAMAGED

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/swazi-election-credibility-damaged.html

ELECTION GRINDS TO A HALT

Thousands of people were reportedly turned back from polling stations in Swaziland as the kingdom’s primary elections ground to a halt on Thursday (22 August 2013).

The kingdom’s Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) had arranged a special day of voting for its own staff and security forces personnel.

All the polling stations to serve the whole kingdom were allocated in the city of Manzini, but many had no ballot papers.

As many as 7,000 people had been expected to vote. Election officers told waiting crowds to return on Friday.

The Times of Swaziland, the only independent daily newspaper in the kingdom, reported, ‘The voting took place in Manzini where staff from all the regions had been allocated different polling stations. However, only a handful were able to cast their votes.’

It added, ‘The [EBC] had announced that the voting process would start at 2pm, but hundreds had started flocking in at the stated centres as early as 10am from all over the country. They queued for eight hours and they were told to go back home at about 6pm.

‘First, the process was delayed for over an hour and upon commencement, there was pushing and shoving as the voters tried to get into the voting room in order to return home on time.The delay, some officials alleged, had been caused by the fact that some presiding officers, who were supposed to conduct the voting, had not arrived and there were no ballot papers in quite a number of the stations.’

The EBC employed about 4 000 Swazis as elections officers, returning officers, presiding officers and clerks. Members of the Umbutfo Swaziland Defence Force, that employs about 3,000 officers, the Royal Swaziland Police and His Majesty’s Correctional Services were among those who had been called to vote, the newspaper reported.

The EBC later confirmed there was a shortage of voting material at polling stations.

The primary election for ordinary Swazi people is due to take place on Saturday (24 August 2013).

See also

ELECTION LAW BROKEN ACROSS KINGDOM

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/election-law-broken-across-kingdom.html
 

CANDIDATES SAY ELECTION ‘SABOTAGED’

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/candidates-say-election-sabotaged.html

SWAZI LAW BANS ELECTION CAMPAIGNING

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/swazi-law-bans-election-campaigning.html

ELECTION NOMINATIONS CREDIBILITY DAMAGED

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/swazi-election-credibility-damaged.html

SWAZI ELECTION ‘WILL BE A FRAUD’

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/02/swazi-election-will-be-fraud.html

KING’S PAPER IN PROPAGANDA OVERDRIVE

The Swazi Observer, the newspaper in effect owned by King Mswati III, has gone into propaganda overdrive in reporting the current election in the kingdom.

On Thursday (22 August 2013), it quoted extensively from a report made by the Electoral Institute of Southern Africa (EISA) into conduct at the last election held in Swaziland in 2008.

According to the Observer, EISA said the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC), the body set up by the king to oversee the election process, ‘managed to achieve notable progress despite the lack of time and by comparison to the previous election [in 2003].’

EISA did indeed make such an observation, but it also went on to say this, ‘There is much yet to be done, for the Swazi legal and constitutional framework is sorely deficient and Swaziland falls far short of the standards that would have to be met in order for the country to be classed as a democracy.’

King Mswati rules Swaziland as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch. Political parties are banned from taking part in the election and opposition groups to the king are branded ‘terrorists’ under the Suppression of Terrorism Act. Democracy advocates have been arrested and charged with sedition.

EISA made a scathing critique of the EBC and its relationship to the King.

This is what the EISA Election Observer Mission Report 2008 said, and the Observer report omitted.

‘Almost all the stakeholders regarded the members of the EBC as royal appointees.

‘Stakeholders did not regard the EBC as independent and believed that the EBC operated under the instruction of the King. Stakeholders also expressed the view that the EBC was not representative of society as a whole, but was drawn exclusively from government officials or members of the aristocracy.

‘Most believed that the Commissioners do not meet the qualifications laid down in the constitution in Article 90(6): “The chairperson, deputy chairperson and the other members of the Commission shall possess the qualifications of a Judge of the superior courts or be persons of high moral character, proven integrity, relevant experience and demonstrable competence in the conduct of public affairs”’.

