There is loud cheering and whistling as King Mswati III enters Ludzidzini Royal Cattle Byre, about 20 kilometres south of the capital, Mbabane. This is no purely ceremonial visit. The King is one of those few hereditary monarchs around the world who retains real power over his country. On this occasion, a large audience anxiously awaits his address to what is called a Sibaya or ‘People’s Parliament’.
The Sibaya took place in August 2012 at a vital time – at the height of a teachers’ strike where over 4,000 members of the Swaziland National Association of Teachers downed chalk for six weeks demanding a 4.5 per cent cost of living adjustment. The government had responded first by cutting the striking teachers’ salaries by a third and then by firing some of them for engaging in an ‘illegal strike’ that fuelled discontent against King Mswati III’s regime.
