Editing Eswatini (section)

==History==
{{main|History of Eswatini}}

Artifacts have been found indicating human activity dating back to the early [[Stone Age]], around 200,000 years ago. Prehistoric [[rock art]] paintings dating from as far back as {{Circa|27,000 years ago}} to as recently as the 19th century can be found around the country.<ref name="South African History Online">{{cite book|last=History Online|first=South African|title=Swaziland|year=2011|publisher=South African History Online|url=http://www.sahistory.org.za/places/swaziland}}</ref>

The earliest known inhabitants of the region were [[Khoisan]] [[hunter-gatherer]]s. They were largely replaced by the [[Nguni people|Nguni]] during the great [[Bantu expansion|Bantu migrations]]. These peoples originated from the [[African Great Lakes|Great Lakes region]] of eastern and central Africa. Evidence of agriculture and iron use dates from about the 4th century. People speaking languages ancestral to the current [[Sotho–Tswana languages|Sotho]] and [[Nguni languages]] began settling no later than the 11th century.<ref name="BonnerPhilip"/>

===Swazi settlers (18th and 19th centuries)===
The Swazi settlers, then known as ''the Ngwane'' (or ''bakaNgwane'') before entering Eswatini, had been settled on the banks of the [[Pongola River]]. Before that, they were settled in the area of the [[Tembe River]] near present-day [[Maputo]], Mozambique. Continuing conflict with the [[Ndwandwe]] people pushed them further north, with [[Ngwane III]] establishing his capital at [[Shiselweni Region|Shiselweni]] at the foot of the Mhlosheni hills.<ref name="BonnerPhilip"/> Under [[Sobhuza I]], the Ngwane people established their capital at [[Zombodze]] in the heartland of present-day Eswatini. In this process, they conquered and incorporated the long established clans of the country known to the Swazi as ''Emakhandzambili'' (those found ahead).<ref name="BonnerPhilip">Bonner, Philip (1983). [https://www.sahistory.org.za/sites/default/files/file%20uploads%20/philip_bonner_kings_commoners_and_concessionairbook4you.pdf ''Kings, Commoners and Concessionaires: The Evolution and Dissolution of the Nineteenth-Century Swazi State'']. Cambridge: Cambridge U. Press. pp. 60, 85–88. {{ISBN|9780521523004}}</ref>

[[File:Récipient Swazi.jpg|thumb|A 19th-century Swazi container, carved in wood]]
Eswatini derives its name from a later king named [[Mswati II]]. ''KaNgwane'', named for Ngwane III, is an alternative name for Eswatini, the surname of whose [[dynasty|royal house]] remains ''Nkhosi [[House of Dlamini|Dlamini]]''. ''Nkhosi'' curiously means "king" in [[Negus|Ethiopian Semitic]] languages. Mswati II was the greatest of the fighting kings of Eswatini, and he greatly extended the area of the country to twice its current size. The ''Emakhandzambili'' clans were initially incorporated into the kingdom with wide autonomy, often including grants of special ritual and political status. The extent of their autonomy, however, was drastically curtailed by Mswati, who attacked and subdued some of them in the 1850s.<ref name="BonnerPhilip" /> With his power, Mswati greatly reduced the influence of the ''Emakhandzambili'' while incorporating more people into his kingdom either through conquest or by giving them refuge. These later arrivals became known to the Swazis as ''Emafikamuva''.{{citation needed|date=August 2022}}
[[File:Johnston, W. and A.K. - South African Republic. Orange Free State, Natal, Basuto Land, Etc..jpg|thumb|right|Swaziland in Southern Africa, Johnston & Johnston, Edinburgh, 1897.]]
[[File:Swaziland 1897 - Johnston, W. and A.K. - South African Republic. Orange Free State, Natal, Basuto Land, Etc. (cropped).jpg|thumb|Swaziland, detail from Johnston & Johnston map (Edinburgh, 1897). Black and White Umbelosi rivers and settlements such as Malinda, Kunudwini and Lotiti are indicated.]]
The autonomy of the Swazi nation was influenced by British and Dutch rule of southern Africa in the 19th and early 20th centuries. In 1881, the British government signed a convention recognising Swazi independence, despite the [[Scramble for Africa]] that was taking place at the time. This independence was also recognised in the [[London Convention (1884)|London Convention of 1884]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Country Facts {{!}} eSwatini|url=https://www.un.int/eswatini/swaziland/country-facts|website=www.un.int|access-date=30 May 2020}}</ref>

