OWN CORRESPONDENT, Malkerns, Swaziland | Saturday
THE murder in Swaziland of at least 28 people – mostly women – in a spate of suspected serial killings has rattled the sense of well-being in the sleepy mountain kingdom, known for its low crime rate and friendly people.
Stunned residents are blaming everything from religious excess to a sexist culture for the gruesome killings in the remote southeast which have forced Swaziland’s one million residents to re-examine the national psyche.
Police uncovered 28 decomposed bodies, mostly of women, in a commercial forest at Malkerns, about 50km from the capital in an operation that lasted several weeks and ended on Wednesday.
Law officials believe the murders were carried out over a period of 10 months.
They say many of the victims appeared to have been sexually abused before being killed. Most of the bodies were naked and used condoms were found near the shallow graves were they were buried.
Residents of the area told journalists the Usuthu Pulp Forest where the bodies were found was a popular sex spot.
The first three of the 28 corpses were uncovered only days after police shot and killed a suspected serial killer who had been linked to six other corpses unearthed in another part of the country earlier. It has not been established whether that man, Bongani Vilakati, was responsible for the subsequent killings.
Police have offered a 50_000 emalengeni ($6_000) reward – many years of income for most Swazis – for information leading to the arrest of the killer or killers and have reported some progress in their investigations.
However, apprehensive residents have urged the government to seek international help – possibly from South Africa and Britain – to investigate the crimes.
“We have reason to applaud the police for the brilliant work they have done so far, but, because we do have no experience in dealing with such matters, we need experts to help us,” said Human Rights Association of Swaziland secretary general Joshua Mzizi.
South Africa, which has police officers who specialise in investigating serial killings, is ready to help its tiny neighbour.
“Our government would respond positively to such a request if it was made but, as far as I know, it has not,” South African high embassy representative Tando Dalamba said.
Relatives of missing women have been flocking to the area to see if their loved ones were among the dead.
Concerned citizens, including the traditional authorities, have come up with a host of theories to explain the killings. The Queen Mother, who rules alongside King Mswati III, suggested that the murders were the result of demonic activity and urged her subjects to pray for salvation.
“The demons have spread everywhere and they can only be subdued by prayer,” the Queen Mother said.
The national League of Churches, meanwhile, said it suspected the killings to be the work of a religious cult similar to one involved in the death of 700 worshippers in Uganda last year.
Women activists meanwhile, have blamed the killings on deep-seated attitudes that encourage the exploitation of women.
“How many women have fallen victims in the hands of men? The number of women dying in mens hands is increasing day after day,” said Ntombi La-Ngwenya, the head of the Swaziland National Association of Teachers womens league.
Swaziland boasts of one of the lowest crime rates on the African continent. Its relative stability is one of its main attractions for tourists and investors alike. – AFP