Africa's last absolute monarchy is facing criticism over its human rights record.

Earlier this year, a prominent lawyer was killed in Eswatini - some say by the government.

On Friday, people voted in a parliamentary election - but MPs only have an advisory role.

Al Jazeera’s Fahmida Miller reports from the capital, Mbabane.

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Civil society groups in the Kingdom of Eswatini are calling for more protests this week, to push for political reforms on King Mswati III's 30 year-long absolute monarchy.

The country which remains under curfew has recently been rocked by a series of protests that turned violent. Dozens of people were killed and millions of dollars' worth of property damaged.

The BBC has been speaking to people across the country who told stories of excessive violence by security forces. Shingai Nyoka reports from Johannesburg.

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Voters in Eswatini began casting their ballots on Friday for legislative elections taking place in Africa's last absolute monarchy.



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At least 21 people have been allegedly killed by Eswatini's security forces during pro-democracy protests, the Swaziland Youth Congress (Swayoco) said on Wednesday. Mduduzi Gawzela Simelane shares more.

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SADC organ on politics defence and security convened a one-day meeting in Namibia today. The summit discussed amongst other issues the political and security challenges in Eswatini.
Last week Human Rights Lawyer Thulani Maseko was assassinated at his house. There are unconfirmed reports that the SADF soldiers have been hired as mercenaries by King Mswati III. Eswatini has experienced violent protests since activists and Human Rights lawyers have called for political reforms in that country.
For more on this, we are joined by Mlungisi Makhanya, PUDEMO president.

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Africa's last absolute monarchy celebrated Wednesday 55 years of independence from Britain. King Mswati III of Eswatini paraded to cheering crowds gathered at the Somhlolo National Stadium in Lobamba.

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Economic Freedom Fighters President Julius Malema says parliamentary elections that took place yesterday in the Kingdom of Eswatini were a derision of democracy.

The party previously called for the country's monarchy to implement democratic reforms.

Political parties were banned from participating in the elections, with only individual candidates allowed to run for seats in the House of the Assembly. Malema says they want a democratic Eswatini.

He spoke to the SABC on the sidelines of an event to celebrate his party's victory in the ward by-elections in Wolmaranstad, North West.

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Eswatini human rights lawyer, Sibusiso Nhlabatsi, says he lives in fear following the January murder of his colleague and mentor, Thulani Maseko.

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"The army and the police killed one person at about 3pm today," union president Oscar Nkambule said. Fifty of its members were taken to hospital in the capital Mbabane, with another 30 hospitalised in the city of Manzini, including some with gunshot wounds, he added.


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The EFF Swaziland has called on the high commission of Eswatini to ensure that their demands are met. They picketed outside the diplomatic mission in Pretoria as part of pushing for democratic reforms in the kingdom. The pro-democracy activists have called on the SADC Bloc to prioritise their concerns.

SABC reporter Khayelihle Khumalo updates.


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About 585,000 registered voters will be called to choose 59 members of the lower house of parliament, which plays only an advisory role to the monarch - on Friday

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(14 Jun 2000) English/Nat

Eritrea's Foreign Minister said on Tuesday that the draft peace agreement between his government and Ethiopia will eventually be implemented.

But renewed fighting on Tuesday highlighted the fragile nature of the agreement.

Ethiopia said it had retaken towns on the volatile western front between the two countries.

The Eritrean Foreign Minister Haile Woldenpensae, said on Tuesday that he was hopeful that Ethiopia would agree in principal to a peace plan to end fighting in the Horn of Africa war.

But he fears that they may stall implementation of the plan.

Speaking in the Eritrean capital Asmara on Tuesday, Woldenpensae said that the framework for peace was in place.

The Organization of African Unity has given Ethiopia until this weekend to accept or reject the peace plan, which
Eritrea accepted May 9.

The proposal calls for a ceasefire, outside demarcation of the disputed border and U-N peacekeepers to monitor it.

