Swaziland@Newsletter 72
Published by Africa Contact (Denmark)

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democratic movement.
_________________________________________

1. Musa Hlophe, Swaziland Coalition of Concerned Civic Organisations
Warns Government: Swazi Elections are Illegal. 30 July 2008.

2. Interview: SADC turning blind eye to Swazi repression: Siphasha
Dlamini (PUDEMO). Mmegi/The Reporter (Gaborone). 25 July 2008.

3. Swaziland king invites Mugabe to royal independence festivities.
Agence France Presse, July 26 2008.

4. Swazi unions plan street protests over food prices. AFP (Mbabane)
28 July 2008.

5. International Monetary Fund (IMF): Low economic growth rate. The
Swazi Observer, 29 July 2008.

________________________________________

Dear friends

In this edition of the newsletter, there are a number of statements
with which it is difficult to disagree.

Swaziland Coalition of Concerned Civic Organisations (SCCCO): the
announcement of national elections for 19 September (is) premature,
unconstitutional and therefore illegal.

Siphasha Dlamini (PUDEMO): Our primary objective has always been the
establishment of a multi-party democracy system in Swaziland. However,
we are also particularly worried about the human rights situation in
our country.

Agence France Presse: While world leaders have condemned as a sham
Mugabe's victory in a Zimbabwean presidential run-off, Africa's last
absolute monarch is "looking forward" to hosting its neighbour's
president on September 6.

Jan Sithole, general secretary of the Swaziland Federation of Trade
Unions (SFTU): Trade union members (will) stage a mass protest on the
eve of Swaziland's 40th independence anniversary to voice their anger
at rising food prices.

International Monetary Fund (IMF): When the rest of sub-Saharan
Africa was growing over the last decade, the economy of the Kingdom of
Swaziland stagnated.

If all this is the case, then it would appear that something must
change. It is perhaps difficult, but nonetheless necessary.

Patrick Mac Manus
Editor
Swaziland@Newsletter

________________________________________


1. Musa Hlophe, Swaziland Coalition of Concerned Civic Organisations
warns government Swazi elections are illegal. 30 July, 2008.

The Swaziland Coalition of Concerned Civic Organisations today, 30
July 2008, issued a warning to government of the Kingdom of Swaziland
declaring the announcement of national elections for 19 September as
premature, unconstitutional and therefore illegal.

Existing Cases

It notes that the status of political parties and how national
elections are to be contested is already before the courts in a case
submitted by our colleagues at the National Constitutional Assembly.
It is further dismayed by the government high-handed attitude to the
Coalitions own case, submitted to the High Court last week, asking
for the appointment of the purported Elections and Boundaries
Commission to be set aside and for all actions and decisions taken by
them to be declared unlawful and also set aside.

The decision to go ahead with the elections in spite of the cases
before the courts seems to pre-suppose the outcome of the cases. The
decision is informed by either arrogance or ignorance but either way
it puts at risk the reputation of Parliament as well as chancing the
millions of Emalangeni of public funds that are being spent in the
organisation of an election that may be declared illegal.

Delaying Tactics

The NCAs case is already under way and the Coalition?s case is
structured in such a way that the governments previous tactics of
delaying the hearing of a case until the points to be argued are long
past and therefore academic cannot work. The Minister for Justice and
Constitutional Affairs, Prince David, the Attorney General, and the
Deputy Attorney General have all been personally served with notices
and so must be aware of their contents. As lawyers of national
standing, and the government?s legal officers, we would expect the AG
and Deputy AG to have advised caution to their colleagues.

Full Knowledge

The risks of going ahead with the elections have been taken by the
government with open eyes and full foreknowledge. The enormity of the
consequences of losing cannot be used as an argument. The facts will
not be academic; the issues will not be moot.

The Coalition believes that the appropriate response of the government
should be to avoid using their habitual, but ineffective, delaying
tactics: reply to the case in as short a period as possible and let
the courts decide these cases of national and constitutional
importance sooner rather than later.

For more information please contact:
Musa I N Hlophe,
+268 6048988 sccco@...


________________________________________

2. Interview: SADC turning blind eye to Swazi repression - Siphasha
Dlamini (PUDEMO). Mmegi/The Reporter (Gaborone). 25 July 2008.


Mmegi staff writer TSHIRELETSO MOTLOGELWA catches up with SIPHASHA
DLAMINI, Secretary General of Swaziland's opposition movement,
People's United Democratic Movement, on the sidelines of the Botswana
National Front's Jwaneng conference.

MMEGI: Welcome to Botswana. Take us back, how was the Peoples United
Democratic Movement formed?

DLAMINI: It was really conceived a while back. It existed perhaps as
an idea at the height of the liberation struggle. A lot of Swazi
people who were involved with the liberation movement in apartheid
South Africa had a major input in the formation of the movement. The
Soweto Uprising and other events then also had a bearing on the rest
of the sub-continent; meaning that the mood had a ripple effect on the
rest of the region.

In Swaziland in particular, King Sobhuza II suspended the constitution
in 1973, and imposed a state of emergency, which granted the monarchy
absolute power and banned opposition movements.

