WHEN A FOREIGN GOVERNMENT TELLS ITS CITIZENS TO LEAVE ESWATINI, “WE ARE PEACEFUL” IS NO LONGER ENOUGH

Something extraordinary has happened in Eswatini, and Government cannot make it disappear with another carefully worded press statement.

China has advised its citizens in Eswatini to leave the country and relocate to what it described as relatively safer countries, including neighbouring South Africa, citing serious security risks associated with cyber fraud and gambling-related criminal activity. The advisory reportedly warned Chinese nationals that remaining in or travelling to Eswatini could expose them to extremely high security risks.

Think about the gravity of that.

A foreign government is effectively telling its citizens: get out of Eswatini.

For years, emaSwati have heard the same official language whenever uncomfortable questions about security, policing, political repression or the rule of law arise: Eswatini is peaceful. Eswatini is stable. Eswatini is law-governed.

Acting Government Spokesperson Thabile Mdluli repeated that position following China’s warning, declaring that Eswatini remains a peaceful and stable country where citizens, residents and visitors are protected by the Constitution and the law.

But simply declaring a country safe does not answer the allegations now confronting the State.

The Chinese warning comes amid claims surrounding cyber fraud, illegal online gambling and the treatment of Chinese nationals in Eswatini. More serious allegations have also emerged accusing members of law enforcement and judicial structures of turning what allegedly began as legitimate operations against unlawful gambling into opportunities for extortion.

Those allegations have not been established as fact and require independent investigation. But that is precisely the point.

Where is the investigation?

If police officers or judicial officials are being falsely accused, Government should want an independent investigation to clear their names. If individuals within State institutions have been extorting foreign businesspeople, then those responsible should face the law.

What cannot be acceptable is answering allegations of corruption and criminality with nothing more than: Eswatini is peaceful.

Peace is not a government slogan.

Peace means citizens can criticise those governing them without fearing persecution. It means foreign investors can conduct legitimate business without fearing criminals or corrupt officials. It means police officers enforce the law rather than become the law. It means courts are trusted to decide cases independently.

PUDEMO Deputy President Wandile Dludlu has argued that the problem extends beyond foreign nationals, alleging that Eswatini’s criminal justice system has repeatedly been weaponised by competing political interests. That is his political assessment, but the Government’s response should be evidence and institutional transparency rather than rhetoric.

There is also an unavoidable geopolitical dimension.

Eswatini remains the only African country maintaining formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. China regards Taiwan as part of its territory and has consistently opposed official diplomatic recognition of Taipei. UN General Assembly Resolution 2758, adopted in 1971, recognised representatives of the People’s Republic of China as China’s only lawful representatives at the United Nations. Eswatini, however, has maintained its relationship with Taiwan for decades.

Whatever one thinks about that diplomatic dispute, the immediate issue is bigger than Beijing, Taipei or Mbabane.

It is about the credibility of our State.

As emaSwati, we cannot demand accountability only when foreigners complain. We must demand it when our own people complain too.

If allegations of police corruption, extortion and organised criminal activity are false, prove them false through an independent investigation.

If they are true, prosecute those responsible.

Because when another country reaches the extraordinary point of advising its citizens to leave our Kingdom, Government cannot simply issue a statement declaring that everything is peaceful.

A government can call a country safe a thousand times.

But ultimately, safety is measured by what people experience — not what a spokesperson declares.