BY THEMBA ZWANE
MBABANE– The King’s Office has strongly denied reports published by a South African online news platform alleging that His Majesty King Mswati III personally wrote to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa demanding the return of territory allegedly belonging to Eswatini.
Director of Communications in the King’s Office, Percy Simelane, said the reports were false and urged journalists and editors to uphold the principles of accuracy and fairness in their reporting.
His response follows the publication of an article claiming that King Mswati III had renewed Eswatini’s territorial claim, allegedly calling on President Ramaphosa and the South African government to return land said to include the whole of Mpumalanga Province and parts of KwaZulu-Natal.
However, Simelane said, to the best of his knowledge, the King had never written any letter to President Ramaphosa or the South African government requesting the release of land.
“To the best of my knowledge, the King has not written any letter to President Cyril Ramaphosa or the South African government requesting the release of Eswatini land occupied illegally by their people,” Simelane said.
He clarified that the only correspondence sent to the South African President was from the Eswatini Sovereign Restoration Committee, an organisation based in South Africa.
According to Simelane, the committee has always maintained in its founding documents that it does not represent His Majesty King Mswati III or the Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini, but rather Swati people residing in South Africa.
“We are, however, aware of a letter sent to the South African President by the Eswatini Sovereign Restoration Committee, which is based in South Africa. In its founding instruments, this committee put it in no uncertain terms that it did not represent the King of Eswatini or his Government, but Swati people in South Africa,” he said.
Simelane expressed disappointment over what he described as inaccurate reporting linking the King’s name to the committee’s actions.
He said journalists have a responsibility to verify facts before publication, particularly on matters with potential diplomatic implications.
“We will continue to expect reporters and their editors to uphold the ethics of this noble profession. The King is responsible only for what he has done and not at all what reporters think he has done,” Simelane said.
The King’s Office’s clarification comes after the South African publication alleged that King Mswati III had revived Eswatini’s long-standing territorial claim and had sought the return of land purportedly covering the entire Mpumalanga Province and sections of KwaZulu-Natal.
The clarification effectively distances both His Majesty and the Government of Eswatini from the letter, maintaining that any communication on the matter originated from the Eswatini Sovereign Restoration Committee and should not be interpreted as an official position of the King or the Government.
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(Courtesy Pic)
