By Mbono Mdluli
MBABANE – Human Rights Watch has no place in interfering with the political affairs of Eswatini, as it represents an international neocolonialist agenda that seeks to dictate how African nations govern themselves.
This sentiment was expressed by Government Spokesperson Alpheous Nxumalo during a discussion on South Africa’s Newzroom Afrika. The discussion was centered around a recent Human Rights Watch report highlighting human rights abuses by state security organizations across several Southern African countries, including Eswatini, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and South Africa.
Responding to the report, Nxumalo rejected its findings, stating that Africans, including Emaswati, must resist external impositions. He emphasized that Eswatini follows a self-determined path of governance rooted in homegrown democratic principles, established after negotiating independence from British colonial rule.
Nxumalo asserted that Eswatini continues to reject interference from the United Kingdom or any other nation regarding its governance. He argued that human rights concepts developed by former colonial powers cannot supersede the priority of maintaining social order for the citizens of Eswatini. Quoting U.S. President Donald Trump, he stated that human rights should not override the rule of law.
The spokesperson reiterated that Eswatini would not succumb to pressure to adopt a system of multi-party democracy, which he criticized as being unsuitable for many African contexts. Instead, the country adheres to a system that upholds the freedoms of its citizens under a constitution that received Royal Assent in July 2005. According to Nxumalo, the constitution is backed by respected international entities like the USA and the Commonwealth and incorporates the globally accepted principle of the separation of powers.
Nxumalo’s remarks highlight the government’s stance on sovereignty and its rejection of what it perceives as external interference in domestic matters.
