King calls meeting on constitution

Swaziland’s King Mswati III has called a national meeting or imbizo on Friday to discuss the country’s constitution, news reports said. The meeting is scheduled to take place at the Ludzidzini royal headquarters midway between Mbabane and Manzini. Meetings called by the king at the Ludzidzi cattle kraal are traditionally meant for announcements of national importance.

The gathering, reports said, is believed to involve Mswati unveiling a report by the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC), which spent four years canvassing Swazis’ views on a new constitution. Mswati is also expected to announce terms for public discussion before the constitution’s final draft. The umbrella organisation of People’s United Democratic Movement is campaigning for the boycott of the gathering.

The movement’s spokesperson, Sandile Phakathi said on Thursday his organisation had rejected the CRC since its inception in 1996 as an unrepresentative body and that there was no way they would support Mswati’s Friday gathering. Phakathi said the commission’s activities were done behind closed doors and organisations were not allowed to make contributions. The movement has been calling on the Swazis to stay away from the gathering which it says will only be representative of royalists.

Mswati last called a national gathering several years ago to announce the appointment of a new prime minister, and about 250,000 people attended.