SWAZILAND@NEWSLETTER 34
PUBLISHED BY SOUTHERN AFRICA CONTACT (DENMARK)

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1. Political parties are not disallowed, nor are they allowed... Peter
Clottey, Washington, DC (Voice of America), 11 May 2006.

2. Children illegally crossing border to school in South Africa. Lumka
Oliphant, IOL Independent on Sunday (SA), 13 May 2006.

3. Do events in Nepal resonate in Swaziland? Nick Ericsson, 27 April 2006
(BBC Network Africa).

4. King speaks: democracy too expensive, 26 April 2006 (IRIN).

5. Dear to be poor: loansharks swim in a sea of poverty, 25 April 2006
(IRIN).

6. Looking for local solutions to job-creation, 12 May 2006 (IRIN).

7. US invites African ministers to talks on market access. Jonathan
Katzenellenbogen. BusinessDay (SA), 15 May 2006.
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1. Political parties are not disallowed, nor are they allowed... Peter
Clottey, Washington, DC (Voice of America), 11 May 2006.
Amidst the debate in Swaziland regarding the allowance of political
parties within the kingdom, Attorney General Majahenkhaba Dlamini says the
Swaziland constitution does not prohibit the formation of these groups.
This comment is in sharp contrast to the ongoing discussion about the
nation’s apparent silence regarding this issue.

Meanwhile, there is speculation that some members of parliament are hoping
to develop political parties but are unsure of how the government will
react, including King Mswati III on down.

In a telephone interview with English to Africa reporter, Peter Clottey,
Dlamini explained the constitutional position in relation to the
establishment of political parties, “Political parties are not disallowed
because that is the position as far as the written word of the
constitution is concerned, in the sense that the constitution does not in
any of its provisions address the situation of political parties.” He
added that people could interpret the constitution as they deem fit, yet
must do so in a manner that is in agreement with the constitution.

When asked if there would ever be an amendment to the constitution
pertaining to the political party activities within Swaziland, Dlamini
said, “I’m not too sure that an amendment would be immediately forthcoming
anyway unless there is a sudden change of thinking. The position generally
speaking is that the Swazi people are not yet ready for political
parties.”

As to whether there should be a public education campaign to discuss the
pros and cons of political party growth among the Swazi people, he said,
“Well that is a policy sort of position. If the government decides as a
matter of policy that they want to move in a particular direction, in fact
it will be helpful to all of us…. until there is a clear policy in terms
of where the government wants to go, there won’t be much to add in terms
of the issue of political parties.”

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2. Children illegally crossing border to school in KwaZulu-Natal. Lumka
Oliphant, IOL Independent on Sunday (SA), 13 May 2006.
Every day Swazi pupils living just across the border from Pongola run the
gauntlet from the Zombodze Emuva area of Swaziland to school in South
Africa, because it is cheaper, nearer and safer than going to their local
school, Ndvungunye Primary, about 20km away.

But to do so, they have to first get past SANDF troops guarding the border
or jump the border fence, and then walk for kilometres to get to
Siyazenzela Primary in Pongola. And then there is the matter of getting
home.

This has been going on for years - some suggest since the days of
apartheid.

Despite the illegality of the situation, however, nobody seems willing to
put a stop to it. In fact, the Swazi government used Swazi TV to instruct
children to illegally go to school in South Africa.

The impoverished residents of Zombodze Emuva also cross the border to use
the services of the Etshelejuba Hospital in Pongola, because they are free.

Every day the troops - often depending on their mood - either stop people
crossing into South Africa, or turn a blind eye. They often cannot bring
themselves to be heartless, especially with regard to sick people, one
soldier said.

It costs E268 (R268) a year for a child to attend primary school in
Swaziland, yet only R51 in South Africa. For a high school pupil it costs
between E325 and E1&nbsop;000, but only R100 in South Africa. And in
Swaziland matriculants and Grade 10s have to pay E1 087 for the exam fee
and to obtain their Junior Certificates.

Titus Thwala, the MP for the Zombodze Emuva area, who instructed the
children to go back to school in South Africa, denied that he had done so.

He also claimed that the Swazi government was improving Ndvungunye Primary
and building other schools in the area, but when he was told that The
Independent on Saturday had visited the area and not found this, he simply
said: "You were really there and you saw what is happening, you must
understand that we can only lobby the government to do these things."