EISA added, ‘Most stakeholders were of the view that the EBC was lacking in transparency and secretive in its operations. They felt that even information that should indisputably have been in the public domain, such as the election timetable, was given out piecemeal and very late in the day.’

In its report EISA made several recommendations, and this was its first:

‘Enormous power is concentrated in the hands of the King. The direct active role that the King plays in the political life of Swaziland has polarised the Swazi people. This is in direct conflict with his higher and more crucial role as the living embodiment of the Swazi nation and of its culture:

‘Executive authority is vested in the hands of a hereditary monarch and not in the hands of a democratically elected office-bearer who is answerable to the electorate. The Team recommends that executive power be vested in a Prime Minister who should be answerable to the House of Assembly as the elected representatives of the citizens of Swaziland.

‘One­ third of the members of Parliament are appointed by and answerable to the King, who is not an elected office-bearer. The Team recommends that the number of executive appointees be drastically reduced and the purpose of the appointments be clearly defined in the Constitution. All such appointments should be made by the King on the advice of the Prime Minister and ratified by the House of Assembly ...

‘The King effectively has the power to veto legislation and Parliament cannot override the veto. The Team recommends that the King have the power to veto legislation only once and that vetoed legislation can then be passed by Parliament in a constitutionally determined process and by a constitutionally determined majority.

‘There is an almost universal perception amongst stakeholders that the King has undue powers in regard to the appointment of the members of the EBC and in its day to day functioning, so that its independence from the executive is brought into question.

‘The Team recommends that alternative models of appointing the EBC be explored, and adapted to Swaziland’s needs so as to secure the EBC’s independence from the executive and the perception of independence in the eyes of stakeholders.’

MASS ACTION FOR DEMOCRACY PLANNED

Organisers of a march for democracy in Swaziland say they expect 10,000 people to take part.

Marchers hope to deliver petitions to various government ministries calling for among other things a people’s parliament; quality jobs and affordable education, health and social services.

The march in Mbabane, jointly organised by the Swaziland National Union of Students, the Swaziland United Democratic Front (SUDF) and the Swaziland Democracy Campaign (SDC), is part of the annual Global Week of Action for Democracy in Swaziland and is due to take place on 5 September 2013.

In a statement, organisers predicted 10,000 people would take part in the march. It is one of a series of events planned during August and September.

On 6 September, the SUDF and the SDC hope to run what is billed as a ‘people’s summit’ in Manzini with the intention ‘to profile the boycott of the Tinkhundla election and provide an alternative’.

It is doubtful that the police in Swaziland will permit this summit to go head. In March and April police broke up prayer meetings, a public meeting and a rally that were all designed to discuss the election.

Last year, heavily armed police invaded the Bosco Skills Centre, Manzini, to break up a similar summit.

The election is due on 20 September and is largely recognised outside of Swaziland to be undemocratic. Political parties are banned from taking part and the parliament that is elected has no powers as these are held by King Mswati III, who rules Swaziland as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch.

Opposition to the election is not permitted in Swaziland and leaders of protest activities have been arrested and some charged with sedition.

See also

STATE FORCES STOP PROTEST RALLY

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2012/09/state-forces-stop-protest-rally.html

 

POLICE FIRE TEARGAS TO STOP STUDENTS

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2012/09/police-fire-teargas-to-stop-students.html

STUDENTS LEAD SECOND DAY OF PROTEST

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2012/09/students-lead-second-day-of-protest.html

DISABLED PEOPLE ‘TREATED LIKE ANIMALS’

Disabled people in Swaziland have asked traditional authorities in the kingdom to remember that they are human beings too.

This was said at a meeting of the Association for People Living with Disabilities in the Ngcamphalala Chiefdom of Swaziland.

The meeting which attracted 92 people with disabilities explored the challenges they faced in the area.

In particular they were concerned that a local development by Swaziland Water Agricultural Development Enterprise (SWADE) which empowered people through agricultural schemes such as growing sugar cane had excluded them. 

