Swaziland: Mswati’s public school catechism policy should be challenged – says Swaziland Solidarity Network

SSN- STATEMENT: 27 January, 2017

The Swaziland Solidarity Network [SSN] strongly condemns King Mswati’s decision to limit the scope of the country’s curriculum. The country’s Prime Minister, Mr Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini told the nation that his king’s government had unilaterally taken the decision to limit the country’s Religious Studies curriculum to teach only about Christianity.

Expanding on this new policy, the Prime Minister said that while other religions could be taught at a later stage of the country’s education system, in the early grades Swazi learners are henceforth going to only learn about Christianity.

It is quite clear therefore that the ruling regime aims to condition young learners towards the Christian religion and be ignorant, and thus prejudiced, towards other religions. This is in violation of the country’s own constitutions which allows all religious communities to instruct learners about their own religions and allows them to teach about others.

The SSN further urges all Swazi parents and the Swaziland National Association of Teachers to legally and otherwise challenge the state’s attempt to turn the country’s public schools into Catechism classes.

Issued by the Swaziland Solidarity Network [SSN]

Contact:

Lucky Lukhele- Spokesperson

+2781 458 5658

Swaziland Youth Congress (Swayoco) message of solidarity to YCLSA 3rd National Council

Delivered by Cde Sonkhe Dube – International Secretary

Saturday 10 December 2016

University of Johannesburg, Soweto campus

On behalf of the Swazi youth under the leadership of the Swaziland Youth Congress, the youth league of the Peoples United Democratic Movement we forward revolutionary greetings to the Young Communists League of South Africa, its structures and fraternal alliances. We are honoured to be part of the national council not only because we believe in socialism being the future but because of the practical solidarity that the YCLSA and the SACP have constantly offered to the Swazi struggle against an oppressive monarch. We believe it is in the hands of young people to deliver and practically implement socialism in our lifetime. We believe that socialism should not just be a slogan to fascinate the masses of our people or a communist jargon to decorate our documents but should be an ideology that should be practically implemented in our societies to address inequalities.

The Swazi struggle will at all material times honour and support the YCLSA and the SACP for the sacrifices that they have constantly made for the Swazis, As we speak a communist from Limpopo by the name of cde Amos Mbedzi is serving a prison sentence of 85 years in a Swazi prison. Another South African communist by the name of cde Jack Govender lost his life in Swaziland in support of the Swazi revolution. The sacrifices of these comrades were not in vain and indeed Swaziland will be liberated in our lifetime.

We would also again remind council that the Swazi youth is still oppressed by an absolute monarch who appoints the whole cabinet, judiciary, members of senate and part of the members in the national assembly without either a traditional or democratic mandate. We are the only country in Southern Africa where political parties are banned and do not contest power. We would also like to express our disgust at the regional organ of Southern Africa - SADC - for appointing Mswati who is a dictator of note as the chairman of the organ. As part of a region in which countries are ruled by political parties we wonder how the chair will lead since in his own country merely shouting “Viva PUDEMO” can lead to arrest and a prison sentence of 25 years. As a chair we are waiting to see how he will address problems within political parties in the region after his dismal failure to mediate in Zimbabwe when he led the TROIKA organ forcing the region to seek the intervention of the then South African president Thabo Mbeki to mediate.

We would also like to assure Council that the struggle for the liberation of Swaziland continues because we also want to implement socialism in our lifetime. We hope the National Council will adopt practical resolutions on the Swazi question so that the transformation to socialism does not leave out Swaziland for we have seen how such states become vulnerable to imperialists who want to destroy neighbouring socialist states.

We wish the YCLSA a successful national council and hope for an adoption of resolutions that will change the lives of poor South Africans and influence southern Africa and Africa alike.

AMANDLA!!!

VIVA YCLSA VIVA!!!

VIVA SACP VIVA!!!

Seven Irreconcilable Theses on the Bible

Thesis 1

The words in the bible resemble the word of God and not human thoughts. They are God's commands. As such, human beings have the duty to carry out the bible's commands without doubt or question. Faith, and not empirical evidence, therefore, becomes an important, if not the only, tool with which to correctly understand the bible.

Thesis 2

The bible is a holy book and thus should never be amended, nor should any of its pages be torn or be used for anything else other than reading. To amend the bible or to throw it into the rubbish bin, for instance, is literally to disregard and insult God’s holiness. Blasphemy is the ultimate crime for such acts.