His government, he said, had accepted the plan put forward during talks in Algiers.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"We challenged the Ethiopians by accepting that they can stay their troops where they are until the peace keeping mission is deployed and we accepted the mediators' request for a separation zone of twenty five kilometres. So that was what the OAU tabled as a proposal for a cessation of hostilities agreement. And it was on Friday that the OAU gave a time frame of twenty four hours so by Saturday the Ethiopians were supposed to respond, either positively or negatively. We on Friday automatically accepted the proposal."
SUPER CAPTION: Haile Woldenpensae, Eritrean Foreign Minister

He said that the Ethiopians had asked for a week-long period of consultation for the plan rather than the twenty-four hours first set out.

But despite the delay he seemed hopeful that Ethiopia would finally accept the plan.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"Most probably it will be very difficult for the Ethiopians to reject this proposal but as you have said they could create all kinds of excuses to not commit themselves but at the same time stall the negotiations."
SUPER CAPTION: Haile Woldenpensae, Eritrean Foreign Minister

He said he would only be certain of Ethiopian agreement to the plan when the official documents had been signed.

Ethiopian Foreign Minister Seyoum Mesfin said on Wednesday he expected a 'positive' response to the O-A-U plan within the next few days.

Despite these hopeful signs Ethiopia said on Wednesday its army had retaken a key western Eritrean town.

Ethiopian forces stormed Eritrean positions near Teseney late Tuesday and seized the town hours later after
inflicting 'heavy human and material losses,' spokeswoman Selome Tadesse said.

The Ethiopian offensive was spurred by Eritrean 'provocations', Selome said.

Ethiopia's claims could not be independently verified and Eritrean officials were not immediately available for comment.

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News in English for December 26, 2023 - ERi-TV, Eritrea

Eritrea and Kenya meet to discuss peace efforts in neighboring Ethiopia

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Midday News in Tigrinya for January 25, 2024 - ERi-TV, Eritrea

News in English for January 16, 2024 - ERi-TV, Eritrea

News in English for December 9, 2023 - ERi-TV, Eritrea

Midday News in Tigrinya for January 31, 2024 - ERi-TV, Eritrea

Evening News in Tigrinya for November 13, 2023 - ERi-TV, Eritrea

The country’s leader won the Nobel Peace Prize. Then he went to war.

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In 2019, after ending Ethiopia’s decades-long war with its neighbor, Eritrea, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. It seemed like a new beginning for Ethiopia. After decades of dictatorships and oppressive regimes, he appeared to finally be putting the country on a new path.

But less than a year later, Abiy had already launched a military attack — on Tigray, a regional state in his own country. When Abiy became prime minister in 2018, he had largely supplanted Tigray’s main political party, the TPLF, as the country’s center of power. Since then, tensions between Abiy and the TPLF had escalated quickly. The political rivalry led to a dispute over an election, which led to an alleged attack on a military base — and finally to Abiy’s deployment of the military.

Abiy promised to bring peace to Ethiopia; now he’s presiding over a war that exploded from dispute to devastation in a matter of weeks, and has no obvious end in sight. Much of Tigray’s territory has been captured by local armies and militias. Thousands have died or fled their homes. And many Ethiopians are left wondering how Abiy, a leader who promised a break with the past, brought them here instead.

Note: The headline on this video has been updated.
Previous headline: Why Ethiopia is invading itself

Sources and further reading:

Jen Kirby, Vox: https://www.vox.com/22370629/e....thiopia-tigray-eritr

International Crisis Group: https://www.crisisgroup.org/af....rica/horn-africa/eth

Stockholm International Peace Research Institute: https://www.acaps.org/sites/ac....aps/files/products/f

Physical Geography Research Group: https://www.researchgate.net/l....ab/Physical-Geograph

Human Rights Watch: https://www.hrw.org/news/2021/....02/11/ethiopia-unlaw

UNHCR: https://data2.unhcr.org/en/working-group/284

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