Sifiso Nhleko, chair of the local Association for People Living with Disabilities, group told local media, ‘The chiefdom’s inner council has let us down as they have done nothing to include us in the development yet they know that we exist. They have not approved our involvement in the development.’

He added, ‘We are also human beings and deserve to be included in development.  People without disabilities treat us as if we are animals and government and development agencies do not take us into consideration when implementing development.’

The experiences of the disabled people in Ngcamphalala are common in Swaziland, where they are marginalised by traditions and superstitions.

A report published by SINTEF Technology and Society, Global Health and Welfare in 2011 that studied living conditions among people with disabilities in Swaziland, found, ‘There is a general belief that those who have a disability are bewitched or inflicted by bad spirits.

‘Many believe that being around people with disabilities can bring bad luck. As a result, many people with disabilities are hidden in their homesteads and are not given an opportunity to participate and contribute to society.’

The report was the result of an extensive study in the kingdom in 2009 and 2010.

It also found that people with disabilities had been abandoned by the Swazi Government. The report stated, ‘The absence of any comprehensive laws and policies to address people with disabilities’ access to equal opportunities reflect a lack of political will and a failure to recognize disability as a human right issue contributes to the devaluing and dehumanising of people with disabilities.

‘People with disabilities have the same rights as able-bodied people and they are entitled to enjoy all citizenry rights.’

It was upbeat about the contributions people with disabilities could make to Swaziland.

‘People with disabilities tend to be more open minded, flexible and less constrained by the negative aspects of “tradition”.

‘They have eagerness and ability to learn; they are less afraid of technological and social change ad adjustment; they have an instinct for social responsibility, and if appropriately applied to, they have energy ready to be applied to the development objectives of Swaziland.’

UK SUPPORTS JAILED SWAZI ACTIVIST

Students in the UK are to pay the university fees of Swaziland democracy campaigner Maxwell Dlamini after he was stopped from going to school because of his political beliefs.

Maxwell is the former leader of the Swaziland National Union of Students who was arrested and charged with possessing explosives at a democracy rally in 2011 and sedition after trying to organise a rally in April 2013 to oppose Swaziland’s non-democratic election.

He was released from jail, but on stringent bail conditions pending trial, after a global campaign to free him. He later reported he had been beaten while in jail.

The Swazi Government withdrew his scholarship to study at the University of Swaziland as punishment for his political activities.

Political parties are unable to operate in Swaziland where King Mswati III rules as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch. All opposition groups are banned as ‘terrorists’ under the Suppression of Terrorism Act.

Now, Dom Anderson, NUS Vice President (Society and Citizenship), has announced the UK National Union of Students will pay Dlamini’s school fees for the next term.

Dlamini had addressed the NUS conference in the UK earlier this year about the lack of democracy in Swaziland and the pressure student activists face.

Anderson said in a statement, ‘Students across the UK mobilized; Facebook profile pictures were replaced by the face of Maxwell for our campaign’s call to “Free Maxwell”.

‘MPs up and down the country received letters and emails from concerned students showing solidarity and demanding justice for Maxwell. At NUS we received unprecedented levels of support. It was wonderful to see students united against oppression being faced by one of our own, it was an action that followed in the tradition of global justice campaigning that NUS owes its history to.’

Maxwell told the UK NUS, ‘My release on bail was not just the benevolence of the undemocratic government but it was the tireless and relentless work of the UK NUS and all those who were involved in the campaign for my unconditional release.

‘The pressure they placed on government and profiling the case as wide as possible really exposed the kind of government that suppresses and repressed dissent and peace loving citizens. I was not going to be released if it wasn’t for the wonderful work of the campaign initiators.’

‘I am currently out on bail, I have not yet been allocated a court date to go and appear in court for the case. It is usual in Swaziland that people are placed on indefinite bail especially on political cases because government usually don’t have a case against the said accused they are placed on indefinite bail.

‘We however are doing everything possible with my lawyer to call for a speedy and fair trial so that the truth on the matter can be exposed to all.’