Thesis 3

The bible is simply a book on historical events, some exaggerated and some understated, written by different people who were influenced by different experiences at different times. As a book of history, the book may have some degree of importance, although it must be read and studied critically. Hence the bible has nothing to do with commands or anything related to 'holiness,' and people may disregard some parts of it.

Thesis 4

The truth is that the bible was written by human beings, by prophets of God and no other. But these prophets were not writing whatever they wanted. The words were given to them by God using his own mysterious ways. This is the basis for books such as Genesis, especially the part which deals with the creation of the world which human beings could not have been able to witness with their naked eyes, and Revelation, amongst others.

Thesis 5

The bible is nothing but a collection of many books written by different people at different epochs and for different reasons. It has nothing to do with God's dictation or being holy. This is why it is a big book of many irreconcilable contradictions. The collection process itself was mired in controversy and corruption; hence so many writings were either ignored or destroyed, or hidden from the public eye by the Church elites who made the compilation. Examples here include the Gospels of Thomas, Judas, Peter, and Philip, amongst others, which have recently been discovered.

Thesis 6

To talk about the bible being a book of all times is a total absurdity. A thorough empirical study of the bible reveals its true identity; that the writings in it were writings meant for people in the places mentioned therein. As such, to follow the bible’s instructions literally and mechanically apply it in Southern Africa, for instance, is the basis for the conclusion that one's reasoning capability has hit rock bottom.

Thesis 7

The two Testaments contradict each other. Thus, the Old Testament applies only to the Jews whilst the New Testament applies to the whole world including the Jews. The society to which the commands were given as contained in the Old Testament applied to a definite community, the Jews, and no other. The ‘globalisation’ of the word of God only happens in the New Testament as restructured by Jesus Christ. In a word, Jesus Christ repealed the Old Testament, and to keep the two Testaments in one book can only help to reinforce the contradictions between them and thus contradict God’s word completely.

Swaziland's Independence Day Means Nothing For Women - Nomsa Lusanda Mbuli

As we approach September 6th, I know everyone in Swaziland is looking forward to taking a break from their everyday life to celebrate being free since 1968, I just can't buy it. But who am I to argue with a paid holiday? The 6th of September might commemorate the independence of our country — but it also serves as a bitter reminder that in 1968 Swaziland gained an independence that as a woman, I'm yet to experience.

This independence day commemoration, just like every other year, comes at a time when the nation is facing challenges, brought about by a failed economy, pervasive corruption, increasing poverty and hunger, high unemployment, poor public service delivery, a ravaging drought, and the on-going civil war on women. That is why I do not think this independence is for me, and if you're a woman, it isn't for you either. Our 'independence' won't be until the day we are treated like citizens of this country, instead of guests that get chopped off anytime. 

Independence, or 'emancipation' is about fighting back against all forms of oppression and sexist norms so that women and men can be equal and can be who they are without fear of discrimination. However, I do not feel this is the foundation of our constitution. While I celebrate the fact that our forefathers negotiated for our liberation, I am not currently happy with the current state of this country. But most of all, I am completely and utterly ashamed and embarrassed by the fact that women have to constantly fight for a place in all kinds of spaces, that the emancipation of women is still an everyday struggle, despite 48 years of independence. I don't know about men, but women still have a long way to fight for equality. And even though the Swazi nation escaped colonization from the Whites, women's emancipation has always been fought against. So whose independence are we celebrating, really?

Women still hold a second class status in society; we still lack representation in decision making and therefore cannot equally contribute to the political, social and economic advancement of the country. The sexual reproductive health and rights for women is constantly under threat. Sexism is still present in all structures, and the media does all it can to perpetuate it. Women still get blamed for rape; they are told that they should try not to get raped instead of teaching men not to rape. They get assaulted, they can't walk at night, and their freedom is basically restricted, while the rights of men are unlimited and without responsibility.

Independence Day needs to be celebrated for what it is; for the break away from Britain and oppression, for men. Women still need to fight for their own independence. We still need to fight for the right to walk freely without fear of being attacked in our own land. We need to fight for the right to protection; we need the law to protect us from rapists despite our sexual history. We need to know that domestic violence, murder, rape and assault are all atrocities. The war on women is a national emergency, but until our leaders treat it as such, we have nothing to celebrate. As women, we need not wait for our leaders to start treating us as equals. We owe it to ourselves, and to our country, to make the contribution we were born to make. Our future daughters deserve to hear from us, and through our efforts we can ensure that THEY get to celebrate real independence on Independence Day.

