by Agnieszka Flak and Helen Nyambura-Mwaura (Reuters)
(LUDZIDZINI ROYAL VILLAGE, SWAZILAND) Thousands of bare-breasted
young Swazi women paraded in front of their king to celebrate
chastity and unity, dismissing criticism of the lavish ceremony in
one of Africa’s poorest countries for its last absolute
monarch.
Clad in beaded mini-skirts and clutching machetes and mobile
phones, women and girls as young as five danced and sang tributes
on Sunday and Monday to the king and queen mother, also known as
the Great She-Elephant, in a traditional Umhlanga Reed Dance meant
to celebrate womanhood and virginity.
“I’m proud to be Swazi and to be a virgin. We are here to show
unity with the king and with each other,” said 18-year-old Gcebine
Dlamini, bracing the cold of the southern hemisphere’s winter in
her skimpy outfit as scores of tourists had photos taken next to
the topless women.
King Mswati III, who has at least a dozen wives and a personal
fortune estimated at US$200 million (S$249 million), faced
unprecedented protests last year when his appointed administration
ran out of money after a 2009 recession in neighbouring South
Africa.
Despite the straitened times, the royal household has shown few
signs of wanting to tighten its belt. In July, South Africa’s Mail
and Guardian newspaper reported that three of Mswati’s wives joined
a 66-strong royal entourage heading to Las Vegas on a shopping
spree. There was no comment from the palace.
But women at the annual event gathered behind the monarch in the
week-long celebrations, even though police kept a close watch on
what they might tell journalists and tourists roaming the grounds
of the royal village, some 20km outside the capital.
In the past, the king has used the ceremony to choose a new
wife, and some girls still hoped to catch the king’s eye.
“If chosen, I would be able to live a better life than what I
have, have a lot of money, live a queen's life and travel
overseas,” said Fakazile Dlamini, 14, who arrived on a lorry from
her village 60km away to attend the ceremony.
New royal wives have often received a BMW and their own palace,
fuelling criticism in a country where more than two-thirds of its
1.4 million people live in abject poverty.
Women’s groups and political opponents also say Mswati’s
penchant for multiple young brides ill befits a country with the
world’s highest rate of HIV/AIDS, but the monarch says polygamy is
part of Swazi tradition and helps cement national unity.
Maidens flocked in from across the country - some attend the
ceremony every year until they marry - cut reeds from river beds,
which they then presented to the queen mother in a 1.6km-long
singing and foot-stamping procession.
In the past, they would have been accommodated by families
living close to the royal household, but are now put up in camps
and protected by police from other men.
Even though the girls refuse to criticise UK-educated Mswati who
arrived at the event dressed in beads and lion cloth, not everyone
supported his polygamous lifestyle.
“I don’t want to be a queen, I don’t want to share my man.
Polygamy is not okay,” Siphesihle Mdluli, 20, who hopes to go on to
study medicine said while waving her bundle of reeds.