Anderson said, ‘Swaziland is a really harsh country to be a student activist. Those who support democracy and rights can expect to face intimidation and harassment from the regime at the very least, in the case of Maxwell, they can face a great deal worse.’

See also

POLICE HARASS STUDENT LEADER

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/01/police-harass-student-leader.html

 

POLICE TORTURE STUDENT LEADER

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2012/03/police-torture-student-leader.html

 

NOW, ELECTION MEETINGS ARE SEDITIOUS

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/04/now-election-meetings-are-seditious.html

SCHOOL FLOGS BOYS ON BARE BUTTOCKS

The head teacher at a Catholic school in Swaziland forces boys to lower their trousers so he can beat them on their bare buttocks.

This is the latest example of child abuse at schools to emerge from the kingdom where children, girls as well as boys, are regularly flogged, often ritually, as punishment.

The latest case happened at Salesian High School, Manzini.

Outraged parents have reported head teacher Petross Horton to the Swaziland Action Group Against Abuse (SWAGAA).

One parent of a pupil at the all-boys’ school told the Times of Swaziland newspaper, ‘My child said the head teacher forced him to lower his trousers and them battered his bare buttocks with a stick so big it was like a plank.’

Parents have described the bare-bottomed beatings as, ‘indecent harassment and brutality’.

Horton told the newspaper on ‘rare occasions’ he had to force boys to lower their trousers so he could punish them on the flesh. He said he had to deal with cases of smoking and absconding of classes.

Although corporal punishment of children is legal in Swaziland, there are rules about how it can be administered, which do not include floggings on the bare.

Teachers across Swaziland regularly ignore the regulations and abuse schoolchildren.

In 2012, Save the Children Swaziland condemned teachers at Lusoti Primary for beating all the children at the school after one pupil made a noise in assembly.

In October 2011, the same group told the United Nations Human Rights Periodic Review held in Geneva that corporal punishment in Swazi schools was out of control. It highlighted Mhlatane High School in northern Swaziland where it said pupils were ‘tortured’ in the name of punishment. It said, ‘Teachers can administer as many strokes [of the cane] as they desire, much against the limit stipulated in the regulations from the Ministry of Education.’

In a separate case, girls at Mpofu High School were flogged by teachers on their bare flesh and if they resisted they were chained down so the beating could continue. The girls reported they received up to 40 strokes at a time.

In another case, a 10-year-old girl at kaLanga Nazarene Primary school was blinded for life in her left eye after a splinter from a teacher’s stick flew and struck it during punishment. And she was not the child being punished. She was injured when her teacher was hitting another pupil, with a stick which broke.

Children at Emtfonjeni High School were whipped with up to 10 strokes of a stick, because their school fees have not been paid. A majority of the pupils at the school are orphaned and depend on government to pay for their fees. 

A pupil in Swaziland was thrashed so hard that he later collapsed unconscious and had to be rushed to a clinic. Six pupils at Mafucula High school were thrashed with 20 strokes of a ‘small log’ because they were singing in class. It was reported that the boy who became unconscious was not one of those misbehaving, but he was flogged nonetheless.

The principal at Elangeni High, even publicly flogs adults who date pupils at his school. The men are forced to attend in front of the entire school, lie down on a bench and receive a whipping. The girls are also flogged.

See also

SWAZI SCHOOL ‘TORTURES’ STUDENTS

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2011/09/swazi-school-tortures-students.html

 

CHILDREN CHAINED AND FLOGGED BARE

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2011/03/pupils-chained-and-flogged-bare.html

PROBE VICIOUS SCHOOL BEATINGS

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2011/03/probe-vicious-school-beatings.html

 

SCHOOL FLOGGINGS OUT OF CONTROL

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2011/02/school-floggings-out-of-control.html

 

SCHOOL HEAD PUBLICLY FLOGS ADULTS

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2011/02/school-head-publicly-flogs-adults.html

SWAZILAND BANS FEASTS AHEAD OF POLL

In a desperate bid to stop illegal campaigning in the run up to the primary elections in Swaziland, the Elections and Boundaries (EBC) has banned all feasts and parties in the kingdom.

