IRIN Focus on democratic reforms

A three-year review of Swaziland’s constitution which has been extended at least until next year has been coming under increasing criticism by the kingdom’s handful of growingly vocal pro-democracy activists. In a country where political parties have been banned since 1973, they have criticised the review as too slow and lacking credibility because the majority of the 33 members of the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC) are members of royal family and the country’s powerful network of traditional chiefs. Because it only considers submissions by individuals, rather than by political, labour or other interest groups, they say it will be unable to deliver a modern constitutional model. The tiny kingdom sandwiched between South Africa and Mozambique gained its independence from Britain in 1968. It has been ruled ever since by a succession of monarchs or royal councils. The current monarch, King Mswati III, now 34, was crowned in 1986. The royal household declined to discuss the issues. Buying time for the monarchy “Since the CRC was appointed by King Mswati in 1996, it has been going round in circles and has not come up with any principles upon which a modern constitution should be based,” Jerry Nxumalo, organising secretary of Swaziland’s People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) told IRIN. He added that PUDEMO considers this state of affairs as a deliberate ploy by the ruling elite to buy the monarchy more time. The commission was initially scheduled to complete its work and report to the king by August 1998. However, this deadline has now been extended to 2001. Nxumalo said the CRC’s insistence that no group or political submissions are allowed makes it a “farce”. “The CRC is a non-starter. The exclusion of group submissions indicates that the commissioners are not interested in the views of organised people. The CRC seems only interested in placating the king by making him believe that Swazis are content with the 1973 ban on political parties and activity,” he said. Nxumalo said PUDEMO wants the king to disband the CRC, lift the ban on political parties and reinstate the 1968 independence constitution. Nxumalo described King Mswati III as “captive to traditionalists who want the status quo to continue. These traditionalists form the core of the king’s advisory council and no change can take place without their approval”. Jan Sithole, general secretary of the 85,000-member Swaziland Federation of Trade Unions (SFTU) told IRIN: “The CRC is a fattening ranch for the few, and is designed to extend the lifespan of the status quo.” With the 1973 decree outlawing political parties still in force, and the CRC handpicked by the king, “it is inconceivable that the commission will produce a constitution that will return the country to democracy”. Media coverage The banning of media coverage of CRC hearings has raised suspicions that the commission has something to hide. Journalists have told IRIN that most of the commission’s sessions are conducted in rural areas, where most people are at the mercy of traditional chiefs who determine who can live in their areas of authority. “There are instances where people have been told by commissioners and their staff, prior to making their submissions, not to say anything about the status of the king and the issue of unbanning of political parties,” one journalist said, adding that commissioners and staff have actually removed journalists from the CRC’s roadshow. Academics withdraw The resignations of at least four high-profile, pro-democracy academics from the commission shortly after it was instituted have also raised doubts about the quality of debate within the body. One of these academics, speaking to IRIN on condition of anonymity, said: “As the CRC is stacked with members of the royal family, pro-monarchists and traditional chiefs, debate on the terms of reference of the commission was avoided. “Those of us who tried to initiate debate within the CRC about constitutional principles and qualitative people’s input were labelled as obstructionists. We did not want to be part of a process that would prove to be flawed, thereby giving legitimacy to the status quo.” Investors cautious Sithole said: “The lack of democracy is keeping investors away from Swaziland as no major investors want to plough their money into an unstable political situation.” In a country where only about 10 percent of the population of 950,000 is in formal employment, the ruling elite, he said, could be tempted to try and crush the pro-democracy forces, erroneously believing that a show of political control would boost investor confidence. In just over a year, two bombs have been detonated. The first, in November 1998, exploded in the deputy prime minister’s office in the centre of the capital Mbabane, killing a security guard. The second, a year later, went off in another government office. It could not be ruled out that radicals might detonate further explosions, Sithole said. “We condemn the bomb explosions, but the intransigence of the authorities is pushing people towards radical action.” International pressure Sithole said the labour unions wanted the international community to put pressure on the ruling elite to reinstate democracy. The United States, the European Union, Britain and South Africa should either cut financial support to Swaziland or make it conditional on the reinstatement of democracy, he said. When asked about this, a British diplomat said: “We are aware that there is a lot of dissatisfaction in urban areas regarding the CRC process and the lack of democracy, but we cannot apply any pressure on the authorities to unban political parties and activity. Doing so might open us to accusations of interfering in the internal affairs of a sovereign country.” The American embassy expressed similar sentiments. But a US diplomat added: “Political parties, although banned under the 1973 decree, still congregate without any restrictions and issue public statements without censorship.” Nxumalo acknowledged that PUDEMO and other pro-democracy groups do hold meetings and issue public statements. “This is not because of the ruling elite’s benevolence. It is because we took a conscious decision around 1995 to disregard the ban on political activity,” he explained. However, intimidation of activists and the monitoring of their movements by security forces remained “the order of the day”. A stagnating economy Pro-democracy activists and diplomats also said slow growth in the economy, currently at 3 percent per annum, posed a much bigger threat to the stability of the tiny kingdom. Nxumalo said the poverty situation was getting worse and leading to growing dissatisfaction among the unemployed, especially young people unable to find jobs after leaving school. “This might pose a greater threat to the system than bombs,” he said.