HARARE – President Emmerson Mnangagwa is rolling out the red carpet for tyrannical Eswatini monarch King Mswati III, who will be guest of honour at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair getting underway on Tuesday.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mswati is expected in the country on Tuesday for an official visit which begins Thursday where ‘he is expected to hold talks’ with his host President Mnangagwa.
Before starting on his two-day State visit, the 55-year-old, who has been on the throne since 1986, is one of four African leaders set to attend the Transform Africa Summit running from Wednesday to Friday in Victoria Falls. Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera, Hakainde Hichilema of Zambia and President Paul Kagame of Rwanda are also confirmed for the summit.
Mswathi is expected to officially open the 63rd edition of the ZITF in Bulawayo on Friday but according to his itinerary, he will hold formal talks with President Mnangagwa in Harare and a- state banquet later on that day.
Mswati is accused of using security services to crush protests amid growing demands for the abolition of the monarchy.
In January, gunmen in Eswatini killed a prominent opposition politician and human rights lawyer at his home, hours after Mswati – Africa’s last absolute monarch – challenged activists opposed to his rule.
Thulani Maseko was shot dead at his home in Luhleko, about 50km from the capital Mbabane.
The king, who can dissolve parliament and government, appoint or dismiss judges, also commands the police and army.
In June 2021, pro-democracy protests descended into violence, resulting in several deaths.
In April 2022, members of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), South Africa’s third-largest political party, organised peaceful protests along the country’s borders with Eswatini, in solidarity with human rights activists there.
The country’s name was changed from Swaziland to Eswatini to mark the 50th anniversary of its independence from Britain in 2018.