 

All campaigning ahead of the primary election is banned by law in Swaziland, but candidates have been ignoring this. Police have been called to various events to deal with allegations that parties and social gathering were disguise delection events. 

 

At a media conference EBC chair Chief Gija Dlamini announced the ban on feasts and parties until the primary election takes place on Saturday (24 August 2013).

He said, however, events such as marriages which had long been planned cannot be taken as parties to lure people into voting for individuals and could go ahead.

The winners at the primaries become their chiefdom’s candidate in the ‘secondary’ elections on 20 September, where they compete against each other at the Inkhundla (constituency) level to be elected to the House of Assembly.

The elections are widely seen inside and outside Swaziland as irrelevant. Political parties are banned from taking part and the parliament that is elected has no power as this rests with King Mswati III, who rules Swaziland as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch.

The secondary elections are for 55 members of the 65-seat House of Assembly. The other 10 members are appointed by the king. None of the 30-strong Swaziland Senate is elected by the people: the king appoints 20 members and the other 10 are elected the House of Assembly.

See also

ELECTION LAW BROKEN ACROSS KINGDOM

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/election-law-broken-across-kingdom.html

SWAZI LAW BANS ELECTION CAMPAIGNING

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/swazi-law-bans-election-campaigning.html

COMMUNITY POLICE BANISH GAY MEN

Police banished two men from their community in Swaziland because they were gay.

The men, one aged 18 and the other 21, moved from the Lubombo region to Mvutshini to stay with the aunt of one of them.

Neighbours became suspicious about the relationship between the two men and when confronted they readily agreed they were gay.

The aunt then reported them to the community police.

The Swazi News, an independent newspaper, reported, ‘A meeting was convened where the boys were called to explain their lifestyle. They confirmed that they were gay and that is when they were ordered to immediately leave the area.’

The following day the two men left the area.

The aunt told the newspaper, ‘I was afraid of being labelled all sorts of names in the area and be accused of harbouring gay people in my house. My other problem was that local men would have ended up quarrelling with their wives and resorted to being gay because of the boys living under my roof.’

Sicelo Vilane, a member of the community police, told the newspaper the community was increasingly getting worried about growing ‘bad tendencies’ in the area and, ‘they, together with responsible residents, were on a mission of getting rid of all bad elements’.

Homosexuality is illegal in Swaziland. In November 2011, Chief Mgwagwa Gamedze, Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, said Swaziland would not give human rights to gay people, because they did not exist in the kingdom.  

 

Gamedze was responding to criticism of Swaziland by a United Nations working group on human rights that said the kingdom should enact equality laws for LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) people.

Gamedze also told the United Nations that while consensual same-sex relations were illegal in Swaziland, the Government did not pursue prosecutions.

Discrimination against gay and lesbian people in Swaziland is rife and extends to workplaces, the churches and on to the streets. 

HOOP (House of Our Pride), a support group for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Inter-sex (GLBTI) people, reported to the United Nation in 2011, ‘It is a common scene for GLBTI to be verbally insulted by by-passers in public places. [There is] defamatory name calling and people yelling out to see a GLBTI person’s reproductive part are some of the issues facing GLBTI in Swaziland.’

‘Faith houses have been known to discriminate against GLBTI, advocating for the alienation of GLBTI in the family and society, while maintaining that these GLBTI are possessed by demons.’ HOOP also said GLBTI people were often discriminated against at work and there had been well known cases of this.

In one of the first reports of its kind detailing sexual orientation discrimination in Swaziland, HOOP revealed, ‘GLBTI are hugely discriminated against in the community, as they are not recognized at community meetings and their points are often not minuted at these meetings nor are they allowed to take part in community services.’

Police often ridiculed GLBTI people if they reported they have been victims of violent crime, HOOP said.

