The Swaziland Diaspora Platform is pleased beyond measure at the motion initiated by the Democratic Alliance and unreservedly supported by the ANC in the South African National Parliament that Swaziland should not get the R2.4 Billion loan unless and until the Swaziland government meets the following conditions:
- The scrapping of the 39 year old state of emergency;
- The implementation of Universal Human Rights;
- That none of the loan funds be spent on the monarchy;
- The immediate implementation of a multi-party transitional government; and
- The immediate start of multi-party negotiations towards a new democratic constitution for Swaziland.
This is in accordance with what the Swaziland Mass Democratic Movement has always called for, for almost four decades. It is welcome that Swaziland's closest neighbour and biggest trading partner, South Africa, has through both it's ruling party, the ANC, and official opposition, the DA, made it clear to the world that it is serious not only about uplifting the livelihood of South Africans but is concerned about uplifting all Africans; and prioritises regional integration through responsive, accountable and transparent democratic governments.
South Africa has shown Swazis and the rest of Africa how a multi-party democracy is really about the people, and that at the end of it all the common denominator and most important goal is the pursuit of a better life for all the people, all of the time despite ideological and other differences.
ISSUED BY:
The Swaziland Diaspora Platform
Contacts:
Email: swazidiaspora@gmail.com
Twitter: @swazidiaspora
Blog: Http://swazidiaspora.blogspot.com
Wednesday, 29 August 2012
Wednesday, 15 August 2012
Media Invitation: Invitation To Political Alternatives in Swaziland Indaba - Johannesburg, 18 August 2012
Dear Journalist/Editor
Invitation To Political Alternatives in Swaziland
Indaba – 18 August 2012
The
Swaziland Diaspora Platform (SDP) cordially invites you to a historical moment
in the Mass Democratic Movement in Swaziland; the Political Alternatives Indaba
taking place on 18 August 2012 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The
past few months have been very busy with regards to movement and pressure on
the Swaziland regime to democratise, after 29 years of ruling Swaziland under a
State of Emergency where political parties are banned and civil rights are
censored. Teachers have been on a 7-week strike and go-slow in demand for a
4.5% pay increase, the first in three year; which has since escalated to a
demand for the democratisation of Swaziland. Other unions have joined, including nurses who are embarking
on a strike due to unsafe working conditions, 4.5% pay increase and a lack of
medication and medical instruments.
The
last absolute monarch in Africa, King Mswati III on 6th August 2012
responded by using an old trick of calling the nation to the cattle kraal to
“discuss” issues affecting the nation, instead of holding discussions with
aggrieved trade unions. The King
has lashed out at the international community and pro-democracy movement for
pushing for democracy, instead of unbanning political parties so that there is
a people’s government that works for the people and accounts for the people.
To
assist in the push for democratisation, the Swaziland Diaspora Platform is
hosting the Political Alternatives Indaba, where all “active” political parties
have been invited to present their vision for a democratic Swaziland. The people of Swaziland are ready for
change but need to understand what exactly multi-party democracy means that is
different from this self-serving Monarch.
The
Swaziland Diaspora Platform is a civic organisation formed by Swazis living
outside of Swaziland to support pro-democracy movements, promote a culture of
human rights and socio-economic equality for all Swazis.
Swaziland
is going through very tough economic times and these are caused by the global
recession but the biggest causes are the policy choices by the Monarch and its
government. The people baring the
brunt of the economic hard times are the rural poor who constitute 70% of the
1.5 million Swazi population.
Swaziland is renowned for its lack of an accountable and transparent
government and has a parliament that has no power to perform oversight, inform
government policy and monitor budget allocation and expenditure. The King has legislative, executive
powers and heavy influence on the judiciary.
The
calls for democracy have been increasing over the years as more and more Swazis
realize that they are being denied the dignity to exist and be recognized as
humans as well as citizens that have control and influence over their own
destiny and that of their community and country. As more and more Swazis lose the ability to provide
themselves and their families with food and shelter, and government fails to
provide quality health, education and social services, the people of Swaziland
want a People’s Government Now!
The
Political Alternatives Indaba will be taking place as follows:
Date: 18 August
2012
Venue: Sunnyside Park Hotel, Parktown, Johannesburg
Time: 09h00
Attached
is the programme as well as poster-invitation, please note that S’dumo Dlamini
– President of COSATU will be giving a keynote address as well.