All these events led to the emergence of an organised group, which
opposed the state of affairs and in 1983 PUDEMO was officially formed.

The Youth League was formed in 1992 and the Women's League the following year.
What were the major objectives of PUDEMO?

Our primary objective has always been the establishment of a
multi-party democracy system in Swaziland. However, we are also
particularly worried about the human rights situation in our country.

Swaziland is an absolute monarchy. What does this mean for a political
party such as yours?

We are a banned organisation because, according to the constitution,
political parties are illegal.

How do you run an illegal organisation successfully? Where do you get
funding? How do you measure the level of your following?

We just depend on our own personal earnings to sustain the movement.
We have a major problem because people feel threatened to come out and
support even if they follow us. The monarchy is very powerful and for
anyone to take membership in our party they would have to forgo a lot
in their personal and professional life. However, we know that we have
a substantial following because the position we hold is what the
majority of Swazis support.

We know that the situation in Swaziland is perhaps similar to that
obtaining in Zimbabwe. Why is it so difficult to get the world's
attention on the Swaziland situation even though it has been unfolding
for a long time?

Zimbabwe is a mess just like Swaziland. But I believe Swaziland is
worse because it does not even have any pretence to adhering to some
democratic system. In Zimbabwe there was a time when some sort of
democratic system was used whereas in Swaziland none of that ever
happened and the repression is at the same level if not worse.

The reason why the Swaziland issue has not captured the attention of
the world, the Western world in particular, is because the monarchy
serves the interests of the former colonisers. The monarchy is not a
threat to Western interests. Remember that even the Zimbabwean issue
never captured global attention until Mugabe became a threat to the
corporate and imperialist interests.

But also you have SADC, which has shown the same lukewarm attitude
toward the state of democracy in Swaziland. I mean Swaziland is a
signatory to so many SADC protocols on elections and democratic
governance. They do not even uphold any of those principles and yet
you won't hear any complaint from SADC.


How do you see the Botswana situation then?

Botswana is similar to Swaziland in many ways. The political system in
Botswana is favourable to the imperialist interests; so that is why
Botswana continues to be praised as an icon of democracy despite the
open limitations in its democratic system.

How far are you from reaching your goals especially that of a
democratic Swaziland?

Here is progress minimal as it is especially regarding our major goal.
But you know, we do not just measure our progress with real changes to
the system we are contend to have more and more people showing a
dedication to our vision. We are working on a long-term change.
Ultimately the challenge would be on the Swazi people to say enough is
enough and change the system.

Let us turn to Africa once again. What do you think has been the major
cause of this seeming loss of direction in liberation movements
post-independence? Look at ZANU-PF, who could have thought that we
would be seeing the current crisis under ZANU-PF? What happened to
that vision?

The liberation movements lacked a definite policy position that is
developed by the masses and could be defended by the same. Those
policies would have guided against political careerism. So what you
see as soon as the liberation movement takes over people start to
think of themselves alone and forget the primary goals of the
liberation struggle. A government formed from a liberation movement
should always remember that it exists for the sole benefit of the
majority of the masses. After long the policies become self-serving.
You find the political elite exists to basically defend their own
misappropriation of the state resources.

However even where the country is relatively peaceful and economically
stable, a majority of people still wallow in poverty. Look at
Botswana, or South Africa, countries that are consistently praised for
rapid economic growth, a majority of the people still live in poverty.
What is the cause of this discrepancy between the praise by the
international community and the hopeless situations of poverty?

The policies are designed for the interests of only a few together
with their international supporters. That is the problem. So you find
the disjuncture between what the international community says about
the country and what the majority of the people feel because the
people do not enjoy the benefits of the success.

As a woman and a leader in such a big organization how do you view the
position of women in Swazi society?

Swaziland is a patriarchal society. Women are also relatively reserved
as a result. We do have women in leadership positions and others who
are specifically dedicated to addressing women issues. Our movement
has taken the position of giving the people's issues more attention
because we think everyone is oppressed; so we are fighting for
everyone's liberation.

You have been invited by the Botswana National Front. What is PUDEMO's
relationship with the BNF?

We share the same values, and are both dedicated to real democracy. We
are opposed to imperialism in any way or form. We have the same way of
thinking. However, we have not been completely working together and
are just starting to explore areas of co-operation.

We have a working relationship with the South African Communist Party.
We are moving towards establishing more of these relationships with
other sister parties in the region

Link: http://allafrica.com/stories/200807281288.html?viewall=1

_________________________

3. Swaziland king invites Mugabe to royal independence festivities.
Agence France Presse, 26 July 2008.

Swaziland has invited Robert Mugabe to attend a royal day of
celebration marking 40 years of independence from Britain and King
Mswati III's 40th birthday, media reported.

While world leaders have condemned as a sham Mugabe's victory in a
Zimbabwean presidential run-off, Africa's last absolute monarch is
"looking forward" to hosting its neighbour's president on September 6.

Swazi News, a weekly paper published on Saturday reported that Mugabe
was one of 13 Southern African Development Community leaders invited
to attend the day of royal festivities.

