‘SD A BEACON OF HOPE FOR AFRICA’

It is with a great sense of honour and pride that we welcome you to Zimbabwe, Your Majesty and the Inkhosikati.
This is, of course, not your first visit to the country. You officially opened Zimbabwe’s International Trade Fair in 1995. You were in Zimbabwe to witness the signing of the Global Political Agreement between the two MDC Formations and ZANU (PF) on 15 September 2008 and again to witness the swearing in of the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Ministers of the Inclusive Government on 11 February 2009. Your presence on the two last occasions is ample witness of your involvement and commitment to the recent political developments in Zimbabwe.

SD’s GIANT FOOTPRINT

Your Majesty, to us Swaziland invokes a raft of emotions, associations and experiences. Your country epitomizes at once, the long African history and traditions existing alongside ‘modernity’, it is a bounty of cultural richness; and heroism in the fight against colonialism juxtaposed with the artful practice of diplomacy and Pan-Africanism. In that context, we draw strong parallels with the greats Munhumutapa Empire in Zimbabwe!
We have come to know that the great Dlamini Royal family, to which you belong, settled in present day Swaziland more than 250 years ago under King Ngwane III. We have also learnt that your namesake, His Majesty King Mswati II, who reigned from 1854-1865 extended the Swazi Kingdom beyond its present borders. Closer to our times, we know of and admire the military exploits of the Swazi armies under King Sobhuza I, Ngwane’s grandson, who defeated the armies of the Zulu Kingdom under Dingane at the Lubuya River Battle.
Your Majesty, the Kingdom of Swaziland was able to keep its independence, not only through the heroism of its armies, but also through the skillful use of diplomacy; first against Boer expansion from the Transvaal and later against British colonialism. The Swazi diplomatic manoeuvres led Britain to declare Swaziland a protectorate in 1909, the political status that prevailed until the attainment of independence in 1968. The clarion calls of the 1950s and 1960s for the total liberation of Africa and for Pan-Africanism also reverberated in Swaziland. This heralded the formation of formidable political parties which resisted British control such as the Ngwane National Liberation Congress and the Imbokodvo National Movement in 1966, a party that your dear father, King Sobhuza II was instrumental in establishing. This proved decisive in the quest for independence, as on September 6 1968, Swaziland became independent with King Sobhuza II as Head of State and Government, thus becoming the only African State whose Government was headed by a hereditary successor to leadership; hence as before colonial times.

SWAZI ROYAL DIPLOMACY

Swazi Royal diplomacy had once again triumphed. Talking of the preservation of African cultures, customs and traditions, the Kingdom of Swaziland is a beacon on the African continent. Ancient traditions, such as Incwala of ‘Kingship Ceremony’ and Umhlanga or Reed Dance are some of the living testimonies. On governance, we understand the Tinkhundla (or Constituencies System of Elections) is based on the African tradition of consensus. It is a democratic and community-based system that allows only bona fide members of a community to stand for elections. We are therefore proud to note that the Kingdom of Swaziland is one of the few countries in Africa which has preserved its rich culture while at the same time adopting aspects of modenisation. We wish the rest of Africa could emulate some of your time tested traditions for the sake of posterity.
Your Majesty, your visit comes at an auspicious time, on the eve of the COMESA Summit to be held in Victoria Falls from 7 to 8 June. Being held under the theme ‘Consolidating Regional Economic Integration through Value Addition, Trade and Food Security’, the Summit will be an important milestone in our continent’s quest for enhanced economic integration and eventually, greater political unity. This Summit will discuss issues that are pivotal to our efforts to make intra-regional trade a necessary component of our development. In this vein, the establishment of the COMESA Customs Union during the Summit will be an important milestone in our quest for self-sustaining development. I am therefore looking forward to welcoming you and the Inkhosikati in Victoria Falls.
Africa and the rest of the developing world need to stand by one another in the face of increasing protectionist tendencies by the developed partners, particularly in the context of the prevailing global economic crisis. It is therefore imperative that we in the South come up with our own homegrown measures to assist one another in ensuring growth, stability and development within our economies, and to foster greater economic integration. This is what the COMESA Summit will be doing this week in the Victoria Falls.
Your Majesty, on our bilateral and regional relations, allow me to acknowledge with profound appreciation the role that Your Majesty has played towards the resolution of the political situation in Zimbabwe.

