The people of Eswatini head to the polls Friday for elections – despite the fact that political parties are banned. In the last absolute monarchy of Africa, formerly known as Swaziland, all powers are vested in King Mswati III. Elected members of parliament serve as his advisors.
More than 580,000 registered voters will elect 59 members of Eswatini’s lower house, while King Mswati III will appoint an additional 10. He also chooses 20 of the 30 senators in the upper house.
Political parties in Eswatini have been banned since 1973 and, according to the constitution, MPs are chosen on “individual merit”.
A new constitution in 2005 provided an opening that allowed for freedom of association – the right of workers and employers to form and join organisations of their own choosing.
However Freedom House, an organisation that promotes civil and political liberties, says that in practice there is no legal avenue for such organisations to register.
Tinkhundla
Under Eswatini’s tinkhundla system of governance established in 1977, the local chiefs vet election candidates. The kingdom is divided in four regions that are further divided into 59 tinkhundla, or community centres. Those centres regroup 336 chiefdoms, or umphakatsi.
The governing chiefs report directly to the king, the chief executive authority empowered to appoint and dismiss the prime minister and members of the cabinet. The king also commands the police and the army.
Reigning king Mswati III, 55, took the throne in 1986. He is constitutionally above the law.
Out of a population of 1.2 million people, 584,710 voters are drawn from the 336 chiefdoms. They will cast their votes in 664 polling stations, with the results expected over the weekend.
This year, Eswatini's Elections and Boundaries Commission has said ballot papers will be counted at individual polling stations and not transported to a central location for counting.
“We cannot entirely claim there’s an importance of these elections because Eswatini is ruled by an absolute monarch, political parties are banned from participating in elections and all powers are vested upon the king,” Swaziland News editor Zweli Martin Dlamini told Power FM, a South African radio station.
The African Union and the Southern African Development Community have sent observers.
Dissent repressed
During the two-week electoral campaign, there have been almost no rallies or debates.
The banned People's United Democratic Movement, one of the largest opposition movements, is declared a "terrorist" organisation.
Two MPs elected during the last vote in 2018, Mduduzi Bacede Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube, are in jail after being found guilty in January of murder and terrorism linked to protests two years ago.
In a rare show of dissent, the kingdom was shaken by pro-democracy protests in July 2021, with some 40 people killed as security forces violently stopped demonstrations calling for reform.
A curfew was imposed, demonstrations banned and internet access curbed.
Human rights lawyer Thulani Maseko, who led a group of political parties and civil society groups calling for democratic reform, was shot by unknown gunmen through the window of his home in January.
Amnesty International said Maseko's unlawful killing came amid an escalation in attacks on critics, many of whom had been calling out for political reforms.
LaZwide, female opposition figure
In this political landscape with virtually no opposition figure, Nomalungelo Ntombi Simelane, also known as LaZwide, sticks out.
"We don't have the right to be free; there is no freedom of expression," LaZwide told the French news agency AFP. "And if you speak this truth, you end up in exile or in prison."
LaZwide, an MP for the small town of Siphofaneni, was sworn in in August 2022 to replace her husband, Mduduzi Simelane, who was forced into exile after the 2021 crackdown.
The 44-year-old former gospel singer, who fled overseas with her husband and five children, has admitted being afraid. Strong convictions, she says, compelled her to take the reins from her husband and she returned to Eswatini alone.
Taiwan
King Mswati III is known for his 15 wives and lavish lifestyle in a country where a third of the population lives below the poverty line.
Mswati III is also one of the few heads of state to recognise Taiwan, and recently called for its inclusion at the United Nations during the UN General Assembly in New York.
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen visited Eswatini, its last African ally, earlier this month for celebrations marking 55 years of independence from Britain.