SWAZILAND POLITICAL ALTERNATIVES INDABA
Organized by the Swaziland Diaspora Platform
Johannesburg, Saturday 18th August, 2012
08:00 – 09:00
Arrival and registration of
participants (Tea/Coffee)
09:00 – 09:15
Opening and welcome of
participants by Swaziland Diaspora Platform
09:15 – 10:40
Session One: Political Parties’
presentations
Party A: 09:15
– 09:40
Party B: 09:45
– 10:10
Party C: 10:15:
- 10:40
Rules and
structure of these sessions:
Parties will each be allocated
twenty-five minutes. Each will be allowed fifteen minutes to make presentations
and ten minutes to take questions from the audience, including the media but
not members of other political parties. The order in which parties speak will
be determined by random draw of lots on the morning of the indaba.
Political parties fifteen minute
presentations must be structured as follows:
|
Part I: A
presentation of the party’s vision for a new Swaziland. This part should
address the following questions:
A.
What
is the political ideology underpinning the party and its objectives for a new
Swaziland?
B.
What
form of government does the party envisage for a democratic Swaziland?
C.
How
does your party plan to tackle corruption and mismanagement within the public
service?
D.
What
are your party’s plans to grow the economy, create jobs and reduce poverty?
E.
What
policies do you have for resolving the crises in the education, health and
welfare sectors?
|
|
Part II:
A presentation of your party’s plan for arriving at this new Swaziland. This
should address the following questions:
A.
How
does your party plan to engage with the population of Swaziland?
B.
How
many members does your party currently have? How is your party organized
internally and are there democratic elections to senior positions within the
party?
C.
What
strategies does your party have to create more political space in Swaziland?
D.
How
does your party plan to get the government to the negotiating table?
E.
What
is your party’s position on the use of violence to achieve political freedom?
F.
How
will your party enlist the support of international allies to support the
democratic movement in Swaziland?
|
NB: All parties must take note of the
following ground rules:
·
Time limits
will be strictly enforced.
·
Deviation
from the structure of the presentations as outlined above will not be permitted
and any parties presenting material that departs from this will be interrupted
by the facilitator.
·
This is a
unique chance for your party to present your forward looking and forward
thinking plans for the Swazi nation and the facilitator of this meeting has
been instructed to be active and firm so as to avoid the meeting moving away
from that purpose.
·
If the
facilitator is not satisfied that the speaker is addressing one of the points
outlined in the above structure, he/she will intervene.
·
No personal
or party insults are allowed to be made.
10:40 – 11:00
Tea/Coffee
11:00 – 13:00
Session Two: Political Parties’
presentations
Party D: 11:00
– 11:25
Party E: 11:30
– 11:55
Party F: 12:00
– 12:25
Party G: 12:30
– 12:55
13:00 – 14:30
Lunch Break/Media Interviews
14:30 – 16:00
Session Three: Inter Party
Discussion
This session will allow
political parties to ‘cross-examine’ each other on the plans, strategies and
policies that each have presented in the morning. It will provide an
opportunity for robust and open political debate as might be imagined were
these parties sitting together in a freely elected Swazi Parliament.
Format
Each
party leader is allowed one question plus a follow up to each
of the other leaders. Answers limited to 1 minute for the main answer 30
seconds for the follow up.
Each
party leader will respond to all of the questions directed at him
consecutively.
Again,
the order will be chosen at random.
NB: Again, all
parties must take note of the following ground rules:
·
Time limits
will be strictly enforced.
·
Deviation
from the structure of the presentations as outlined above will not be permitted
and any parties presenting material that departs from this will be interrupted
by the facilitator.
·
This is a
unique chance for your party to present your forward looking and forward
thinking plans for the Swazi nation and the facilitator of this meeting has
been instructed to be active and firm so as to avoid the meeting moving away
from that purpose.
·
If the
facilitator is not satisfied that the speaker is addressing one of the points
outlined in the above structure, he/she will intervene.
·
No personal
or party insults are allowed to be made.
16:00 – 16:20
Keynote Address By S’dumo Dlamini –
President of COSATU
16:20 – 17:20
Session Four: Plenary
One representative of each
political party will sit on a panel of seven people and the audience will be
able to ask questions on any issue to any party leader of their choice. The
media will be encouraged to also ask questions at this stage.
17:20 – 17:30
Closing and words of thanks by SCCCO
All political parties are please
requested to sign and return this document as agreement that they will abide by
the rules as well as present on all the questions listed.
Monday, 13 August 2012
Press Statement: 13 August 2012 – CONTINUED ACTION FOR A REAL PEOPLE’S GOVERNMENT NOW!