HMK RESOLVES STICKY ZIM ISSUES

I recall that important and critical decisions were taken with regard to Zimbabwe since you assumed the chairmanship of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation in August last year in Midrand, South Africa. It was there that SADC took great strides in resolving sticky issues that were hindering agreement on the formation of the Inclusive Government. Most recently, it was under Your Majesty’s chairmanship that SADC at its Extraordinary Summit on 30 March 2009 at Lozitha Palace received commitments from member States to assist Zimbabwe in its economic recovery efforts. It was the first SADC Summit that was attended after the formation of our new political dispensation. We are indeed grateful for your foresight in hosting that landmark Summit.
I am glad to note that since the Extraordinary Sunnit, the Inclusive Government has received a significant amount of support. True to their pledges, a number of SADC countries have come forward with assistance packages including lines of credit and joint venture partnership proposals. It is my hope that this support will now trigger activity in the entire economy and thus spur recovery and revival.
In fulfillment of the spirit of the successful Summit at Lozitha Royal palace, we have seen SADC Ministers lobby for the lifting of the unjust and illegal sanctions imposed against Zimbabwe. We are confident that the lifting of sanctions will give us leverage in our endeavours to turn around the economy as articulated in the Short-Term Emergency Recovery Programme (STERP), that we had occasion to table at the Summit.
I am also happy to note that SADC efforts have started to bear fruit. We have begun to witness overtures towards re-engagement from a number of Western countries and international financial institutions who, yesterday were adopting a wait-and see attitude on my Government. Most interestingly, a number of countries have lifted travel warnings that were unnecessarily placed on Zimbabwe. We can only hope that this will encourage tourist arrivals and boost recovery in this important economic sector.
In the spirit of enhancing economic cooperation in the context of SADC, I wish to see greater exchanges of delegations between our two countries to explore opportunities that exist in such key sectors as agriculture, manufacturing, mining, and tourism, with a view to promoting bilateral trade and investment. We know you are a major producer of sugar and wood. These are areas of interest to us in which we can share experiences. I am informed that the small and medium enterprises sector is an area of special focus in Swaziland. We could again exchange views on how to enhance and expand this sector, given its immense potential to create jobs for both our economies. Since our economies are complementary, there is merit in encouraging our respective local business people to invest in both countries.
Zimbabwe and the Kingdom of Swaziland share several cultural and linguistic similarities and well as kinship ties. These attributes put us in good stead for closer cooperation in cultural spheres such as the arts and sports for the mutual benefit of our peoples.

INGENUITY IN UN REFORM

Zimbabwe remains committed to the pursuit of international peace and security. I believe this vision can reach fruition if there is greater commitment from all member States towards upholding the principles and values of the UN and embodied in its Charter. This, I believe, can be achieved through the democratization of the organisation, especially its Security Council. I am therefore happy to note that Swaziland has played a key role towards the reform of the UN. The hosting of the African Union meeting in Swaziland that deliberated on this matter and culminated in the Ezulwini Consensus, which lays down Africa’s expectations in the on going
UN reform process is commendable. We are aware of attempts to digress from this consensus by some member States. Zimbabwe will not allow itself to be distracted from this principled African decision.
Your Majesty, Zimbabwe fully subscribes to the spirit and ideals of the United States of Africa as envisaged by our founding fathers when they established the OAU in 1963 and as enshrined in the Constitutive Act of the African Union. However, we agree with those who advocate the gradual approach, using the Regional Economic Communities as the indicative building blocs for the eventual establishment of an African supra-national authority.

MADAGASCAR CHALLENGES

Your Majesty, your visit is timely as it allows us to exchange views and ideas on issues that affect our region. We note with a sense of great sadness the developments in a fellow-SADC member, Madagascar, following the unconstitutional takeover of power in that country leading to unnecessary loss of life and destruction of property. I wish to take this opportunity to offer our sincere appreciation for the timely response and decisions that you took in sending fact-finding missions towards the resolution of the political crisis in that country.

Editor’s Note: This is the full text of the speech delivered by His Excellency the President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, Comrade Robert Gabriel Mugabe, on the occasion of a State banquet in honour of His Majesty King Mswati III, Harare, 3 June 2009.