Stop Trying To Look Good to Tinkhundla! Stop Trying To Be "Clean"!

I said this in 2011 when the so-called “clean PUDEMO” was telling the whole world that we were the “bad PUDEMO” which was causing problems! And it is still relevant today!

Be reasonable - by being unreasonable to tinkhundla. Tinkhundla is unreasonable to you. So why should you try and destroy it reasonably? Tinkhundla is not diplomatic when it kills your comrades. Why then should you be diplomatic when you destroy it?

You see, tinkhundla people will come out and insult you, whether you are rich, poor, homeless, educated, school drop-out, or anything. Tinkhundla always insults you using whatever you have. Don’t try to please them. You have nothing to prove to tinkhundla.

1.    When you haven’t been able to acquire tertiary education they will use that very fact to try and de-campaign you. They will be saying to the people, “Don’t listen to this uneducated fellow. She just wants to go down with the rest of you since she knows that she has got nothing to lose as she is already educated”.

2.    When you are at university or college and you have good grades, generally, they will say, “Don’t listen to him! He wants you to boycott classes because he knows that he is smart, and when the exams comes he will pass and you will all fail. He is using you. Why listen to him then?”

3.    When you are rich they will say, “Oh! Why should you listen to this person? She is rich yet she wants you to be engaged in the struggle so that you can continue to be poor. She wants to be rich alone.”

4.    If it happens that you are in exile they will jump and say, “He needs to shut up! He is not on the ground! He must come back and fight for freedom here in Swaziland if he is serious. Don’t listen to this person because he wants you to sacrifice but he is not willing to.”

They may even say, “He is not an exile. There are no political exiles in Swaziland!” When they say such things, do not be tempted to start releasing any list of exiles so as to try and prove to tinkhundla that there are political exiles of Swaziland.

5.    Tinkhundla censors the media. So, you may then take advantage of social media such as facebook, twitter, you tube, etc. Trust me, when you have advanced to such a stage they will come hitting hard, and saying, “Look at this person! She calls herself an activist yet she is on facebook/twitter. You can’t win freedom on facebook. She is nothing but a cyber-activist who keeps criticizing from the comfort of her arm-chair! Don’t listen to her!”

6.    When you are in jail for your political opinions, they will be hitting you saying, “Look at him! He is trying to be Mandela. He thinks he can emulate him. There will always be only one Nelson Mandela. This man must stay in jail and be sodomized by the inmates there!”

7.    When you fail in school or tertiary institution and repeat a class they will scream again and say “Why do you keep listening to a failure? Kodvwa lesidvomu nisifunani kangaka? This fellow has failed and lost everything and simply wants to go down with the rest of you!”

You see! That is tinkhundla for you. Whether you are rich, poor, homeless, educated, learned, jailed, exiled, inside or outside Swaziland, or wherever, they will always want to destroy you. It is a pity that even comrades use such tinkhundla garbage against other comrades.

Don’t try to look beautiful to tinkhundla. They are not beautiful. Don’t try to please tinkhundla, its agents or its leaders. Never ever change your ideology and approach to issues, no matter how the insults! Never ever reduce your radicalism simply because you want to please tinkhundla. In fact, never ever reduce your radicalism! Stay radical forever! Keep your cool and keep speaking the truth. Keep fighting the system!

Rape jokes are not funny!

Most of us are guilty of spreading rape jokes. I confess I have been guilty of this, thousands of times. But rape jokes are not funny. We should not beat about the bush on this matter. Rape jokes are simply not funny! They do not even enter the realm of ‘jokes.’ It should actually be a crime to spread such messages!

Sense of humour

On social networks, it is a norm that when someone comments that a certain joke is not funny, she or he is slapped with, “It is just a joke. Where is your sense of humour?” Imagine that nonsense! So many societal wrongs are condoned and accepted simply because they are reduced to jokes. They are reduced to ‘sense of humour’ and before we know it the scourge worsens in the midst of our tears of humour.

