Swaziland: The time to cross the Rubicon is upon us

INTRODUCTION

‘Kairos’ is an ancient Greek word meaning the right or opportune moment, while the idiom ‘to cross the Rubicon’ means to pass a pointof no return. It refers to Julius Caesar’s army crossing of River Rubicon in 49 BC, which was considered an act of insurrection.

On 31 October 2011 the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Mbabane, the headquarters of the Eastern Diocese, was besieged by the Swazi army and police. It was, in the words of Swaziland Federation of Labour (SFL) Secretary General, Vincent Ncongwane and Trade Union Congress of Swaziland (TUCOSWA) Secretariat Coordinator, Muzi Mhlanga, a literal ‘police state’.

The reason for the invasion was that the trade union movement and progressive forces in general had arranged with the church to hold a prayer service, particularly after the state had closed every avenue for a possible march through a court interdict against the planned action to protest the judicial crisis facing the country (of course, as a manifestation of the political crisis engulfing the country).

THE NEW TINKHUNDLA STRATEGY: SETTING THE STAGE FOR MARTIAL LAW

No doubt, the battle-lines are drawn and the ‘tinkhundla’ regime has clarified its strategy now. It seeks to reconfigure society along the lines of martial law without openly declaring it. This is to ‘let the sleeping dogs lie’ and avoid awakening the unsuspecting public.

In this regard, the regime has resorted to a three-pronged strategy: The restructuring of the courts and the judicial system as a whole to clamp down on any possible discord within the state machinery in the intensified crusade to tighten the state as an institution for the battles ahead; the closing down of every possible space for expressing dissatisfaction, let alone protest; and the intensification of militarisation of every sphere of Swazi society

It is now clear beyond doubt that Swaziland has reached a point of no return; the momentum towards democracy and a society free of corruption and royal abuse in the name of culture is irreversible. It is the moral dilemma of the system that is fundamentally eroding the remains of anything resembling integrity or elements of some moral fibre, which explains why it has lost all semblance and pretence of being civil and humane.

This is the moment of truth, when every possible avenue has become closed for those seeking the path of justice: the courts, the churches, the peaceful marches and the open public debates are all daily proving impossible as avenues to pursue the cause of justice in Swaziland. What does it mean for the cause, what does it mean for the crusaders of justice and dignity and what does it mean for humanity the world over? These are practical questions in the Swaziland of today. Avoiding these difficult questions will not make them go away.

We have a royal family that, for years, has falsely claimed divinity or rule in the name of God. In doing so, it created a smokescreen and cloud of fear around it, hence the inability of Swazis to question its wayward and greedy behaviour, because that would have been tantamount to questioning God himself.

The church has refused to legitimise that and exposed it for what it really is, a social construct deliberately created by the royal family to protect itself and its ill-gotten privileges over the rest of the population. We must salute the church for refusing to be used as a refuge for wrong-doing in the name of God. We know that once the church takes such a decisive stand against injustice, all hell breaks loose for those who have been claiming to rule on behalf of God.

PERSONAL EXPERIENCE WITH THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN SWAZI SOCIETY

The courage displayed by the leadership of the church under BishopAbsalom Mnisi and Reverend Zwanini Shabalala during the day in question was outstanding with the full support of Sydney Nyembe and Mafika Shabalala. I am personally proud of the role the Lutheran Church is playing and has played in the cause of social justice and human dignity, not only in Swaziland, but in other parts of the world too. I was bred by the church, particularly the very Mbabane Centre that was besieged, where I cut my teeth in leadership as a young person full of energy and passion.

I was a youth leader full of questions, anger and determination to make things happen and that is where I was given the space to develop my full potential and greater things were to follow, amongst them was the University of Swaziland Student Representative Council (UNISWA SRC) debacle and student battles in and around 1994/5 that resulted in our expulsion and re-instatement together with a few comrades who are now lawyers, senior leaders of various organisations and professionals in their own right.

The Lutheran church has been consistently involved in battles for justice, human dignity and democracy and has been a pioneer in the path to moral and ethical leadership in some parts of the world. It is inspiring to realise that the church has fully assumed its rightful role and position in society as the torch-bearer and refuge for the poor and suffering.

The recent events at Mbabane proved beyond doubt the resilience of the Lutheran church of which I am a product and it evoked in me a sense of pride and assurance that the days of darkness and suffering are nearing their end. We ave been made to believe that political activism equals evil or questioning God’s authority, for its him who choses those who rule. We have been made to believe that speaking out against injustice is an act of disobedience and disorder. However, those days are gone when people could be blackmailed through mere labels into submission. We have a new calibre of leadership and worshippers who have now shed every element of fear to stand up for the truth, the very essence and mission of the church in our times.

I was not only groomed by the Lutheran church but also received practical solidarity from my church during the most difficult times, including hunger strike days at UNISWA before our expulsion. When police cracked down on activists, including when we were with Solly Mapaila in Swaziland, the Lutheran church in Manzini provided a refuge, the main belief being that every person has a right to hold their view, even if we may not agree with it.

At the height of the Swaziland Youth Congress (SWAYOCO) and the People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) scarecrow or ‘rooi gevaar’ politics, the Lutheran church refused to dissociate with its members on the basis of their political views, but embraced everyone as a legitimate member and child of God (for only he can pass judgment). I was president of the SWAYOCO) and therefore ex-officio NEC member of PUDEMO, but never at any time was I told that the church felt compromised by my role outside it.

It is for these reasons that I can proudly say I learnt tolerance in practice from the church and not through any workshop or meeting. It was here that we would worship together with staunch members and supporters of the ‘tinkhundla’ system, sometimes royalists themselves.

The question then became, if we could worship so well together what would suddenly make political parties the source of tensions and conflict between people? Why would we become overnight enemies on the basis of differing views, yet we related so well and had appeared to accept our divergent views on various questions of life?

I have no doubt that with these and other values one can begin the journey in life against poverty and its causes, hunger ,oppression and hatred. All these are symptoms of a sick society, a society based on institutionalised greed, corruption and injustice. It is a society which doesn’t care about the neighbour. Doesn’t that explain why for such a long time many people were silent about the suffering of our people, doing nothing beyond feelings of sympathy?

I am here not seeking to downplay the role of the other churches, particularly the mainline churches as organised under the auspices of the Council of Swaziland Churches (CSC), including the Roman Catholic, the Anglican, etc. They have played an outstanding role in the struggle for justice, democracy and a caring society in Swaziland and beyond. The creation of the Peace, Justice and Reconciliation (PJR) Commission in the CSC was an outstanding example of that commitment by the church as an institution in our country. I have great admiration for that role, including the role we also played with other young people from other churches in influencing the establishment of a youth desk and seeking space for young people to take on uncomfortable issues facing our country.

I salute the courage of those who stand for the truth in word and deed, in broad daylight and during the night, at the pulpit and in the community; at all times they remain fearless and forthright about the issues confronting our people. I recall at times, some members of the church would be sceptical of political issues, understandably so because they are products of a society founded on fear and the demonisation of political issues to keep people away from questioning how they are governed and by whose mandate..

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* Bongani Masuku is a former Youth Chairperson of the Lutheran Church, Mbabane Parish and is currently the International Secretary of COSATU. He writes here in his personal capacity.
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