Press Statement: 13 August 2012 – CONTINUED ACTION FOR A REAL
PEOPLE’S GOVERNMENT NOW!
The Swaziland Diaspora Platform would like to
commend the people of Swaziland for boycotting the local government elections
currently under way. The low voter
turn out is a clear sign that the majority of the people of Swaziland want a
multiparty democracy now!
The political farce of the Cattle Kraal
(Sibaya) consultative forum or People's Parliament as conducted by King Mswati
III last week under the guise that it is an example of the kind of direct
democracy practised in Swaziland has ended and with it any hopes that steps
towards true democracy will ever be initiated by the King and his
government.
It has never been a more indicative time to
keep up the pressure for a real people’s
government, this means all people of Swaziland and the world taking action
in every corner of the country and the globe, starting with participating in
the Global Week Of Action On Swaziland
03 -07 September 2012.
The Mswati’s forum was open enough to permit
anyone from any background to speak about any issue and make recommendations,
however none of those recommendations were taken seriously. The King
closed his Sibaya by saying he will consult experts about issues raised and
adopted none.
Off course nothing will ever happen because
the majority of submissions require for him to democratise the country and
relinquish the absolute powers he has over the executive, legislative and
judicial spheres of Swaziland.
Proof of this, is the fact that the last time
Mswati III held what he calls a People's Parliament was in 2005. He held
this one hastily to divert attention and criticism over the protracted
teacher's strike and to pretend at democratising to the international
community, especially South Africa, which is preparing to loan Mswati III and
his government R2.4 Billion.
South Africa and other international donors
should withhold support until concrete actions towards multiparty democracy are
in place, starting with unbanning political parties and holding off the 2013 elections
until they are held under the auspices of a multi-party democratic system.
The Swaziland Diaspora Platform would like to
call on the people of Swaziland to reclaim their government and country and
participate fully and nationwide in the Global Week Of Action On Swaziland
(GWOAS) taking place all over Swaziland and the world from 03 - 07 September
2012 under the theme "A Call For A People's Government NOW!"
The Global Week Of Action On Swaziland has
been taking place annually for a few years and this year will be the biggest
action as more and more partners around the world join in support for a
democratic Swaziland.
A democratic Swaziland means no more poverty,
no more hunger, better education, better healthcare and more jobs!
ISSUED
BY:
The Swaziland Diaspora Platform
Contacts:
Email: swazidiaspora@gmail.com
Twitter: @swazidiaspora
Spokesperson: Ntombenhle Khathwane
+27 72 1899 361
Wednesday, 8 August 2012
PRESS STATEMENT: AUGUST 08, 2012 SWAZILAND: PEOPLE’S PARLIAMENT (SIBAYA) IS SHAM AND OUGHT TO BE REJECTED!
PRESS STATEMENT: AUGUST 08, 2012
SWAZILAND: PEOPLE’S PARLIAMENT
(SIBAYA) IS SHAM AND OUGHT TO BE REJECTED!
As King Mswati III holds his cattle kraal consultations as
a way of duping Swazis and the world into thinking he is democratic and cares
about the difficult conditions under which Swazis find themselves living under,
there is one thing that is certain, the King does not intend to lose or concede
an ounce of power by permitting democratisation or unbanning of political
parties in Swaziland.
King Mswati III has called us to the kraal under the
pretense of a people’s parliament to ensure that he shapes and moulds their
opinion and attitudes and defines for them what is normal and acceptable.
He already has set the stage for doing so by elevating the
importance of culture amongst Swazis and rejecting Western influences that
encourage democracy. He has further demonized the idea of
democratisation by blaming the problems plaguing Swaziland on everything
happening in the global economy and no blame apportioned to the poor policy
choices he and his government make everyday.
We, the people of Swaziland ought to reject these efforts
by the King by not participating and giving his theatre show legitimacy. He
will use our attendance to justify his continued neglect of the Constitution,
neglect of human rights, neglect of people-centred service delivery, neglect of
social welfare and refusal to run an accountable and responsive government.
Instead, we, the people, should use the opportunity to
march on his residence and demand a people’s government, NOW! We should
demand that the King declare a process of democratisation and surrender power
to the people in order for us to determine our own priorities, determine our
own parliament, determine our own government, and determine our own future.