Let us all come together and stop belittling rape and making it a joke of the year. Rape victims need not be stigmatised by such lame jokes. They need our support. They are our sisters, brothers, fathers, mothers, daughters, sons, and so on. They need to know that they will get our support whenever they have been violated. But I speak about ‘they’ as if I can never, or have never, be violated. I also need to have belief that I will not be turned into a joke whenever I am raped.

I will end there, with the hope that everyone is on board. 

From being destroyed by colonialism to being destroyed by royal family…

When the colonisers came to Southern Africa, they taught the natives to forgive their enemies throw away their weapons and forget about earthly things but only focus on what awaits them after death. The natives did all these, but the colonisers did none such. Instead they took all the earthly possessions that the natives previously possessed and protected them by their colonialist laws.

Then the Swazi royal elites told the Swazi population that in order to inherit heavenly life, they should reject the indilinga (money) that was coming with the whites but only take the umculu (bible) they were coming with. The population did that, but the royal elites did the opposite. They focused on taking possession of indilinga and only used umculu to justify why only them have the right to possession of indilinga. They taught that the first divine duty of the indilingaless population is to pray for more blessings to be showered upon the indilinga possessors, the royal elites.

Today the ruling royal elite tell the poor population to go and register their complaints with the ruling royal regime. It is a known practice of shutting down a disgruntled nation. Another force has come into the picture in helping beef up the docility of the population; the elites in the mass democratic movement! They never prepare the masses for war, but they prepare them to be more docile and respectful to the humiliation meted by the royal regime upon them. They don't teach defiance, they teach compliance! They don't teach revolution, they teach ass-licking. They're all part of the rot! The rot continues!

#Swaziland Solidarity Network says: Smart Sanctions against Mswati Long Overdue

SSN- STATEMENT: 19^th July, 2016

The Swaziland Solidarity Network (SSN), together with Swaziland’s Mass Democratic Movement, has lobbied the world to impose “smart sanctions” against king Mswati for a long time now. The sanctions we are advocating for are reasonable restrictions that affect only the king, his family and their cronies.

Had the world listened to our pleas the country would have avoided this outrageous waste of public funds currently being reported in international media. It has been widely reported by a number of South African newspapers that while the country’s citizens are struggling to cope with the effects of a severe drought, the king’s wives went on holiday to Orlando in the United States of America where they spent
over E16 million.

The foreign diplomats are only giving lip service in response to this abuse of scarce resources and insult to the Swazi tax payers, donors and development partners. The SSN wishes to state categorically that the foreign diplomats and international community is primarily to blame for the indiscriminate looting by King Mswati and his family. The silence and failure to act by the international community exacerbates Mswati’s arrogance and makes him disregard toothless “friendly advice” on fiscal discipline. The only language he understands is action. This was evident in the loss of the country’s AGOA status. Since the country lost AGOA its government has been frantically trying to make amends on labour policy.

[Also read: Ten steps towards being the Perfect Revolutionary]

We therefore urge the world to end these lavish holidays by simply imposing a travel ban on the king, his wives and cronies.

Issued by the Swaziland Solidarity Network [SSN] 

Contact:

Lucky Lukhele – Spokesperson

072 502 41414

#Swaziland: MSWATI III Cannot Lead SADC!! - Joint PUDEMO/SSN Statement

Dated 18/07/2016

The Peoples United Democratic Movement [PUDEMO] and Swaziland Solidarity Network [SSN] would like to pass their heartfelt gratitude to all the South Africans, and Swazis who attended the seminar on SADC, the prospect of Mswati becoming a chairperson of SADC and what needs to be done. As much as the seminar was scheduled during a working day, the attendees found it significant enough to take off from work to attend. For this we thank you all for making such a big sacrifice to lend your opinions and expertise on how the region should approach the future, as Mswati III has become the regular shame on insisting to hold on to the past for the sole purposes of using the state of Swaziland to loot the hard-earned resources of the people of Swaziland while above 60% of the nation lives in abject poverty, while in the process lending his autocracy to making the region look like a stronghold of dictators.

The seminar was not only to address the issue of a dictator becoming a chairperson of a supposed democratic institution, but to build a permanent South African Movement to serve as an inspiration to the Swazi people that in times when the repression is hardest and security forces prowl the streets of Swaziland to clamp down on dissent, that the South African Movement can on a regular bases fill conference rooms and the streets to once again highlight the Swazi situation, because shamefully ironic is the reality that next door to one of the most robust former liberation movements still exists the brainchild of apartheid regime years after it has been defeated in South Africa.

