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Eswatini, officially the Kingdom of Eswatini, sometimes written in English as eSwatini, and formerly and still commonly known in English as Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by Mozambique to its northeast and South Africa to its north, west, and south. At no more than 200 kilometres (120 mi) north to south and 130 kilometres (81 mi) east to west, Eswatini is one of the smallest countries in Africa; despite this, its climate and topography are diverse, ranging from a cool and mountainous highveld to a hot and dry lowveld.
Eswatini is an absolute monarchy with constitutional provisions and Swazi law and Custom. The head of state is the king or Ngwenyama, currently King Mswati III, who ascended to the throne in 1986 after the death of his father King Sobhuza II in 1982 and a period of regency. According to the constitution of Eswatini, the king and Ingwenyama is a symbol of unity and the eternity of the Swazi nation. By tradition, the king reigns along with his mother or a ritual substitute, the Ndlovukati. The former was viewed as the administrative head of state and the latter as a spiritual and national head of state, with real power counterbalancing that of the king, but during the long reign of Sobhuza II the role of the Ndlovukati became more symbolic. The king appoints the prime minister from the legislature and also appoints a minority of legislators to both chambers of Libandla (parliament), with help from an advisory council. The king is allowed by the constitution to appoint some members to parliament for special interests. These special interests are citizens who might have been left out by the electorate during the course of elections or did not enter as candidates. This is done to balance views in parliament. Special interests could be people of gender, race, disability, business community, civic society, scholars, chiefs and so on. The Senate consists of 30 members, of which some are appointed by the king on recommendation of the advisory council and others elected by the lower house. The House of Assembly has 65 seats, 55 of which are occupied by elected representatives from the 55 constituencies around the country, 10 appointed by the king on recommendation of the advisory council and the attorney general is the ex-officio member. Elections are held every five years.
The Umbutfo Eswatini Defence Force (UEDF) is the official armed national military of the Southern African Kingdom of Eswatini. is used primarily during domestic protests, with some border and customs duties; the force has never been involved in a foreign conflict. The army has struggled with high rates of HIV infection. Since measures were put in place the rate is dropping.
Artifacts indicating human activity dating back to the early Stone Age have been found in the Kingdom of Eswatini. Prehistoric rock art paintings date from c. 25,000 B.C. and continuing up to the 19th century can be found in various places around the country. The earliest known inhabitants of the region were Khoisan hunter-gatherers. Later, the population became predominantly Nguni during and after the great Bantu migrations. People speaking languages ancestral to the current Sotho and Nguni languages began settling no later than the 11th century. The country now derives its name from a later king named Mswati II. Ngwane, named for Ngwane III, is an alternative name for Swaziland the surname of whose royal house remains Nkhosi Dlamini. Nkhosi literally means "king". Mswati II was the greatest of the fighting kings of Eswatini, and he greatly extended the area of the country to twice its current size. The people of Eswatini largely belong to a number of clans that can be categorized as Emakhandzambili, Bemdzabu, and Emafikamuva, depending on when and how they settled in Eswatini.
Mswati III is the king of Eswatini and head of the Swazi Royal Family. He was born in Manzini in the Protectorate of Swaziland to King Sobhuza II and one of his younger wives, Ntfombi Tfwala. He was crowned as Mswati III, Ingwenyama and King of Swaziland, on 25 April 1986 at the age of 18, thus becoming the youngest ruling monarch in the world at that time. Together with his mother, Ntfombi Tfwala, now Queen Mother (Ndlovukati), he rules the country as an absolute monarch. Mswati III is known for his practice of polygyny and currently has 15 wives. Although he is respected and fairly popular in Eswatini, his policies and lavish lifestyle have led to local protests and international criticism. Mswati III was also secretly funded and supported by the government of apartheid-era South Africa.
Queen Ntfombi, The Queen Mother, Ndlovukati of Eswatini is the current Ndlovukati and joint head of state of Eswatini, serving since 1986. She was also regent of Eswatini from 1983 to 1986. She is the mother of King Mswati III.