See also

GAY PREJUDICE RIFE IN SWAZILAND

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2011/09/gay-prejudice-rife-in-swaziland.html

 

NO RIGHTS FOR GAYS: JUSTICE MINISTER

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2011/11/no-rights-for-gays-justice-minister.html

 

SWAZI MINISTER LIES TO UN ON GAYS

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2011/10/swazi-minister-lies-to-un-on-gays.html

SECURITY FORCES ‘SPY ON CANDIDATES’

Swazi security forces are monitoring some of the candidates nominated to contest the forthcoming Swaziland national election because they are members of a political party.

The Swaziland Democratic Party (SWADEPA) reports that some of its members, who were nominated earlier this month (August 2013), are being scrutinised by state security forces.

Political parties are banned from taking part in the elections in Swaziland where King Mswati III rules as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch.

SWADEPA leadership said before the election nominations took place its members would stand for the House of Assembly, but only as individuals.

SWADEPA now fears for the safety of those of its members who were nominated.

Secretary General Archie Sayed, who is himself standing for election, told local media his party would not disclose publicly the names of its members who were nominated.

He said the party had decided to protect its members from any possible harassment by state security forces.

‘We cannot reveal the names of our members until further notice. This is for security reasons. We are being monitored. We have received reports from our members that they are being monitored by state security agents,’ he said.

SWADEPA is one of two political parties that declared that it would take part in the elections: the other party is Sibahle Sinje Sive Siyinqaba, a pro-Royalist organisation.

See also

NEW ELECTION BLUNDER IN SWAZILAND

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/new-election-blunder-in-swaziland.html

NEW ELECTION BLUNDER IN SWAZILAND

A major blunder by Swaziland’s Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) has meant some people had to nominate candidates in the forthcoming primary election for a second time.

The EBC erroneously combined two election districts at the nominations during the weekend of 3-4 August 2013.

When the mistake was discovered the EBC ordered the people of Njabulweni, near Lubhuku, in the Dvokodvweni Constituency, to nominate again.

The Times of Swaziland, the only independent daily newspaper in the kingdom, reported that Njabulweni and Malindza were combined for the nominations, although they should have been separate.

It reported, ‘A presiding officer told voters [of Njabulweni] to elect at least five people to add to the 13 who were nominated during the nominations process at Malindza Umphakatsi.’

It said, however, the turnout for the second nomination was not good and only four candidates were nominated.

The blunder is the latest in a long line of problems besetting the election.

Some people who wanted to nominate candidates were prevented from doing so because electoral officers would not allow it, while some names of those who were nominated were then left off the EBC’s official list of candidates.

And separately, some public servants were nominated against the election rules because they did not have permission letters from their employers.

Some people boycotted the election nomination completely in protest that venues selected for the nominations were unsuitable. Elsewhere equipment failures delayed the start of nominations.

The candidates were nominated at Imiphakatsi (chiefdoms) where they were chosen to compete against one another in ‘primary’ elections.  Since the nominations were completed, there have been reports from across Swaziland of people illegally campaigning.  The law states that there can be no campaigning ahead of the primary elections, which are due on 24 August.

The winners at the primaries become their chiefdom’s candidate in the ‘secondary’ elections on 20 September, where they compete against each other at the Inkhundla (constituency) level to be elected to the House of Assembly.

The elections are widely seen inside and outside Swaziland as irrelevant. Political parties are banned from taking part and the parliament that is elected has no power as this rests with King Mswati III, who rules Swaziland as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch.

The secondary elections are for 55 members of the 65-seat House of Assembly. The other 10 members are appointed by the king. None of the 30-strong Swaziland Senate is elected by the people: the king appoints 20 members and the other 10 are elected the House of Assembly.

See also

ELECTION LAW BROKEN ACROSS KINGDOM

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/election-law-broken-across-kingdom.html

 

CANDIDATES SAY ELECTION ‘SABOTAGED’

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/candidates-say-election-sabotaged.html

SWAZI LAW BANS ELECTION CAMPAIGNING

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/swazi-law-bans-election-campaigning.html

ELECTION NOMINATIONS CREDIBILITY DAMAGED

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/08/swazi-election-credibility-damaged.html

SWAZI ELECTION ‘WILL BE A FRAUD’

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2013/02/swazi-election-will-be-fraud.html