King [[Mbandzeni]] created a complex pattern of land ownership by granting many concessions to Europeans. During the concessions some of the King's senior chiefs like Chief Ntengu Mbokane got permission to relocate to farms towards the Lubombo region, in the modern-day city of Nsoko. Others like Mshiza Maseko relocated to farms towards the Komati River in the place called eLuvalweni. The concessions included grants and leases for agriculture and grazing. In 1890, following the death of Mbandzeni, a Swaziland Convention created a Chief Court to determine disputes about controversial land and mineral rights and other concessions.<ref name="CO">Great Britain Colonial Office, ''Swaziland: report for the year'' (London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1962), Chapter VI, [https://books.google.com/books?id=V50KAAAAIAAJ&pg=RA5-PA39 pp. 39, 40]</ref>

Swaziland was given a [[Triumvirate|triumviral]] administration in 1890, representing the British, the Dutch republics, and the Swazi people. In 1894, a convention placed Swaziland under the [[South African Republic]] as a [[protectorate]]. This continued under the rule of [[Ngwane V]] until the outbreak of the [[Second Boer War]] in October 1899.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-04-20 |title=Why King Mswati III Is Changing Swaziland's Name |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2018/04/20/why-king-mswati-iii-is-changing-swazilands-name_a_23416069/ |access-date=2023-12-06 |website=[[HuffPost]] |language=en}}</ref>

King Ngwane V died in December 1899, during [[incwala]], after the outbreak of the Second Boer War. His successor, [[Sobhuza II]], was four months old. Swaziland was indirectly involved in the war with various skirmishes between the British and the Boers occurring in the country until 1902.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.library.uneswa.ac.sz/pastpapers/quest/huma/his/2016/his608%20h626m2016.pdf|title=University of Swaziland Institute of Post Graduate Studies Department of History|access-date=2024-01-18|archive-date=7 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231207180309/http://www.library.uneswa.ac.sz/pastpapers/quest/huma/his/2016/his608%20h626m2016.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===British indirect rule over Swaziland (1906–1968)===

In 1903, after the British victory in the [[Second Boer War]], Swaziland became one of the British "[[High Commissioner for Southern Africa|High Commission Territories]]", the others being [[Basutoland]] (now [[Lesotho]]) and [[Bechuanaland Protectorate|Bechuanaland]] (now [[Botswana]]), although a protectorate was not established because terms had not been agreed with the Swazi Queen Regent [[Labotsibeni Mdluli]].

The Swaziland Administration Proclamation of 1904 established a commission with the task of examining all the concessions and defining their boundaries. This work was finished by 1907, and the Swaziland Concessions Partition Proclamation provided for a concessions partition commissioner to be appointed to set aside areas for the sole use and occupation of the Swazis. The commissioner had the power to expropriate up to one third of each concession without compensation, but payment would need to be made if more than a third was taken. In the event, in 1910 he completed his work and set aside 1,639,687 acres, some 38% of Swaziland's area, for the Swazi. The queen regent then encouraged the Swazi to go to work in the Transvaal to earn money to buy more land from the Europeans.<ref name=CO/>