The People's United Democratic Movement is the largest opposition political party in Eswatini. It is a pro-democratic socialist party. Formed in 1983 at the University of Eswatini, it is led by Mlungisi Makhanya. The Swazi government has been monitoring PUDEMO closely since it launched the Ulibambe Lingashoni campaign, which aims for a "total liberation" of Eswatini, and has recently cracked down heavily on even small manifestations of support for PUDEMO, such as the death in custody of PUDEMO member Sipho Jele, who was arrested for wearing a PUDEMO t-shirt in May 2010.
Prince Cedza Dlamini of Swaziland, otherwise known as Prince Cedza, grandson of King Sobhuza II of Swaziland and step-grandson of Nelson Mandela, is a humanitarian, youth activist, spokesman for the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals, and the founder of the Ubuntu Institute for Young Social Entrepreneurs. His work promotes future international cooperation by initiating and supporting global networks of young leaders through which they can work collectively to address such current world problems as HIV/AIDS, poverty, hunger and illiteracy. Prince Cedza also advocates stronger ties between the United States and South Africa, occupying a seat as a director on the board of the South African Chamber of Commerce in America.
Prince Jameson Mbilini Dlamini was Prime Minister of Swaziland from 4 November 1993 to 8 May 1996.
Dr. Moses Mathendele Dlamini is a Swazi political figure. He was a Senator and is acting chief of Mbelebeleni in the Shiselweni District. He was also Swaziland's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade from 2006 to 2008. Since October 2008 he has been serving in king Mswati III's advisory council or Swaziland national council standing committee(Liqoqo supreme council).
Kirsti Lintonen was the Permanent Representative of Finland to the United Nations for the period 2005–2009. She presented her credentials to United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan on February 15, 2005. Kirsti Lintonen possesses a master's degree in political science and entered the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs in 1971. She became an ambassador in Windhoek, Namibia in 1990. In 1994 she became the Deputy Director General for Political Affairs within the Ministry, and in 1996 she became Under-Secretary of State. From 2000 until her appointment to the UN, she had been Finland's ambassador to South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Mauritius, Namibia, and Swaziland. She was accredited to the Southern African Development Community.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Eswatini are limited. LGBT people face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. According to Rock of Hope, a Swati LGBT advocacy group, "there is no legislation recognising LGBTIs or protecting the right to a non-heterosexual orientation and gender identity and as a result [LGBT people] cannot be open about their orientation or gender identity for fear of rejection and discrimination". Homosexuality is illegal in Eswatini, though this law is in practice unenforced.
In the Commonwealth of Nations, a high commissioner is the senior diplomat in charge of the diplomatic mission of one Commonwealth government to another. Instead of an embassy, the diplomatic mission is generally called a high commission.
HIV/AIDS in Eswatini was first reported in 1986 but has since reached epidemic proportions. As of 2016, Eswatini has the highest prevalence of HIV among adults aged 15 to 49 in the world (27.2%). The HIV/AIDS epidemic in Eswatini, having contributed largely to high mortality rates among productive Swazi age groups. Over the long-term, the epidemic and its respondents induced major cultural changes surrounding local practices and ideas of death, dying, and illness, as well as an expansion of life insurance and mortuary service markets and health-related nongovernmental organizations.
In Eswatini, no king can appoint his successor. Instead, an independent special traditional Council called the Liqoqo decides which of the wives shall be "Great Wife" and "Indlovukazi". The son of this "Great Wife" will automatically become the next king.
Dlamini is a surname, common in Eswatini and neighbouring parts of South Africa. People with the surname Dlamini include:
Sameh Hassan Shoukry is an Egyptian diplomat who has been Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt since 2014. Previously, Shoukry served as the Ambassador of Egypt to the United States from 2008 to 2012. He was appointed as Minister of Foreign Affairs on 17 June 2014.
Princess Zenani Mandela-Dlamini is a South African diplomat and traditional aristocrat. She is the sister-in-law of the King of eSwatini, Mswati III, and the daughter of Nelson Mandela and his second wife, Winnie Mandela.
References
- ↑ "NEW PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF SWAZILAND PRESENTS CREDENTIALS", United Nations Press Release BIO/3691, 8 September 2005.
