July 2001 Africa News Headlines

MBABANE - Swaziland parliamentarians are calling for the sacking of Prime Minister Sibusiso Dlamini and Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs ChiefMaweni Simelane, for plunging the tiny kingdom into a political crisis.

They've signed a petition, saying they had lost confidence in the two politicians after they approved the controversial Decree No 2 of 2001, which created a near State of Emergency and made the King all-powerful.

Petition mover Majahebutimba Dlamini said on Thursday the two men had kept Parliament in the dark about who had piloted the decree in the first place.

Dlamini said the decree placed absolute monarch King Mswati III in bad light and made him appear like a dictator to the international community.

Speaker of the House of Assembly, Skakadza Matsebula, admitted the decree was handled badly and supported calls for the prime minister to explain to the House how some sections of the decree came about.

King Mswati promulgated the decree on June 22 before leaving the country to attend the United Nations Special Sitting on HIV-AIDS.

The decree was repealed with reservations on Wednesday because of international pressure, and has been replaced by Decree No 3, which re-instates the non-bailable order.

The Non-Bailable Offences Order No 14 of 1993 prohibits any court in Swaziland from granting bail to any person charged with murder, rape, armed robbery, being found in possession of arms of war, car hijacking and high treason.

Pro-democracy groups have now urged the King to also repeal a 1973 decree, which bans political parties.

People's United Democratic Movement (Pudemo) President Mario Masuku said the repeal of Decree No.2 could not be considered a step forward when there were other draconian laws.

He said Decree No 2 was only repealed because the politicians wanted to appear good in the eyes of the international community.

The US government had threatened to exclude the kingdom from the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and the Generalised System of Preferences(GSP).

Jan Sithole of the Swaziland Federation of Trade Unions (SFTU) urged the international community to also lobby for the repeal of the 1973 decree. -African Eye News Service

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