Much of the early administration of the territory (for example, postal services) was carried out from South Africa until 1906, when the [[Transvaal Colony]] was granted self-government. A British [[high commissioner]] had some of the functions of a governor, but the Swazis were self-governing on their reserves, and the territory was not deemed to be a British possession.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Morton|first1=Barry|last2=Ramsay|first2=Jeff|title=Historical dictionary of Botswana|date=13 June 2018|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|isbn=9781538111338|page=237}}</ref> Sobhuza's official coronation as king was in December 1921 after the regency of Labotsibeni, after which he led an unsuccessful deputation to the [[Judicial Committee of the Privy Council]] of the United Kingdom in London in 1922 regarding the issue of the land.<ref name="Vail91">{{cite book|last=Vail|first=Leroy|title=The Creation of Tribalism in Southern Africa|year=1991|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=0520074203|pages=295–296|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X4VmAWdXPD0C&q=Sobhuza+deputation+london}}</ref>

In the period between 1923 and 1963, Sobhuza II established the Swazi Commercial Amadoda which was to grant licences to small businesses on the Swazi reserves and also established the Swazi National School to counter the dominance of the missions in education. His stature grew with time, and the Swazi royal leadership was successful in resisting the weakening power of the British administration and the possibility of the incorporation of Swaziland into the [[Union of South Africa]].<ref name="Vail91" />

The constitution for independent Swaziland was promulgated by Britain in November 1963 under the terms of which a [[Legislative Council of Swaziland|Legislative Council]] and an Executive Council were established. This development was opposed by the king's Swazi National Council (''Liqoqo''). Despite such opposition, elections took place, and the first [[Legislative Council of Swaziland|Legislative Council]] was constituted on 9 September 1964.<ref name="profile" /> By 1964, the area of the country reserved for occupation by the Swazi had increased to 56%.<ref name="CO" /> Changes to the original constitution proposed by the Legislative Council were accepted by Britain and a new constitution providing for a [[House of Assembly of Swaziland|House of Assembly]] and [[Senate of Swaziland|Senate]] was drawn up. Elections under this constitution were held in 1967.<ref name="profile">{{Cite news|date=2018-09-03|title=eSwatini profile|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-14095711|access-date=2021-09-20}}</ref> Following the 1967 elections, Swaziland was a protected state until independence was regained in 1968.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1968/56/enacted?view=plain|title=Swaziland Independence Act 1968|website=legislation.gov.uk|access-date=20 April 2018}}</ref>

===Independence (1968–present)===
Following the elections of 1972, the constitution of Swaziland was suspended by King [[Sobhuza II]] who thereafter ruled the country by [[decree]] until his death in 1982. At that point, Sobhuza II had been king of Swaziland for almost 83 years, making him the [[List of longest-reigning monarchs|longest-reigning monarch in history]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/1986/0520/oswaz.html|title=Swazi King ready to rule – after exams|date=20 May 1986|work=[[The Christian Science Monitor]]|access-date=20 April 2018|issn=0882-7729}}</ref> A regency followed his death, with Queen Regent [[Dzeliwe of Eswatini|Dzeliwe Shongwe]] as head of state until 1984 when she was removed by the Liqoqo and replaced by Queen Mother [[Ntfombi of Eswatini|Ntfombi Tfwala]].<ref name=":0" /> [[Mswati III]], the son of Ntfombi, was crowned in 1986 as king and ''[[ngwenyama]]'' of Swaziland.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1986/04/26/Mswati-III-the-new-teenage-king-of-Swaziland-vowed/9754514875600/|title=Mswati III, the new teenage king of Swaziland, vowed...|work=UPI|date=26 April 1986}}</ref>