[Also read:  Update on Ayanda Mkhabela who was recklessly injured by Royal Swaziland Police vehicle]

Judging by the attendance of the seminar which was responded to way beyond our expectations, communicates that both South Africans and Swazis are anxious to deal with the Swazi issue and finally do away with a dictatorship that has been nothing but dead weight to the region. Our strategy of not focusing much on the international community in regard to the seminar on SADC was so that as Swazis and South Africans we shoulder first ponder on this issue as we are literally brothers and sisters, and thereafter call upon the international community when we have shown that as members of the region we are very much willing to confront our issues before we call up the international community for further assistance. In the near future we will be engaging our international friends, who in the past have responded inspiringly, and give a directive on what needs to be done.

As part of the campaigns to address the issue of what needs to be done on the issue of institutionalizing dictatorship in the region, it was resolved that on top of the number of campaigns that are planned by PUDEMO, SSN and civil society, that there will be a counter summit that to balance the story and espouse on the hypocrisy and the promotion of repression presently ongoing within SADC.

Issued by the Peoples United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) and Swaziland Solidarity Network (SSN)

For more information please call comrade Lucky Lukhele. Cell: 072 502 4141

Or

Brian Ntshangase (PUDEMO National Spokesperson). Cell: 081 091 2364 

Also Read: Who created Mvelinchanti?  

Cruel [manner of] killing of cows in lobola ceremonies must STOP

[NB: Square brackets in this updated version because some people misread and misinterpreted the article to mean that it is the killing of the bull that is opposed. Some started making wild claims that the article says people must no longer eat meat during celebrations]

People who have attended lobola ceremonies will know that one of the most important aspects of such ceremonies is the slaughter of at least two male cows. These two cows may be bulls or oxen or one of each. For purposes of this discussion let us assume that bulls are slaughtered.

Whilst in urban areas the slaughter of a bull during lobola ceremonies is not usually practiced, in rural areas it is still rampant, owing mainly to the fact that material conditions there still allow for the existence of a kraal and enough space for performing other rites. Rural areas have ample space to conduct the slaughtering and, further, the object of lobola is mainly cattle, although money is also increasingly being used. Two bulls are killed during the ceremony. 

How the killing happens

There may be variations in different communities and families. The dominant practice is for one person, usually a man referred to as a gozolo, to enter the kraal where a number of cattle will be, including the targeted two bulls. He uses a spear to stab each bull on the side of its stomach, next to one of its front legs. This happens whilst a huge crowd watches and sings songs of jubilation either outside or inside the kraal, depending on kraal size. This process can go on for a very long time depending on the strength of the bull and the skill of the gozolo. Ultimately the bull dies, but only after a very long time. [It is the manner of killing the bull, including the long process it takes for it to die that is challenged here, and not necessarily the killing of the bull during these ceremonies].

The cruelty

The [manner of of the] slaughter of lobola bulls is manifestly a cruel practice. It is cruel to the animal being speared and to the rest of the cattle in the kraal. The argument that animals have no feelings like human beings is obviously a lame one. There is clear evidence that cattle do get traumatised when one of their own is subjected to abuse of any kind. Killing of a bull in front of other cattle is therefore a cruel act.

The chants outside the kraal also cannot be ignored. They also contribute to the animal’s trauma. The animal gets traumatised by the huge noise whilst it gets speared multiple times on its side. The same torture is visited upon the rest of the cattle who are not being killed.

Whatever the roots and justifications of this practice, it cannot be denied that it is not correct at all. Some people will claim that the criticism of this cruel practice is nothing but one of those ‘un-African’ and ‘anti-black’ criticisms which do nothing but condone and justify colonialism, racism and white supremacy. But if we are serious about building and strengthening Africa, we must not shy away from abolishing backward and cruel practices. Whether such practice is done by blacks or whites, the practice remains cruel. This includes the bull runs that are popular in Spain. These have been criticised by animal rights activists many times. The same criticisms of lobola bull-killings must apply to them and vice versa.

Conclusion

Africa needs to redefine itself in accordance with changed material conditions. The cruel ways used to kill cows during lobola ceremonies must stop. There is nothing unAfrican or anti-black about stopping this tradition. Holding on to such cruel practices simply because they are tradition can never be justified. Instead, new quicker and less traumatising ways of killing the lobola bull must be found.