Swaziland

The Kingdom of Swaziland is a small country in southern Africa (one of the smallest on the continent), situated on the eastern slope of the Drakensberg mountains, embedded between South Africa in the west and Mozambique in the east. The country is named after the Swazi, a Bantu tribe.

Politics

Main article: Politics of Swaziland

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The head of state is the king, which since 1986 has been King Mswati III. By tradition, the king reigns along with his mother (the Indovuzaki, lit. Great She-Elephant), the former viewed as the administrative head of state and the latter as a spiritual and national head of state. As the monarch, the king not only appoints the prime minister — the head of government — but also appoints a small number of representatives for both chambers of the Libandla (parliament). The Senate consists of 30 members, while the House of Assembly has 65 seats, 55 of which are occupied by elected representatives (elections are held every 5 years in November).

Related Topics:
Head of state - 1986

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The 1968 constitution was suspended in 1973 in a State of Emergency decree still in force today. In 2001 King Mswati III appointed a committee to draft a new constitution. Drafts were released for comment in May 2003 and November 2004. However they were strongly criticised by civil society organizations in Swaziland and human rights organisations elsewhere.

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King Mswati III is often criticized for living so lavishly in a nation that is afflicted by one of the world's highest HIV infection rates. His fleet of luxury cars, millions spent towards refurbishing his numerous wives' luxury mansions, are at odds with the approximately 34 percent of the nation that stand unemployed, nearly 70 percent of which live on less than a dollar a day, and with around 39 percent of adults who are afflicted by HIV.

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