Thwala said that the Swazi authorities were in negotiations with the South
African Department of Home Affairs to build a border post in that area and
find ways to issue the pupils with study permits.

"Now that you are here, I can show the Ministers of Education and Home
Affairs that this issue is urgent and the world is watching."

Nkosana Sibuyi, spokesperson for the Department of Home Affairs, was not
aware of any negotiations with the Swazi government.

"They are welcome to propose anything but they must go through the correct
channels," said Sibuyi.

Percy Simelane, spokesperson for the Swazi government, also could not
provide satisfactory answers.

A "neighbourly agreement" between the two countries, that South Africa
issue the pupils from the area with identity documents, expired in
December last year.

They were informed that they should get passports and study permits to be
admitted to schools in South Africa.

"If the study permits and passports are expensive for the children, then
it means that it is expensive for them to go to school in South Africa and
they must come to this side of the fence," said Simelane.

He said also that the Swazi government was providing Swazi pupils who
could not afford school fees with books and stationery and that it was not
fair "to compare a giant that is South Africa with a small economy like
Swaziland".

At the border post, the troops were turning away people wanting to see a
doctor. Nkosimphile Ndebele, 20, who said she had TB, was one of the
unlucky ones. "The soldiers refused to let me in and I need to see a
doctor," she said.

But Buyisile Hlengethwa, 30, decided to go and negotiate with the soldiers
so that she could go to the hospital.

"This is our life. You either go and speak to them, or you die," she said.
She succeeded, and they let her through.

One of the soldiers, who did not want to be named, said they were also
human and they were faced with either watching people die in front of
them, or letting them through.

"We have a job to do, but people are also dying that side (Swaziland) and
they need urgent medical attention.

We are human as well and the sad part is that the people on the other side
see themselves as belonging to South Africa," he said.

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3. Do events in Nepal resonate in Swaziland? Nick Ericsson, 27 April 2006
(BBC Network Africa).

...(C)ould the obvious deference shown towards King Mswati ever be
replaced by something resembling the bloody scenes witnessed this month on
the streets of the Nepalese capital, Kathmandu? Crowds gathered in the
tiny South Asian kingdom to demand democratic reform. "So far and no
further," was the message uncompromisingly delivered to King Gyanendra,
who claimed for himself absolute rule in the Himalayan Kingdom 14 months
ago in response to a 10-year Maoist insurgency that has left more than
10,000 dead.

This week, it seems, as a result of the protests and clashes with police
and security forces, the king was humbled.
He recalled parliament and stressed his commitment to multi-party
democracy and a constitutional monarchy, although the kingdom remains
tense in the run-up to the opening of parliament on Friday.

Further south, should King Mswati be taking notes?
The parallels between Nepal and Swaziland are obvious: both are
landlocked, mountainous kingdoms with powerful neighbours.
In Nepal's case, China and India are next door; and Swaziland has South
Africa over its border.

People in both countries are battling with chronic poverty - compounded in
Swaziland by plummeting life expectancy and high HIV prevalence rate with
more than 40% of the population infected.
Both have had a recent history of press restrictions and a less than
enthusiastic response to democratic reform.
Then there is the head of state - one forced to recall parliament, the
other happy to keep things pretty much as they are - and have
been for the last 20 years.

The BBC's Mike Wooldridge, reporting from the Swazi capital, Mbabane, at
the coronation of the young king in April 1986, painted a picture of an
18-year-old prince forced home from school in the UK to rule after the
death of his father King Sobhuza II, who like King Gyanendra had banned
political parties during his reign.

Although an absolute ruler and a traditionalist - much in the mould of his
father - at the ceremony the young Mswati showed the promise of being a
king of the people by walking among them, dancing with them in a slow
rhythmic hymn, he reported.
Today, King Mswati still speaks of finding a way of easing the burdens of
his subjects, among the world's poorest, and in 2005 he declared "a
relentless war against poverty".

So, two decades on has he succeeded in finding a common touch with the
masses?
Thabisile Ngwenya, a mother of six in Mbabane, says that in her opinion,
King Mswati has "too many wives, too many motor cars" and that he "buys
everything that is useless".

