As the world works to free kidnapped Nigerian schoolgirls, so we must push Swaziland to release editor, says Fikile-Ntsikelelo Moya.
Pretoria - It has been heartening to see how South Africans and the rest of the world have expressed their outrage at the news of the abduction of Nigerian schoolgirls by the militant outfit Boko Haram.
Celebrities have even ditched their high heels to march on the Nigerian diplomatic headquarters to express their disquiet at the lethargic reaction of the West African country’s government to the kidnappings.
Impressed as I am, I wish the same kind of civil society pressure was brought on the Swazi and South African governments for the continued detention of newspaper editor Bheki Makhubu.
He has been refused bail and locked up in a maximum security prison with hardened criminals and forced to wear leg irons when appearing in court.
This is because Makhubu allowed human rights lawyer Thuani Maseko – also in jail – to write an article criticising the appointment of Lesotho chief justice Michael Ramodibedi when the Swazi constitution clearly states that the position should be held by a Swazi national.
Swaziland has become a state that thinks nothing of terrorising its own citizens.
Cosatu has made half-hearted attempts to force Swaziland to be regarded as a pariah state similar to what the apartheid government was. The labour federation has tried border blockades and demonstrations against the kingdom, to little avail.
There is clearly no political will to force the Swazi king to even pretend that he is interested in reform.
There was a hint of “no normal sport in an abnormal society” when Bafana Bafana went across the border to play a friendly match against the Swazis. Again it was a mere flatulence in a harmattan.
Recently, Erykah Badu came in for heavy criticism for what was an impromptu performance for the king on his 46th birthday last month. The diva went home and in no time her little stunt will be forgotten.
One must ask what it is that must happen before the excesses of the Swazi government get the attention they deserve. How many must be terrorised by the state or its agents for the state to qualify for special attention?
The regular answer to the excesses of the Swazi government is that the people love their king.
That, however, is not the issue.
Yoweri Museveni was popularly elected in Uganda yet civil society correctly has a view on his government’s treatment of homosexuals.
Another favoured story is that the Swazis must fight their own battles, just as South Africans fought theirs against apartheid rule.
Again, this is not the entire story. Comparatively few South Africans went into exile to fight apartheid. Even fewer took up arms.
Many went on with their lives as if nothing had happened.
That, however, does not mean they were happy with the status quo.
International solidarity must be with the oppressed in whatever shape or form. It must be based on a recognition of a wrong rather than the number of those enthusiastic about correcting the wrongs in their society.
Another disingenuous response to how South Africa must react to a country like Swaziland is that we cannot and should not impose ourselves on our neighbours.
True. If we can’t ask our neighbours to be nice – as is their prerogative not to be if they do not wish to be – we can, however, choose not to invite them over for a braai or tea.
While one appreciates that international relations policy is about advancing the interests of one’s country, this cannot be the only guide.
Even business has evolved from the one-dimensional thinking that the “business of business is business” to a more balanced scorecard measuring how well a business is doing.
South Africa’s stature in the region and the continent means it cannot afford to behave like Oscar Pistorius’s neighbours who heard the screams and the shootings but chose to return to bed.
Pistorius’s neighbours have never pretended they want to lead the continent and represent it at influential gatherings such as having permanent seats on the UN Security Council or being Africa’s representatives at Brics (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa economic bloc) so they are entitled to mind their own business.
So whatever righteous shouting we hear from South Africa with regards to Boko Haram terrorism will remain hollow unless we show similar disdain for the stink coming from our neighbour’s backyard.
Makhubu must not have to die like Ken Saro-Wiwa in Nigeria before the world wakes up to the reality that Swaziland is a repressive state.
A0s we have correctly embraced the plight of the Nigerian girls as a pan-African and international human rights issue, we might as well place Swaziland on the agenda or just admit our fetish with being part of a cause célèbre.
* Fikile-Ntsikelelo Moya is executive editor of the Pretoria News
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