UN CONVENTION FINALLY RATIFIED AFTER 56 YEARS

LOBAMBA – For 56 years, the country has been using a United Nations(UN) Convention it never ratified, let alone signed for. Until yesterday, the country was the only one that had not signed for the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations of 1963 in the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

The treaty was only acceded to yesterday during a joint sitting by the two houses of Parliament.
For all the five decades, it was shelved at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, which has been previously headed by Chief Mgwagwa Gamedze, Lutfo Dlamini, Abednego Ntshangase and Mathendele Dlamini.
The treaty that entered into force on March 19, 1963, talks about the establishment and conduct of consular relations, consular functions, inviolability of the consular premises, end of consular functions, immunity from jurisdiction and ending consular relations among other things .

The discussion of the convention took place in a one hour workshop where members of both houses were taken through by Minister Thuli Dladla, together with the ministry’s Legal Advisor Vuyile Dlamini. Dlamini described this policy as a framework for those free countries which looked into the promotion of friendly relations among nations.

important

He said it was important for strengthening global peace and security, and also the promotion of international relations. “Worldwide, about 179 countries signed and ratified the treaty while only four  signed for it but have not yet ratified it. Eswatini was the only country under SADC that had not yet acceded to it,” he said.
Other UN countries that have not agreed to the policy include Ethiopia, Uganda, South Sudan, Afghanistan and Guinea Bissau among others.

Dlamini summarised the articles contained in the treaty and further explained how crucial they were as they outlined functions of the consuls and specified their duties and the responsibilities that the hosting country had.
“Articles 31 to 37 speak to privileges that the consuls have in the countries where they will be posted, while articles 69 to 73 deal with general provisions,” he said.
The legal advisor described this convention as the most adhered to of most conventions, and since Eswatini was a role model country in terms of peace in the region, continent and world at large, it was important for it to ratify the convention.

endorsed

The legislators endorsed the convention during a joint sitting that took place a few minutes after the workshop was closed.
Along this policy, they also acceded to the African Export-Import Bank (AFREXIMBANK) agreement of 1993.
Even when this one was presented, the house was sent into stitches when Mxolisi Fakudze from the Ministry of Finance, revealed that Eswatini was the only country in the SADC region that was not a member of the bank.
“The bank will assist African countries to process its raw goods to the end and sell them to markets at a high price.”

He said the bank also allowed the purchase of shares under different categories which range from Class A to D. “Currently, countries like Namibia, Lesotho and Botswana have shares between 0.1 to 0.5 per cent, while South Africa has about three to five per cent shares,” Fakudze said.
Finance Minister Neal Rijkenberg motivated for the signing of this agreement, saying the funding would come cheaper than commercial funding.

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