In a country where funds for social programmes are often lacking, volunteers find themselves being called on to fill the gap. Of late, however, the demands placed on these individuals have become increasingly burdensome. These concerns are echoed by the National Emergency Response Committee on HIV/Aids — a body set up by government to coordinate Swaziland’s response to the Aids pandemic.
The government of Swaziland has allocated R2-million in its budget for an anti-corruption office that does not function, but is sorely needed. "Corruption is part of any national government, any business, any place from a school headmaster’s office to a religious organisation where money and influence are found," says an Mbabane attorney with the Swaziland Law Society.
Swazis tired of hearing their country condemned for having a traditional African monarchy for its governing system are countering that this very culture makes Swaziland a unique place any tourist would want to visit. Swaziland’s new tourism board wants to reverse the declining fortunes of the national tourism industry.
Between a quarter and a third of Swazis are said to be in need of food aid. Food shipments are managed by the United Nations World Food Programme. But, the smooth functioning of this aid operation belies tensions among donor nations and groups over Swaziland’s human rights record and government spending on behalf of the royal family.
It may be a dim silver lining to a particularly dark cloud, but one apparent result of the Aids pandemic in Swaziland is that fewer people in the country are smoking. Although the Council on Smoking, Alcohol and Drugs (Cosad) has no statistics on the reported decline in smoking, it says there is plenty of anecdotal evidence to buttress the claim.
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/ 17 February 2004
”Ritual murder is a fact in Swaziland. Our only protection is to adopt a defensive attitude,” says Robert Dube, a businessperson in the capital city, Mbabane. ”Ritual murder” has allegedly long been a dark and secret part of politics in Swaziland, a conservative kingdom where traditions good and bad are a key part of life.
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/ 3 February 2004
A new education initiative has been started in Swaziland to assist children who have lost parents to the Aids pandemic. The government says it will start paying the tuition fees of all Aids orphans, many of whom would not be able to attend school otherwise.
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/ 27 January 2004
A heated debate is underway in Swaziland about whether children who fail English should be forced to repeat the academic year. ”The English language requirement is a millstone around the neck of every Swazi school child,” says Agnes Khumalo, a public school teacher in the northern Hhohho province.
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/ 23 January 2004
Swaziland is currently in the midst of its sacred Incwala ceremony, which many believe is crucial for the welfare of the country. However, the celebrations have not been without controversy. Variants of Incwala, a harvest festival, are celebrated by a number of ethnic groups in Southern Africa.
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/ 23 January 2004
Swaziland is currently in the midst of its sacred Incwala ceremony, which many believe is crucial for the welfare of the country. However, the celebrations have not been without controversy. The pageants have a strong supernatural element, relying on ancestral spirits, magic and ritual for success.