Politics of Swaziland
|
|
Template:Election swaziland Swaziland is foremost, and has been for all of its administrative history, ruled by a monarch. According to Swazi law and custom, the monarch holds supreme executive, legislative, and judicial powers. History is short, however, and in Swaziland's case is punctuated with a 65 year reign of Sobhuza II of Swaziland. Ngwenyama (King, lion, representing the hardness as expressed in thunder) is a hereditary leader, rules the country, with the assistance of a council of ministers and a national legislature. The Ndlovukazi (mother of the king, she-elephant, representing softness as in water) is in charge of national rituals, and is Regent if Ngwenyama is less than 18 years old or is indisposed. If the king's mother is no longer living, one of the king's wives may act as Ndlovukazi. In Sobhuza's case, Ndlovukazi was his grandmother. Later in his long reign, others were appointed from among his senior wives. The two rule together.
The Regent is assisted by the Authorised Person in-Libandla. Where the Regent and the Authorised Person are not in agreement on any matter the matter shall be referred to Bantfwabenkhosi and chiefs.
The King, according to the [1] (http://www.constitution.org.sz/english/full.html) draft constitution, is also Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces. He, the Regent, and in-Libandla have legal immunity.
| Contents |
Choosing the King
Succession is chosen in relation to the status of the potential king's mother. Ndlovukazi is chosen by the Royal Council after the King's death, she will be from an unrelated family. Within the aristocracy, the first wife is never the main wife - a second wife who has a higher pedigree will take precedence. The Royal family line, the Dlamini's, never intermarry; the King is always a Dlamini, the Queen Mother is never a Dlamini. The king is not followed by blood brothers. He is "Nkosi Dlamini" and is expected to unify his position by choosing wives from all sectors of the community. The balance of power lies between the King and the Queen Mother. The Royal Council plays a key role in the selection of the successor to the throne. Much of this tradition remains secret (or undetermined) - but it is rumoured that the new king must be single, and is usually a minor. His wives are important.
The King's wives
A Swazi king's first two wives are chosen for him by the national councillors. These two have special functions in rituals and their sons can never claim kingship. The first wife must be a member of the Matsebula clan, the second of the Motsa clan. According to tradition, he can only marry his fiancées after they have fallen pregnant, proving they can bear heirs. Until then, they are Liphovela.
Government structures
In general practice, however, the monarch's power is delegated through a dualistic system: modern, statutory bodies, like the cabinet, and less formal traditional government structures. At present, parliament consists of a 65-seat House of Assembly (55 members are elected through popular vote; 10 are appointed by the king) and 30-seat Senate (10 members are appointed by the House of Assembly, and 20 are appointed by the king). The king must approve legislation passed by parliament before it becomes law. The prime minister, who is head of government, and the cabinet, which is recommended by the prime minister and approved by the king, exercises executive authority.
For local administration Swaziland is divided into four regions, each with an administrator appointed by the king. Parallel to the government structure is the traditional system consisting of the king and his advisers, traditional courts, and 55 Tinkhundla (subregional districts in which traditional chiefs are grouped).
Swaziland is a member of the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) which the U.S. began negotiating a Free Trade Agreement with in May 2003. The other members of SACU are Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and South Africa.
Constitution
No constitution is currently in force. The constitution of 6 September 1968 was suspended 12 April 1973 by a State of Emergency decree imposed by King Sobhuza, the father of the current King Mswati III. The decree gave absolute power to the monarchy and banned organised political opposition to royal rule.
A new constitution was promulgated 13 October 1978, but was not formally presented to the people.
In 2001 King Mswati III appointed a committee to draft a new constitution. The draft was released for comment in May 2003, and was strongly criticised by civil society organizations in Swaziland, as well as by Amnesty International and the International Bar Association, among others.
Amnesty international listed the following criticisms of the draft constitution of 2003:
- failure to protect fully the rights to freedom of conscience, belief, expression, opinion, peaceful assembly and association;
- failure to protect fully the right to life by, for instance, allowing law enforcement officials to use lethal force in situations where there is no threat to life posed to police or others;
- failure to include economic and social rights as rights enforceable by the courts;
- only partial protection of the rights of women, with for instance girls and young women not protected against forced marriage; and
- weak actual protection for the impartiality and independence of the judiciary, particularly regarding the selection, appointment, tenure and dismissal of judges.
A new draft was placed before the largely advisory parliament on November 4, 2004.[2] (http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2841.htm&e=10313) The draft reportedly is substantially the same as the version issued in 2003.
Swaziland's two largest political organisations, the People's United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) and the Ngwane National Liberatory Congress (NNLC), together with labour unions, challenged the 2004 draft constitution in the Swaziland's High Court. However, in March 2005 the court upheld a ban on opposition political parties, citing the 1973 State of Emergency decree of King Sobhuza. "It remains the duty and function of the court to uphold and apply the laws of the land, and especially so when constitutional issues are decided," the court ruled. The applicants indicated that they intended to pursue their case in the Court of Appeal.[3] (http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/IRIN/ead2e6afece47c637a40a4fb76df3b18.htm&e=10313)
Trade unions in the country have organized repeated strikes to protest against the lack of labour and political rights and the draft constitution. This included a general strike on 25 and 26 January 2005, although reportedly not widely heeded. [4] (http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=68&art_id=qw1106814062464B224)
Other political information
Country name:
conventional long form: Kingdom of Swaziland
conventional short form: Swaziland
Data code: WZ
Government type: monarchy; independent member of Commonwealth
Capital: Mbabane; Lobamba is the royal and legislative capital
Administrative divisions: 4 districts; Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, Shiselweni
Independence: 6 September 1968 (from UK)
National holiday: Somhlolo (Independence) Day, 6 September (1968)
Legal system: based on South African Roman-Dutch law in statutory courts and Swazi traditional law and custom in traditional courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: NA
Executive branch:
chief of state: King MSWATI III (since 25 April 1986)
head of government: Prime Minister Sibusiso Barnabas DLAMINI (since 9 August 1996)
cabinet: Cabinet recommended by the prime minister and confirmed by the monarch
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament or Libandla, an advisory body, consists of the Senate (30 seats - 10 appointed by the House of Assembly and 20 appointed by the monarch; members serve five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (65 seats - 10 appointed by the monarch and 55 elected by popular vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 16 and 24 October 1998 (next to be held NA 2003)
election results: House of Assembly - balloting is done on a nonparty basis; candidates for election are nominated by the local council of each constituency and for each constituency the three candidates with the most votes in the first round of voting are narrowed to a single winner by a second round
Judicial branch: High Court, judges are appointed by the monarch; Court of Appeal, judges are appointed by the monarch
Political parties and leaders: political parties are banned by the constitution - the following are considered political associations - Imbokodvo National Movement or INM (leader NA); Ngwane National Liberatory Congress or NNLC (Obed DLAMINI, president); People's United Democratic Movement or PUDEMO (Mario MASUKU, president); Swaziland National Front or SWANAFRO (Elmond SHONGWE, president)
note: political parties are banned by the constitution promulgated on 13 October 1978; illegal parties are prohibited from holding large public gatherings.
International organization participation: ACP, AfDB, C, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Flag description: three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in yellow; centered in the red band is a large black and white shield covering two spears and a staff decorated with feather tassels, all placed horizontally