WE CAN’T LIVE LIKE THIS

Sir,

The long wait for dialogue is not only widening the divide among citizens but it is also increasing the threat to life. Realising the dialogue vacuum, more people are shedding their fears and partisan politics is gaining ground as we see new voices placing their heads on the block in defending the status quo; raising the propensity for conflict in the midst of an already tense atmosphere. Threats of violence and social media lynching targeted at all who dare oppose, characterise the prevailing calls for political change.

Adapt

Each day presents its fair share of unpredictability and we are forced to adapt to living in perpetual fear until only God knows when. This could prove to be a very tense, long, destructive and costly wait. There is no telling what members of the business community are prepared to do to defend themselves and their properties from any further harm or losses. Government has assured it would make sure people are safe, however, nobody trusts government anymore. People see killers who have shown no sign of remorse given that no action has been taken to call them to account. Besides, government can’t be everywhere, as indicated by the increase of criminal activities, especially at night. We can’t live like this.

Fear

We are clearly heading towards a situation where people may soon take the law into their own hands, as witnessed in many recent incidents. We don’t want this either. This political unrest has instilled fear among some emaSwati who are now losing their identity. One commentator said a referendum on the political direction for the country had already been overtaken by events, particularly the country’s decision to sign the African Union (AU) Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance which advocates for multi-party governance. Eswatini signed this Charter on January 29, 2008, but is yet to ratify it. This is the discussion that emaSwati need to have if we say we want a country that we can all be proud to live in. The sooner we get talking, the better because the alternative of being intolerant to opposing views due to extreme positions we’ve taken, or ignoring it to rely on the might of the police and the military can only end up with losers on all sides.
 

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