An attempt to transfer neighbouring parts of [[South Africa]], more precisely parts of the Zulu [[bantustan|homeland]] of [[KwaZulu]] and parts of the Swazi homeland of [[KaNgwane]], to Swaziland in 1982 was never realized.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/43109383|jstor = 43109383|title = Swaziland's Proposed Land Deal with South AfricaThe Case of Ingwavuma and Kangwane|last1 = Senftleben|first1 = Wolfgang|journal = Verfassung und Recht in Übersee / Law and Politics in Africa, Asia and Latin America|year = 1984|volume = 17|issue = 4|pages = 493–501}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/722639|jstor = 722639|title = The Abortive Swazi Land Deal|last1 = Griffiths|first1 = Ieuan Ll|last2 = Funnell|first2 = D. C.|journal = African Affairs|year = 1991|volume = 90|issue = 358|pages = 51–64|doi = 10.1093/oxfordjournals.afraf.a098406 |issn = 0001-9909}}</ref> This would have given land-locked Swaziland access to the sea. The deal was negotiated by the governments of South Africa and Swaziland, but was met by popular opposition in the territory meant to be transferred.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www2.lib.uct.ac.za/blacksash/pdfs/cnf19830311.026.001.000b.pdf |title=The Ingwavuma/KaNgwane Land Deal |access-date=8 June 2023}}</ref> The territory had been claimed by Sobhuza II as part of the Swazi monarchs' traditional realm, and the South African government hoped to use the area as a buffer zone against guerrilla infiltration from [[Mozambique]]. (The South African government responded to the failure of the transfer by temporarily suspending the autonomy of KaNgwane.)<ref>{{cite book |first=Dennis |last=Austin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D_0NAAAAQAAJ&dq=KaNgwane+Swaziland+%22Supreme+Court%22&pg=PA54 |title=South Africa, 1984 |location=London |publisher=Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd. |date=1985 |page=54|isbn=9780710206206 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Macmillan |first=Hugh |chapter=A Nation Divided? The Swazi in Swaziland and the Transvaal, 1865–1986 |editor-first=Leroy |editor-last=Vail |url=http://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=ft158004rs&chunk.id=d0e8042&toc.id=d0e7328&brand=eschol |title=The Creation of Tribalism in Southern Africa |location=Berkeley, California |publisher=University of California Press |date=1989 |pages=310–316}}</ref>

The 1990s saw a rise in student and labour protests calling on the king to introduce reforms.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://reliefweb.int/report/swaziland/swaziland-doubt-over-legality-protests-keep-swazis-bay-now|title=Swaziland: Doubt over the legality of protests keep Swazis at bay, for now|work=ReliefWeb|access-date=20 April 2018}}</ref> Thus, progress towards constitutional reforms began, culminating with the introduction of the current Swazi constitution in 2005. This happened despite objections by political activists. The current constitution does not clearly deal with the status of political parties.<ref name=":1" /> The first election under the constitution took place in 2008. Members of Parliament (MPs) were elected from 55 constituencies (also known as ''tinkhundla''). These MPs served five-year terms which ended in 2013.<ref name=":1">{{cite web |url=http://thecommonwealth.org/our-member-countries/swaziland/constitution-politics|title=Swaziland : Constitution and politics |publisher=The Commonwealth |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107005133/http://thecommonwealth.org/our-member-countries/swaziland/constitution-politics |archive-date=7 November 2017|url-status=dead |access-date=20 April 2018}}</ref> In 2011, Swaziland suffered an economic crisis which was caused by reduced [[Southern African Customs Union]] (SACU) receipts. This caused the government to request a loan from neighbouring South Africa. However, they did not agree with the conditions of the loan, which included political reforms.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.iol.co.za/business-report/economy/timeline-swaziland-economic-crisis-1448880|title=Timeline: Swaziland economic crisis |publisher= IOL Business Report |date=8 January 2013}}</ref>

During this period, there was increased pressure on the [[Government of Eswatini|Swazi government]] to carry out more reforms. Public protests by civic organisations and [[trade union]]s became more common. Starting in 2012, improvements in SACU receipts eased the fiscal pressure on the Swazi government. A new parliament, the second since the promulgation of the constitution, was elected in 2013. The king then reappointed [[Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini|Sibusiso Dlamini]] as prime minister for the third time.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gov.sz/index.php?option%3Dcom_content%26view%3Darticle%26id%3D1460%3Aking-re-appoints-dr-bs-dlamini-as-prime-minister%26catid%3D1%3Alatest-news|title=King re-appoints Dr. B.S. Dlamini as Prime Minister|website=Government of the Kingdom of Swaziland|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029200528/http://www.gov.sz/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1460%3Aking-re-appoints-dr-bs-dlamini-as-prime-minister&catid=1%3Alatest-news|archive-date=29 October 2013|access-date=20 April 2018}}</ref>

