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Royal bash a contrast to poverty of nation
Swaziland observes 40 years as country
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Published: September 7, 2008
MBABANE, Swaziland
The Swazi king, bare-chested and wearing a traditional leopard skin loin cloth, celebrated his 40th birthday and his nation's 40th independence day in lavish style yesterday -- acting as host for an extravaganza that contrasted sharply with the biting poverty of his subjects.
King Mswati III toured the national stadium in an open-topped BMW to cheers and fluttering flags. Tens of thousands of Swazi maidens who had performed for the king last weekend at the annual Reed Dance were at the festivities, which included traditional dancing and Zulu drumming, as well as a full military parade.
Visiting heads of state were whisked into the stadium in a long convoy of luxury cars, bought specially for the occasion. The loudest cheer was reserved for Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe, who climbed out of a car with a "Zimbabwe" license plate to a standing ovation. The 84-year-old autocrat is popular in the region because he is seen as standing up to the West.
"I'm aware that many in the world might be wondering why we are so excited about the celebrations of our 40th anniversary," Mswati told the crowd. "The answer is simple. We are celebrating our nationhood."
Mswati is Africa's last absolute monarch. He is widely revered, but there is anger about the luxurious lifestyle practiced by him and his 13 wives.
The so-called 40-40 party was preceded by demonstrations against its excessive cost -- officially put at $2.5 million, but widely believed to be at least five times more -- in a country where 70 percent live below the poverty line.
Only one in four Swazis can expect to reach 40, according to the latest U.N. estimates, because the AIDS virus has infected nearly 40 percent of adults -- the highest in the world -- and left a generation of orphans.
For Celane, Menzi and Thembelinwe Sifundza, yesterday was a day like any other: rising at dawn to collect firewood, making the trek to the river for water and scraping together a meager meal. The three children, ages 15, 13 and 11, have coped on their own since the death of their mother and then their father.
Their two-roomed house in a desolate village is devoid of furniture, save an old table and two chairs. There's just a mattress and mat on the floor covered by two dirty blankets, with two iron cooking pots in the corner. Thembie Manana, a neighbor who tries to help the children even though she struggles to feed and clothe her own family and is herself weakened by AIDS, laughed bitterly when asked about the celebrations.
"That's not for us," she said. "There's nothing for us."
Mswati made no reference to the unhappiness among his subjects in his 45-minute speech. Instead, he urged the nation's 1 million people to redouble efforts to boost the nation's growth and tackle the scourge of AIDS.
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