CONTENTS | ANB-BIA HOMEPAGE | WEEKLY NEWS
by Vuyisile Hlatshwayo, Swaziland, June 1999
THEME = MEDIA
Swaziland's 30-man Constitutional Review Commission has embarked
upon
the final and most important phase
- that of collecting submissions from the population.
But Swaziland's nearly million Swazis
have been systematically denied the right to be informed about what's happening
The Constitutional Review Commission (CRC) has banned the Media from covering the Constitution-making proceedings and has drawn up a list of topics as a guide for people who want to make any submissions in camera. Against a nationwide outcry, the CRC's chairman, Prince Mangaliso, has argued that the terms of reference contained in the 1996 Decree which established the Commission, only allows the Press to report on the Commission's final report. The CRC chairman has made it clear that the Commission's terms of reference clearly state that only the Commissioners will receive submissions from the people. The CRC also requires people to produce their tax registration certificates before making their submissions. And the chief or/and induna and other members of the community have to confirm people's identity.
People say the Media has been banned as an act of revenge against scathing media reports of internal squabbles within CRC ranks, and of the European Union's (EU) threat to withdraw a large amount of funding. According to a document leaked to The Swazi Observer late last year, the EU has threatened to withdraw funding from the CRC because it has refused to involve professional people in conducting the civic education programme, which goes hand-in-hand with the Constitutional Review exercise. Instead, CRC members went around the chiefdoms conducting the civic education programme themselves. This didn't go down well with many people as the whole of the Constitution Review exercise turned out to be a propaganda campaign for preserving the status quo. The leakage of the document to the Press resulted in the chairman sacking his vice-chairman, Promise Msibi.
The Media have also been accused of turning the CRC into an object of scorn, through persistent harsh criticisms and reporting, about how long the whole process is taking.
All the above, illustrates only too well the state of the Media in Swaziland - a Media controlled by censorship and harassed by the government and other influential groups. On several occasions, even state-run newsrooms have been raided by the authorities attempting to censor news items. And, sad to say, reports are now going the rounds about journalists being hand-in-glove with the government or even receiving bribes from certain influential people.
The fact is, the Constitutional Review exercise has lost all credibility with both conservatives and progressives alike. There is now a great fear that the fundamental document will not reflect the wishes of the people. So, there's not much chance that the nation will accept it as a truly representative document.
The Swaziland National Association of Journalists (SNAJ) has condemned the banning of the Press from covering the people making their submissions. The SNAJ argues that the CRC shouldn't muzzle the Press from carrying out its duty of informing and educating the people about the Constitution-making proceedings. SNAJ's president, Vukani Maziya says the Media have a very important role to play in the Constitution-making exercise. He wonders why the Commissioners are violating one of the hallmarks of democracy - the right to know and the right to inform. He has every reason to suspect the CRC has its own secret constitutional agenda.
The Human Rights Association of Swaziland (HUMARAS) doubts the validity of the present constitutional process. It condemns the CRC for violating the essence of the Constitution - the right of the people to free information. Progressive groups have received the media ban with a great deal of distaste saying that they saw it coming. "The constitution-making exercise is nothing but a big farce".
Perhaps most people will boycott the submission stage of the constitution-making exercise, if the CRC remains adamant that it will not change its undemocratic and unpopular decisions. A Manzini resident, Mandla Mabuza, puts it this way: "The CRC has let us down many times and I doubt that we'll ever get a true reflection of the people's views. I won't even bother making any submissions, because the final document will be based on what "they" want, anyway".
Did King Mswati III approve the ban on press reporting? Prince Mangaliso told the nation that the King had been informed about what was intended and had approved it. The King, however, on his return from Ghana, Nigeria and Brunei, said all this was "news to him". Prince Mangaliso then stated that in fact, there was no need for him to seek the King's approval for this "trivial issue" because he was simply following the Commission's terms of reference.
The CRC's credibility is irreparably dented and most of the Swazi people have no confidence in it. The present logistics of the constitutional process smacks of insensitivity, conspiracy and arrogance. The big question is: Will the final document truly reflect the wishes of the Swazi nation?
END
CONTENTS | ANB-BIA HOMEPAGE | WEEKLY NEWS
PeaceLink 1999 - Reproduction authorised, with usual acknowledgement