Let’s not wait for SADC
am trying hard to choose my words carefully here. As such, , am not going to say we should forget about having a solution to our deadly socio-political unrest come from the Southern African Development Community SADC .
, will not say this, even though it has been more than a year since the regional bloc got to know of our political situation, which has given rise to social instability.
This instability has been gradually moving from bad to worse. 2ne cannot even begin to count the number of emaSwati who have died since -une
, when this rolling unrest began. ,t started with government¶s decision to ban the delivery of petitions to the
constituency centres tinkhundla countrywide. All hell broke loose as some emaSwati took to the streets to protest that unfair decision and sadly some criminal elements such as looting and arson crept in resulting in chaos
:hen SADC got involved, there was a brief period of calm, with many emaSwati hoping that a solution would come. ,t never did.
,nstead, after a few visits to our country, the SADC Troika on 3olitics, Defence and Security seemed to shelve our issue, despite them having noted that the (swatini crisis was serious and needed urgent intervention.
ADDRESS
3resident of %otswana 0okgweetsi 0asisi and his South Africa counterpart Cyril 5amaphosa have been in the country, ostensibly to address the same issue.
(maSwati lost hope and became impatient when it dawned on them that SADC actually did not think the (swatini issue was Cthat urgent.¶
:hile some threw their arms up in exasperation, others decided to resort to violent means to force the country¶s leaders to deal with the issues raised.
This has given birth to what is now practically an armed struggle.
This has seen security officers from all the three State security agents getting killed and a swathe of destruction of property being carried out.
,ndividuals and businesses have collectively lost tens of millions of (malangeni in terms of residential houses, heavy plant eTuipment and infrastructure.
As emaSwati realised that SADC was not being very helpful, at least not at the pace citi]ens of the kingdom hoped for, they looked internally, to the country¶s leadership, to bring an end to the bloodshed, create an environment of forgiveness and healing, as well as lead the nation to a national dialogue.
COMPROMISE
,t was hoped that this dialogue would bring together all the various voices, initiate discussion of the contentious issues and open room for compromise where necessary.
Still, it did not happen.
A couple of months ago, after a visit to (swatini by a delegation from SADC, the report given was that peace and calm had returned to (swatini. :e were all shocked.
:hile it was true that there had been a short period of calm, many emaSwati were still unhappy and demanding that the root cause of the social instability be addressed.
0any emaSwati wondered how our leaders could be so indifferent to the dangers ordinary citi]ens were being exposed to.
,n what could be interpreted by some as a signal to SADC, to make its office bearers that peace and calm had not yet returned to (swatini, chaos erupted immediately after the report that the country was now at peace.
This time around, the murder of security officers and burning of property was more ruthless.
RISKY
Still, there was no word from SADC and internally, our leaders were Tuiet.
The only time they spoke was when they came out to repeat the same statement to the effect that the social unrest created a risky environment that was not conducive for dialogue.
As journalists, we have wasted acres of paper and gallons of ink, trying to convince the country¶s leadership to make a Tuick decision to end the carnage before it explodes into a full-scale civil war. :e have tried to impress upon them that it is during the war that dialogue should be held.
,t will never make sense to wait for the war to end before you start seeking middle ground.
,n any case, if that is government¶s feeling ± that the political environment is not yet favourable for talks to be held ± shouldn¶t there be an alternative solution"
Those in leadership cannot honestly expect us to believe that they only have dialogue as a possible solution that without this exercise they have no other ideas.
The nation expects better than this from the people who pull the country¶s political strings. :e have always thought they were intelligent men and women capable of resolving issues.
After all, it is now clear that the solution for our socio-political problems lies in our own hands as emaSwati. SADC has clearly demonstrated that it will not interfere.
, must say , was disappointed when 1amibia 3resident +age *eingob was in the country over a week ago.
After meeting +is 0ajesty the .ing, the 1amibian leader, who is also president of the SADC Troika said, ³, am still going to visit other member States, after which the date of the Troika meeting will be set. This is where we will discuss all the afflictions of our member States, including (swatini.
SOLVING
After those discussions, we will invite all parties concerned to be also engaged as we look forward to solving our differences soon.”
The above statement makes it clear that *eingob and the regional bloc as a whole do not regard the (swatini issue as urgent. ,n this statement, he outlines a very convoluted and complicated process of resolving SADC issues in general - without timelines.
+e does not even make a suggestion as to what should happen in the kingdom while this never-ending process he speaks of is in motion.
,n siSwati, it is said, “Incola iviwa ngumshayeli” 2nly the one wearing the shoe knows where it pinches . :e, emaSwati feel the pain of living amid violence, fear and hopelessness on a daily basis. 1obody will come from outside to rescue us. :e need to rescue ourselves.
:ith an empathetic and decisive leadership that is concerned about the wellbeing of the entire population, not just a protected few, we can do it.