The king's 13 wives, is a modest number compared to his father's tally of
more than 60.
In contrast, Nomthetho Simelana, a political scientist from the University
of Swaziland, feels that the on-going events in Nepal need not register on
the king's radar.

"The Swazi monarch has been very popular for a long period of time, and
his father before him was very popular with the people so that has created
mileage for the present monarch," she says. "Besides, there is not the
same kind of resentment towards the king as I have seen in Nepal."

But Mario Masuku, the president of the banned opposition party People's
United Democratic Movement, feels that the king should take note of the
uprising in Kathmandu.
"We learn lessons from history. We believe that absolute monarchs
eventually give in to the democratic rights of people," he says.
"We have constitutional monarchs in Lesotho and the United Kingdom where
democracy is practised. King Mswati should learn that lesson."

Meanwhile, King Mswati had reassuring words this week for those in his
country and the international community.
Speaking to a packed stadium in Nhlangano, he portrayed the monarchy as
the kingdom's unifying force.
"If it were not for your support, I would not have been able to lead this
country over the past 20 years," he told his subjects.
"I am happy to say that you diligently supported me, and I hope that you
will continue to do so."

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4. King speaks: democracy too expensive, 26 April 2006 (IRIN).

In a rare interview, sub-Saharan Africa's last absolute monarch King
Mswati of Swaziland said this week his country is not ready for political
parties and criticised foreign governments for meddling in its internal
affairs.
Although Mswati lifted a royal decree banning political activity in the
kingdom, the king said the nation's economy must improve before parties
may be permitted.

"Most countries that adopted multi-party systems of government and
succeeded to rule without internal strife had healthy economies, while the
poor nations have continued to experience conflict," Mswati told The Times
of Swaziland.
"What we need to do right now as a country is to build our economy to a
sustainable level where the introduction of multi parties can operate with
a reasonable degree of success," he said.

Mswati – who turned 38 this week declaring his birthday a national holiday
- criticised the governments of Britain and the Netherlands, and South
Africa's trade unions, for interference in the internal affairs of the
country he has ruled for 20 years.

He expressed his shock when envoys from Britain and the Netherlands,
presenting their diplomatic credentials to him at Lozitha Palace last
month, dismissed the new national constitution which institutionalised the
king's powers as inadequate. They reportedly called for political parties
to operate within a democratic system of government.

"How do they turn around to start criticising a document that they had the
opportunity to scrutinize well before? They come from the school of
majority rules, but here we have a case in Swaziland where the majority of
people have said they do not want multi parties, and we are supposed to
take a minority view over and above the majority?" the king asked.
"The manner of approach [by the envoys] has the potential of inciting the
people against the state that may lead to serious internal conflict," he
added.

The king was also angered by a border blockade by the Congress of South
African Trade Unions (COSATU) and the Swaziland Solidarity Network, an
umbrella body of pro-democracy groups. The protest was held on 12 April,
the anniversary of a 1973 palace decree that banned multi-party democracy.

"Blockades should never be allowed to happen. Despite this, the South
Africa unions continued with the action, and this needs some serious
attention by the South African government," said the king.

Despite Mswati's remarks that the nation was not economically mature
enough to sustain multi-party democracy, a powerful group of government
officials and MPs met last week to create an organisation that some
members told the Swazi press was a political party.
One organiser was Minister of Health Mfomfo Nkambule, who was appointed by
Mswati. Other members were royalists belonging to the Swazi National
Council, King Mswati's handpicked group of senior advisors.

No organisation name or mandate was released, but officials were elected.
Members told the press they were organising to counter the influence of
another group of powerful government insiders known as Sibahle Sinje,
which they said dominates parliament.
Sibahle Sinje called itself a "cultural organisation" when it began
recruiting among parliamentarians in 1997. Like the new, unnamed political
group, these organisations function as alliances of government insiders.

They do not put forth a slate of candidates during elections or otherwise
canvass the public for votes. However, members said they were prepared to
register as political parties when this was allowed.

Pro-democracy political groups, meanwhile, have not been able to operate
since the promulgation of the new constitution. Police blocked a rally of
the People's United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) in Manzini last month.
The Women's League of the Ngwane National Liberatory Congress (NNLC) was
turned down by government officials when they attempted to register as an
organisation.
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5. Dear to be poor: loansharks swim in a sea of poverty, 25 April 2006
(IRIN).