King Mswati III is trying to make it seem as if he is running a
direct democracy and therefore Tinkhundla is the most democratic system. But
for that to be true there has to be so many fundamentals that have to exist,
such as people determining priorities and every person having an equal vote on
those issues. It also requires that all citizens be equally knowledgeable
on issues and governance and the impact of the choices available. This
is not the case in Swaziland and cannot be possible with the current political
infrastructure.
Political parties form a pivotal institution in a healthy
democracy. Without well-functioning parties, governments and legislatures have
little chance of representing wider society in a meaningful way. Political parties
are the bridge between government and society, both in the ways they translate
society’s demands into political ideas and programmes, and in the way they hold
government to account on society’s behalf.
While rejecting the use of Sibaya to
address governance issues, the Swaziland Diaspora Platform would like to
challenge King Mswati III to show if he cares for the people of Swaziland by
using the forum to unban political parties, dismiss parliament, set up an all
inclusive interim government, give all civil servants 4.5 percent salary
increase, reinstate all fired teachers as well as stop the sham Tinkhundla
elections.
ISSUED BY:
SWAZILAND DIASPORA PLATFORM
CONTACTS:
Email: swazidiaspora@gmail.com
Twitter: @swazidiaspora
Spokesperson: Ntombenhle
Khathwane
+27
72 1899 361
Thursday, 2 August 2012
PRESS STATEMENT, 02 AUGUST 2012: STRIKING TEACHERS AND UNION LEADERS FIRED – KING REVERTS TO ARCHAIC METHODS TO SILENCE CALLS FOR DEMOCRACY
PRESS
STATEMENT, 02 AUGUST 2012: STRIKING TEACHERS AND UNION LEADERS FIRED – KING REVERTS
TO ARCHAIC METHODS TO SILENCE CALLS FOR DEMOCRACY
King Mswati III and his government never cease to amaze with the
lengths to which they will go to protect their personal fiefdom.
Swaziland’s social services have all but ground to a halt over
the past month as teachers and nurses took to a nation-wide strike in demand
for a measly 4.5% salary increase.
In a shock move, government has reacted by firing a total of 250
teachers since Monday, as well as the entire executive of the Swaziland
National Association of Teachers (SNAT).
This salary increase demanded by teacher and other public
servants would have been the first in 3 years and is way below inflation, which
is at 9%.
Teachers, who were the first to strike, have been on strike for
5 weeks, and government has persistently refused to meet for
negotiations. The strike was joined by other civil servants and has
correctly escalated to a nation-wide call for a change in government and
democratization.
In a democratic country, government would have sought to end the
strike as soon as possible by addressing the grievances of the civil servants
within legal processes due, in order to ensure that services provided to
citizens are not interrupted.
However, in Swaziland, an autocratic Kingdom ran by King Mswati
III and his iron-fisted Prime Minister, Barnabas Dlamini, government does not
even care to negotiate with civil servant trade unions and has taken the
illegal routes of either cutting salaries way beyond what is permissible by law
with regards to an industrial action deadlock on the no-work-no-pay policy as
well as firing over 250 teachers.
Summoning
Nation to Cattle Kraal
Instead of following the legislated route of negotiating with
workers’ unions, King Mswati III has instead summoned the nation to his cattle
kraal on Monday August 6, 2012 as was done in ancient times when the King would
summon subjects to give them his unilateral views on how things how the country
will be run.
The King and his government like to guise such archaic methods
as uniquely Swazi and very democratic, however in truth, it is never a two-way
conversation, and it is never with the constituency that is aggrieved or
affected by an issue and it is always with the intent of imposing decisions.
It is fact that the majority of those who will heed this call to
the kraal will not be the working masses who are slaving at the same salary
they have had for 3 years, whilst the King, the entire monarch, Parliament and
Cabinet have received substantial increases in salaries, allowances and
privileges over the years. This call to the kraal seeks to by-pass and
suppress the rights of workers and citizens as legislated in the Constitution
and labour law.
It is his way of confusing the international community who do
not know how to react to this because they have nothing to compare it to.
It is the same reason the King has managed to dupe the international community
that the Tinkhundla system of government is democratic and not feudal.
The Swaziland Diaspora Platform calls upon King Mswati III and
his Prime Minister, Barnabas Dlamini to heed the call of the people and give
power to the people, the people of Swaziland want a government that is
responsive to their needs and puts the development of the country as a priority
that can only be done in a democratic dispensation.
ISSUED BY:
The Swaziland Diaspora Platform
Email: swazidiaspora@gmail.com
Twitter: @swazidiaspora
Spokesperons: Ntombenhle Khathwane – 072 189 9361
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