On 19 April 2018, Mswati III announced that the Kingdom of Swaziland had been renamed as the Kingdom of Eswatini, reflecting the extant Swazi name for the state ''eSwatini'', to mark the 50th anniversary of Swazi independence. The name Eswatini means "land of the Swazis" in the Swazi language and was partially intended to prevent confusion with the similarly named [[Switzerland]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-43821512|title=Swaziland king changes the country's name|date=19 April 2018|work=BBC News|access-date=19 April 2018}}</ref><ref name="KingdEswatini">{{cite web|title=Kingdom of Swaziland Change Now Official|url=http://www.times.co.sz/news/118373-kingdom-of-eswatini-change-now-official.html|website=Times Of Swaziland|access-date=25 May 2018|date=18 May 2018|archive-date=27 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327101352/http://www.times.co.sz/news/118373-kingdom-of-eswatini-change-now-official.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Eswatini workers began anti-government protests against low salaries in September 2018. They went on a three-day strike organised by the [[Trade Union Congress of Eswatini]] that resulted in widespread disruption.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://allafrica.com/stories/201809210158.html|title=Swaziland: Police Turn Swaziland City Into 'Warzone' As National Strike Enters Second Day|date=21 September 2018|via=AllAfrica}}</ref> In June 2021, [[2021 Eswatini protests|pro-democracy protests]] broke out across the country, sparking riots, looting, and street skirmishes with police and soldiers. This civil unrest began as a result of years of anger towards the lack of meaningful reforms that would nudge Eswatini in the direction of democracy, as well as the government's reported banning of the submission of petitions.<ref name="Petition Ban" />  Numerous buildings said to be connected to King Mswati III were torched by protesters, and police reportedly assaulted and arrested political opponents. ''[[The New York Times]]'' called the turmoil in the landlocked nation "the most explosive civil unrest in its 53&nbsp;years of independence".<ref>{{cite news|first=John|last=Eligon|title=Africa's Last Absolute Monarchy Convulsed by Mass Protests|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=July 2, 2021|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/02/us/africa-monarchy-eswatini-protests-swaziland.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/02/us/africa-monarchy-eswatini-protests-swaziland.html |archive-date=2021-12-28 |url-access=limited|access-date=July 3, 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref> At least 20 people were killed by state security forces and dozens more injured and detained.  The government shut down the Internet (with the compliance of mobile providers MTN and Eswatini Mobile) making it difficult to access reliable news from the country.  The king was also said to have fled the country, though government officials disputed those claims, also calling for an end to the protests.<ref name="Petition Ban">{{cite web|url=https://ewn.co.za/2021/06/29/eswatini-govt-defends-decision-to-ban-delivery-of-petitions-by-protestors|title=eSwatini govt defends decision to ban delivery of petitions by protestors |work=Eyewitness News |first1=Mia |last1=Lindeque |first2=Gladys |last2=Mutele |date=29 June 2021 |access-date=2 July 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-57652034|title=King Maswati not fled Eswatini's violent protests – PM|work=BBC News|date=30 June 2021|access-date=2 July 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/anti-monarchy-protests-african-kingdom-eswatini-turn-violent-2021-06-29/|title=Anti-monarchy protests in African kingdom eSwatini turn violent|date=29 June 2021|newspaper=Reuters|access-date=2 July 2021|last1=Masuku|first1=Lunga}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://mg.co.za/africa/2021-07-01-qa-whats-driving-the-protests-in-eswatini/|title=Q&A: What's driving the protests in Eswatini? |date=1 July 2021|work=Mail & Guardian |last=Allison |first=Simon |access-date=2 July 2021}}</ref>