The Swazi media has launched an attack on the country's exploitative
moneylenders, often the only source of finance for the poor, and in doing
so has exposed the extent of the practice.

Zelda Shongwe turned to a moneylender at a time of crisis - like many poor
Swazis with no access to formal financial institutions - and was saddled
with interest rates that threatened her family's security.
"My niece died, and I was faced with the funeral expenses," said Shongwe,
a 59-year-old widowed grandmother. "Her parents died, and what they left
barely covered their own funerals. I had to get R2,000 [US $300] from a
moneylender."
The loanshark demanded a 30 percent interest rate and because Shongwe drew
out her repayments, she ended up forking over R3,000 [US $500] - a 50
percent interest fee.

The Swazi media has been on a month-long campaign to end usury lending.
The Swazi Observer has roped in commitments from the Ministry of
Enterprise and Employment and the Ministry of Finance to enforce lending
laws, which stipulate a 10 percent cap on interest rates.

Lenders - who openly advertise their services on signboards in downtown
Mbabane - have struck back at the spate of negative publicity by
threatening to cut off loans to Swazi Observer staff, many of whom they
said are regular borrowers. Editor in Chief Musa Ndlangamandla said he
would stand firm against the threats.

Amos, a moneylender in the commercial hub of Manzini, south of the capital
Mbabane, said he provides a valuable service that Swazis have come to rely
on.
"My clients cannot get personal loans from banks. They don't have bank
accounts. They don't have credit. They don't own anything, even the land
the live on [80 percent of Swazis reside on communal land]. Where can they
go for money to pay school fees or funerals?"
Like other moneylenders, Amos said high interest rates are necessary to
compensate for the risk involved in lending money to people who are often
unable to repay. "The default rate is very high. We deal with poor people.
We are not like banks that can repossess cars and homes if borrowers
default," he said.

Drawn to comment in an Observer interview, King Mswati said he wished
Swazis would draw up household budgets and stick to them.
With two-thirds of Swazis living below the poverty line and formal sector
employment at 45 percent, the livelihoods of the majority of Swazis
depends on the informal sector - where moneylenders play a prominent role.

As the anti-usury media campaign continues, the pervasiveness of
loansharks in all strata of society is being revealed. Enterprise and
Employment Minister Lutfo Dlamini vowed to crack down on exploitative
lenders - just as the local press alleged that Dlamini's wife was herself
one.

The press also suggested that Swaziland's top traditional authority, Jim
Gama, the Governor of Ludzidzini Royal Village and arbiter of Swazi
custom, is a moneylender. Gama defended his business as a form of
assistance for people in need. He said he charges 20 percent interest, a
rate one third less than what is customarily charged, but double the legal
interest rate limit.

Thab'sile Maziya, who runs a fruit stand at a bus stop at a Manzini
residential township, feels she has had a raw deal at the hands of
moneylenders.
"When I opened, I borrowed money to buy stock. I ended up working for the
first months with nothing to put in my pocket. All the profits went to the
moneylender. Poor people who are forced to borrow money always slip deeper
into poverty," Maziya said.
She called for government to set up a small lending scheme with reasonable
interest rates to advance money to people who do not qualify for bank
loans.

John Fakudze, an assistant bank manager, said economic upliftment would
reduce people's dependency on loansharks. "People need to put a little
away every month in a bank account for future emergencies. People complain
about bank charges, but these are much smaller than moneylender interest
rates," Fakudze said.

Government efforts to assist people in the informal economy through
self-help schemes have hit a snag with a corruption scandal swirling
around a R50 million [US $8.2 million] small business empowerment
programme.
The money, intended for training and long-term development of the small-
and medium-sized business sector, was exhausted months after the programme
was launched at an extensively-publicised Job Creation Summit last year.
MPs are considering a parliamentary probe to determine what happened to
the money.
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6. Looking for local solutions to job-creation, 12 May 2006 (IRIN).

Landlocked Swaziland's economy may be small, but it has the potential to
generate millions of dollars for aspiring local entrepreneurs, according
to a report by the Swaziland Investment Promotion Authority (SIPA).

