Part 1
Eswatini: A History of Struggle
Background
Political movements calling for change have long existed in Eswatini. British colonisers left the country in 1968; limited self-governance had been permitted since 1963. At the dawn of independence, a constitution was put in place and political parties were allowed to operate. The party belonging to the then-king, Sobhuza II, won the 1967 and 1972 elections. The Ngwane National Liberatory Congress, with three seats, was the official opposition.
This led King Sobhuza II, father of the current monarch, to ban political parties in 1973. He assumed all legislative, judicial and executive powers through decree that year. He then introduced the tinkhundla system of governance in 1978. From that time, political parties existed covertly with not much impact; this was the status quo until 1983, when the Peoples United Democratic Movement (Pudemo) was formed. Pudemo has been a series of protests, built trade union movements and became a big player on what was then Swaziland’s political scene. Its leaders have been jailed, exiled and even killed over the years – but its call for the country’s freedom and democratisation hasn’t wavered.
In reality, this fight dates back to colonial and even pre-colonial days. The people have, for years, been involved in different forms of resistance against royal slavery, land dispossessions, denial of human rights and exploitation in their communities and workplaces. The real problem in Eswatini is an organised system of royal hegemony and monopoly on power founded on exploitative and parasitic forms of wealth accumulation. This system is known as tinkhundla, wherein all facets of society as organised by and in the narrow interests of the royal family.
Tinkhundla is a form of royal apartheid: it fosters discrimination based not on race, but on royal supremacy. It does this by creating bitter divisions between the royalty, who are first grade citizens with an unlimited sense of entitlement, and the rest of the people, who are mere subjects or fourth grade citizens and perpetual beggars in their own country.
In this sense, it is a royal dream for the ruling elite and a national nightmare for the people. Tinkhundla is the system of organised royal rule and oppression which sustains itself through a series of structures, values and institutions developed and reproduced to entrench the power of the royal minority. In other words, it is a means to guarantee and perpetuate royal hegemony and control of power in all spheres of the society.
Looking to the future
Political analyst and academic Mancoba Mabuza holds the view that there is still a chance for King Mswati III to lead a peaceful transition into a constitutional multiparty democracy.
“Without a doubt, the call for democracy is enjoyed by an overwhelming majority of the people, but their organisations are not strong enough to lead the people to decisive victory at the moment, largely because the state is using military force to clamp down on the liberation forces – there seems to be no plan on the part of the liberation forces regarding how to seize power beyond the marches and protest activities which are violently stopped by the regime.
“However, the tinkhundla regime is no longer able to effectively govern the country as the people daily refuse to be governed the tinkhundla way. It is consistently facing a deepening crisis. The system has lost any semblance of legitimacy it once enjoyed as everything comes to the open about its real content and what it is made of. It is facing deep-seated cracks within itself as the ruling bloc itself is no longer enjoying the cohesion of its key social base and forces allied to it, particularly the traditional aristocracy and its key supporters.”
The respected political commentator said the system cannot destroy the democratic forces that are growing in strength, and it does not enjoy support at the moment.
“But the system is still in power because they now rely on force (military) which the liberation forces do not have. This is the stalemate I am talking about,” he said.
Mabuza believes that if King Mswati calls for calm and engages with the leaders of the liberation forces with a view to coming up with a peaceful solution - and demonstrates a willingness to lose some power by leading a process that allows multiparty democracy - he can keep some power as head of state through a constitutional monarchy.
“I hold the view that the democratic forces are prepared to negotiate and that compromises can be made.”
The other option is for the international community to force the king into having an imposed dialogue with the civil society; Eswatini heavily relies on foreign aid. This approach is only possible if the major players in the region or continent, and the rest of the world, intervene decisively: the king will have no choice but to heed their advice.
About the Author
Phathisani Moyo is a communication strategist at International Trade Centre (ITC). He has worked for a number of media organisation and served at various levels including as the news editor for The Star newspaper in South Africa. He holds a Honours degree in political science and administration from the University of Zimbabwe.