"The invitations were sent before the Zimbabwean presidential run-off.
We are looking forward to hosting the one who is president of that
country if he accepts our invitation," Foreign Ministry Principal
Secretary Clifford Mamba told the weekly.
The cost of the festivities would cost close to 50 million emalangeni
(4.2 million euros or 6.5 million dollars).

An official speaking on condition of anonymity told AFP that a fleet
of new German-made cars were on their way to Swaziland and would be
unveiled during the double celebrations popularly known as 40/40.

"New cars for the King, the Queen Mother, his wives and other senior
royal family members have already been ordered and they should be
arriving mid-August," the source said.

King Mswati III offended Mugabe when he chaired a meeting of regional
leaders which called for the run-off election to be postponed.

Addressing a rally just before the run-off, Mugabe told thousands of
his supporters that leaders like King Mswati III cannot teach him
anything on multi-party elections.

________________________


4. Swazi unions plan street protests over food prices. AFP (Mbabane)
28 July 2008.

Trade union members are to stage a mass protest on the eve of
Swaziland's 40th independence anniversary to voice their anger at
rising food prices, the main labour federation announced on Monday.

Jan Sithole, general secretary of the Swaziland Federation of Trade
Unions (SFTU), said unionists had decided to take to the streets from
September 3-4 after the government failed to reply to a letter
outlining their grievances.

"We have already written to the Labour Advisory Board notifying them
of the intended action," Sithole told AFP.

"Given government's failure to respond to our concerns and the ever
increasing food prices that have greatly affected our members, we have
since resolved to embark on a staggered action. The first instalment
is slated for 3-4 September," Sithole said.

The unions also want the government to reverse a ban on political
parties contesting a parliamentary election taking place later this
year in Africa's last absolute monarchy.

"We want the 2008 elections and beyond to be held under a multi-party
system," said Sithole.

Swaziland, which celebrates its 40th anniversary of independence from
Britain on September 6, is one of Africa's poorest nations with more
than two-thirds of its one million people living below the poverty line.

___________________________


5. International Monetary Fund (IMF): Low economic growth rate. The
Swazi Observer, 29 July 2008.

When the rest of sub-Saharan Africa was growing over the last decade,
the economy of the Kingdom of Swaziland stagnated.

The slow growth may have worsened already difficult conditions in the
tiny, landlocked country where in 2001, the latest year for which
there are data, about two-thirds of its 1 million residents lived in
poverty and 20% of the population claimed two-thirds of the income.

A major contributor to the stagnating Swazi economy has been its
financial sector, which, while in the main healthy, has taken steps
backward in the past decade.

Swaziland?s real per capita GDP growth declined from an annual rate of
2% during 1980-1994 to 0.7 % since then. In contrast, real growth in
all of sub-Saharan Africa has averaged 1 percent annually since 1995
and in other lower-middle-income countries, growth averaged 7 %.

Shallower banking system

Some studies suggest that the deeper the financial system that is, the
more access businesses and individuals have to varied financial
services - the better equipped it is to mobilise resources and the
more important is its effect on growth, poverty reduction, and income
equality.

But instead of deepening, or increasing its role in the economy,
Swaziland banking system has, by almost any measure, become
shallower. Private sector lending, money supply, and bank deposits as
a percentage of GDP have all declined since 1995 (see chart 2) while
high poverty and income inequality persist in a country that also has
the highest incidence of HIV/AIDS in the world.

Financial, real economies linked

There are a number of important linkages between the real economy and
the financial sector in Swaziland that explain, at least in part, the
country performance:

The country mobilises too little domestic saving (8 % of GDP) to
finance investment, and foreign savings have fallen off since the
1980s and 1990s.

Annual investment rates have declined from 25 percent of GDP for the
period 1981-1994 to 19% since then - far below other low-income and
lower-middle-income countries in the region.

High government spending, well beyond current revenues, has produced a
large civil service wage bill that, together with poor selection and
appraisal of public investment projects, has hurt growth.

Access to finance is limited, which constrains financing of
growth-enhancing investment projects. The commercial banking system
has concentrated on export financing and bypassed a large portion of
the adult population.

The World Bank estimates that only 35% of the Swazi adult population
has access to a bank account -too low, given its stage of development.
There is no public credit registry, and private credit bureaus cover
only 38% of the population.

Loans

Despite the sizable loans it receives from banks, the export sector
has not been an effective engine of growth and employment. Swaziland?s
main exports are soft-drink concentrates, sugar, textiles, and pulp
paper. But growth prospects for those exports are limited because of
intense competition from other countries and gradual erosion of
preferential arrangements with trading partners such as the United
States and the European Union, as well as adverse movements in
Swaziland?s real exchange rate.

?Swaziland has a weak investment climate, which tends to push up the
cost of capital and the rate of return investors seek. With few viable
real investment opportunities in Swaziland, most private domestic
savings -in particular from pension funds and insurance companies- are
invested in South Africa?s deeper financial markets, which offer a
wider array of financial services to a broader spectrum of investors.
In response, Swazi authorities have required pension and insurance
companies to gradually return a portion of those investments to the
domestic market.

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