The agency, set up in 1997 to facilitate direct foreign investment, has
recently taken on the goal of alleviating poverty in Swaziland, where
two-thirds of the approximately one million population live on less than a
dollar a day.

A medley of investment options are identified in the SIPA guide, from a
US$2.8 million cableway to transport tourists across the scenic mountains
of the northern Hhohho region, expected to reap profits in four years, to
a $3.5 million cultivation scheme to produce cut roses for markets in the
Netherlands, Italy, Germany, France, the United Kingdom and the United
States, which could become profitable in 10 years.

"Along the way, local investors will assist their fellow Swazis by
providing jobs. The employment prospects for the cut roses initiative is a
few hundred, but that would rise as the business grows," said Sizwe
Dlamini, a SIPA investment promotion officer.

The government wants small-scale farmers to consider cultivating baby
vegetables for markets in the Middle East and Europe as part of a project
with an undisclosed price tag.

"For years, a lot of farmers have been growing maize at a loss instead of
looking at other options. If sugar cane farmers could plant other crops,
the imminent change in the price of sugar cannot severely affect them,"
Prime Minister Themba Dlamini noted at a meeting with small-scale
entrepreneurs this week.

A price subsidy by the European Union (EU), which purchases one-third of
production, made sugar Swaziland's top export earner, but the industry
went into a slump when the EU slashed sugar prices by 37 percent last
year, throwing thousands out of work.

Dlamini said empowering local investors could offset a decline in foreign
direct investment (FDI) in the country.

Increasing FDI is the cornerstone of government's goal of poverty
alleviation through job creation. The national unemployment rate dropped
from 45 percent to 40 percent three years ago, when garment manufacturers
arrived to take advantage of the preferential trade benefits offered to
Swaziland by the US under the African Growth and Opportunities Act, but
has again risen above 45 percent.

Last year manufacturers were hard-hit by the termination of the
Multi-Fibre Agreement (MFA), introduced 30 years ago to protect the
textile industries of developed countries by imposing quotas on
high-volume producers such as China, who had circumvented the stipulations
of the agreement by setting up factories in Southern Africa. As a result,
many downsized or closed shop, including those in Swaziland, costing
thousands their jobs.

"It is against this background that government is motivating the nation at
grassroots level to become entrepreneurs. We need to develop the culture
of entrepreneurship in our communities," Dlamini said.

Musa Hlope, former chairman of the Federation of Swaziland Employers and
Swaziland Chamber of Commerce, urged government to invest in capacity
building programmes for indigenous Swazi business people.

"A businessman does not come from nothing," said Hlope. "He or she has to
learn the rules of successful business, and be brought up in a business
culture; they need mentoring, not just capital."

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7. US invites African ministers to talks on market access. Jonathan
Katzenellenbogen. BusinessDay (SA), 15 May 2006.

WASHINGTON has invited African trade and finance ministers for talks on
the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) — the US partial free trade
regime for imports from Africa.
This will be the fifth round of the Agoa Forum, which aims to remove
stumbling blocks that prevent African countries gaining greater access to
US markets.
Discussions will also look into whether or not the initiative has
succeeded in spurring entrepreneurial activity in African countries, and
improving their investment climates.

The US said it was also keen to discuss how African governments could
offer better protection to intellectual property rights — an issue
industrialised countries want to focus on in the current Doha round of
world trade talks.

African countries are concerned about what is likely to replace Agoa when
the trade concessions end in 2012.

Under Agoa, African countries meeting certain criteria gain tariff and
duty free access to the US market. While the programme has helped boost
African exports overall to the US, South African-made exports of BMWs to
the US have been one of the greatest beneficiaries of the policy so far.

The preferential trade scheme covers 6000 products. Other products that
have found their way into the US under the deal include pyrethrum from
Rwanda, fruits and nuts from Malawi, processed fruit products from
Swaziland, footwear from Mauritius, and basketry and wickerwork from
Madagascar.

According to the US State Department, exports from African countries have
trebled since 2000. However, much of the 44% rise in African exports to
the US last year has been accounted for by increased exports of oil to the
US.

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SWAZILAND@NEWSLETTER is published by Southern Africa Contact (SAC,
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