SWAZILAND AND THE DLAMINI DYNASTY On the 7th May 2014, twenty years after the dawn of its democracy, South Africa will hold its fifth elections. Democracy has brought freedoms to ordinary South Africans, who are protected under our Constitution, whose fundamental values are human dignity, equality and freedom. But what has political liberation meant for South Africans in relation to human rights struggles elsewhere on the continent? Should we use our freedom to ensure the rights of fellow Africans to embrace the democratic principles for which we fought and won? One such country is Swaziland, where to date, political parties are banned, activists face imprisonment and some of them live in exile because they dared to question the system of governance in that country. According to the Human Rights Watch, under Swazi law and custom, all powers are vested in the king. Although Swaziland has a prime minister who is supposed to exercise executive authority, in reality, King Mswati holds supreme executive powers and control over the judiciary and legislature. It further states that the Kingdom of Swaziland, ruled by King Mswati III since 1986, is in the midst of a serious crisis of governance which it blames on years of extravagant expenditure by the royal family, fiscal indiscipline, and government corruption. The country is reported to have one of the highest HIV prevalence rates in the world, 80 percent of the population lives on less than US$2 per day and has an unemployment rate of about 40 percent. This week's Special Assignment brings you a documentary on the political situation in that country, where authorities continue to face internal and external pressure from civil society activists and trade unionists to implement economic reforms and open up the space for civil and political activism. "Swaziland and the Dlamini Dynasty" is produced by Zimmedia

• published: 18 Mar 2014
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