An election with no parties: Africa's Eswatini, one of the last absolute monarchies, holds vote

CAPE TOWN, South Africa -- The small southern African nation of Eswatini was holding elections Friday to decide part of the makeup of its parliament, even as its extremely wealthy king retains absolute power, political parties are banned and elected representatives can merely advise a monarch whose family has reigned supreme for 55 years.

Eswatini, wedged between South Africa and Mozambique, is the last absolute monarchy in Africa and one of the few remaining in the world. King Mswati III, 55, has been the monarch since 1986, when he became ruler days after his 18th birthday. His father was king for 82 years before him, although Eswatini only gained independence from Britain in 1968.

It was formerly known as Swaziland.

Candidates for the house of assembly — the lower house — and the senate — the upper house — cannot belong to political parties, which were banned in 1973, and are nominated at a local level before they face a popular vote.

Mswati III appoints a minority of the house of assembly, with the majority elected. He appoints a majority of the senate, though. He also appoints the prime minister and other key members of the government.

As king, or the “Ngwenyama” — which means lion — Mswati III is sometimes advised by a council but has executive and legislative powers under law in the country of 1.2 million people and makes decisions by decree. A little over 500,000 people were registered to vote in this election, the electoral body said. The parliamentary elections are held every five years.

Mswati has faced increased pro-democracy protests in recent years, but activists demanding reform were met by a harsh crackdown from police and security forces under the king's control in 2021. The push for reform has continued, focusing primarily on the call for political parties to be uNBAnned and for the prime minister to be democratically elected.

Two members of parliament were jailed in 2021 for calling for democratic reforms and were convicted this year under an anti-terrorism law that rights groups say is only designed to suppress criticism of Mswati and halt the push for democracy. The MPs — Mduduzi Bacede Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube — now face up to 20 years in prison, said CIVICUS, a global alliance of civil society groups.

Mswati has been accused of living lavishly while Eswatini struggles with widespread poverty, the highest HIV infection rate per capita in the world and a life expectancy of 57 years, one of the lowest in the world.

A 2008 report by Forbes magazine estimated Mswati's wealth at $200 million. He owns private jets, a fleet of luxury cars and reportedly wore a suit beaded with diamonds to his 50th birthday celebration. He has at least 15 wives, and has been criticized for using public money to build palaces for them.

In its latest assessment, the World Bank estimates that more than half of Eswatini's people live on less than $3.65 a day.

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