Times Of Swaziland: KING NOT IDEAL TO MEDIATE IN DIALOGUE - POLITICAL FORMATIONS

KING NOT IDEAL TO MEDIATE IN DIALOGUE - POLITICAL FORMATIONS
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BY SIBUSISO ZWANE on 27/10/2021 09:14:00


MANZINI – Political parties are of the belief that the King may not be ideal
to play a mediation role in the anticipated dialogue as he is Commander-In-Chief
of the State security organs.
The political parties expressed this view subsequent to the announcement by
Mbekelweni Indvuna Themba Ginindza, who on behalf of His Majesty King Mswati
III, made an announcement that upon completion of Incwala, the Monarch would
summon the nation to Sibaya. According to Section 232 (1), Sibaya (the Swazi
National Council), the people through Sibaya constitute the highest policy and
advisory council (Libandla) of the nation. Sub-section 2 of the Constitution
states that Sibaya is the Swazi National Council constituted by Bantfwabenkhosi,
the tikhulu of the realm and all adult citizens gathered at the official
residence of the Indlovukazi under the chairmanship of Ingwenyama who may
delegate this function to any official.
Functions
Also, Sub-section 3 states that Sibaya functions as the annual general meeting
(AGM) of the nation, but may be convened at anytime to present the views of the
nation on pressing and controversial national issues. Meanwhile, the political
parties, through their leaders, said they did not want Sibaya as they were
calling for a genuine, meaningful and inclusive dialogue. This dialogue, they
said, should be held in a roundtable set-up, which shall be at a neutral venue.
The political party leaders argued that Sibaya was usually chaired by the King,
who could not be expected to play the mediation role in the ongoing unrest.
This, they supposed, was because the King was involved in the State security
organs, by virtue of his position of being the Commander-In-Chief, which are
implicated in the alleged shootings of unarmed citizens wherein some have died.
Secretary General (SG) of the Swaziland Democratic Party (SWADEPA) Mbongiseni
Shabangu said the King, as Commander-In-Chief of State security organs, was
purportedly part of the ongoing conflict.  As such, Shabangu said, the King
could not play a mediation role.
He said as SWADEPA and other pro-change organisations, they wanted a genuine and
meaningful dialogue that would be underwritten and mediated by a neutral
international organisation. Shabangu said basic principles of dialogue were also
clear in terms of neutrality and in terms of the venue. He said in order for an
inclusive dialogue to take place, the prerequisites included the unbanning of
all political organisations and the removal of impediments.
Again, he said it should also be clear to organisations like the Southern
African Development Community (SADC) that peace and stability would only be
achieved once the nation attained its full democracy. “This means that we are
not willing to give a breather to government until emaSwati get what they want.
While waiting for this to happen, protest marches, international advocacy and
any other means necessary will continue,” Shabangu said.
He emphasised that as SWADEPA and pro-change movements, they were ready and
willing to engage in a meaningful dialogue, but not to be hosted by the same
government that had allegedly oppressed emaSwati for almost five decades.
Negotiation
On the same note, the Peoples’ United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) Secretary
General (SG)  Wandile Dludlu concurred with his counterpart from SWADEPA. He
said as a movement, they had set out the main steps in their policy document
titled; ‘Towards a constituent assembly through a negotiation process’.
He said on the preliminary negotiation process, they needed to set up the agenda
for the negotiations, identify an independent facilitator, set up a
conflict/dispute mechanism and agree on time-frames for each stage. Dludlu said
other steps included the reinstatement of the Bill of Rights, establishment of a
national convention, unbanning of political parties and unconditional return of
all political exiles. The political activist said the national convention’s
main role would be to establish an interim authority to manage the negotiation
process, set up guidelines for new elections and a new democratic Constitution.
“It shall comprise an all-inclusive forum,” the political activist said.
Also, he said the constituent assembly would be a body elected by people to lead
the process of a new Constitution for a new democratic Eswatini. “This is what
we mean by dialogue, not the Sibaya setting,” Dludlu added. On the other hand,
the Ngwane National Liberatory Congress (NNLC) President, Sibongile Mazibuko,
said they expected a roundtable for the dialogue because Sibaya purportedly
failed emaSwati for an extensive period.
Arrested
Mazibuko claimed that there was a man named William Mkhaliphi of Vuvulane, who
was allegedly arrested after making submissions during Sibaya. “Now the
situation is worse because people are being killed, which means things have
escalated to a dangerous level,” Mazibuko claimed. She was referring to the
shooting of protesters, allegedly by security personnel, in recent weeks.
Additionally, she said Sibaya usually did not afford the citizenry an
opportunity to formulate resolutions while it (Sibaya) did not issue reports to
the people. This, she said, resulted in a poor implementation process of what
was being deliberated on. In that regard, she said they wanted a dialogue where
all parties would be equal. Subsequent to this, Mazibuko said they would
implement a three-month long programme which the Political Party Assembly (PPA)
would tomorrow issue a statement about.
She said as the NNLC, they would intensify the struggle until the authorities
agreed to meet them halfway. “There is no going back now,” she said. On the
same note, the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) Swaziland Spokesperson, Siphelele
Nkomondze said as an organisation, their stand was clear regarding the matter. 
He said they were calling for a roundtable dialogue, not a Sibaya monologue. He
said Sibaya was not the kind of dialogue they were calling for and as such, they
stood to reject such a call. He argued that history had taught them that the
Sibaya supposedly failed emaSwati on countless occasions for a very long time in
strictly addressing matters affecting the populace.
As a result, he said it had been said that emaSwati only go there kuyotihhamula
(blow off steam), meaning no concrete solutions came out of that platform.
“Again, Sibaya is not the rightful platform for an inclusive and honest
dialogue which can give political solutions to the political problems we are
facing as the oppressed people of the Kingdom of Eswatini,” Nkomondze said. In
their view, he said Sibaya only encouraged people to make submissions to the
King on their individual capacities, not representing any societal group or
formation. Considering that, he said dialogue could not be mere submissions to
an individual, but a two-way of proposals between two equal partners, not unless
it was a monologue which, as an organisation, they were not calling for.
Disappointment
On another note, Nkomondze registered their disappointment on the SADC special
envoy that came to the country recently, led by former SA minister Jeff Radebe.
He said they were disappointed in the manner they handled this volatile matter
of the current political unrest as according to the analysis, they failed to
treat it as a matter of urgency and bring practical political solutions.
“We call on SADC to take the people of Eswatini seriously before the situation
escalates to an uncontrollable state as volatile as it is. The people of the
kingdom are clear on what they want,” the political activist said. As they
move forward, Nkomondze said as an organisation they would intensify the
struggle. He said they would go out to put more pressure on government.