Swazi Culture

One of the first observations a visitor to Swaziland makes is that Swazis are very proud of their culture.  And Swazis have every reason to be proud.  Despite colonialism and globalization, Swazis have not just maintained a few costumes or festivals, but rather they have actively sought to protect and pass down their heritage in its entirety.  This is what makes this tiny little kingdom so unique.  It feels like a secret place where there is no apparent contradiction between the bastions of tradition and the conveniences of modernity.     

Traditional dress is not just appropriate at specific functions, but anytime.  A teacher, a bank executive, a rural kid, or an old grandpa are all equally likely to be spotted walking around in animal skins and patterned wraps called emahiya. After school clubs revolve around traditional dance.  Cultural lessons are taught every year in school…Swazi weddings are held by most as superior to “white weddings” and only the most radicalized Christians decry traditional ceremonies as “ancestor worship.”…The two major festivals in the country (Umhlanga and Incwala) are not just a ritual put on for the few tourists who come; they are visited and upheld by almost every Swazi.  In fact, the festival dates vary yearly depending on the star alignments, making it difficult for tourists to plan a visit. 

“It’s our culture,” or “It’s un-Swazi” are the two divergent perspectives on virtually every socially contentious issue in Swaziland.  For example: when conservatives argue that it’s culturally appropriate to beat women and children, the other side can point out that Swazi customary law allows the battered woman to run back to her family’s homestead without fear of repercussion, interpreting this to mean that it was never acceptable to beat women.  Likewise, the house of the Gogo is a sacred place where children and women can run to, and the abuser is not allowed to enter.  In this way, Swazi culture is actively interpreted, debated, and framed in a way that takes “Western concepts” such as circumcision and women’s rights and makes them relevant to daily life in Swaziland.    

This framing of every issue as an issue of cultural relevance doesn’t even feel contrived.  When Swazis criticize Umhlanga or Incwala, they don’t criticize for the same reasons I might criticize them.  They argue that the tradition, once good and pure, has been polluted by ruling elites who wish to “manipulate Swazi culture” for nefarious purposes. 

And while some governments may criticize the King for this supposed manipulation of culture, he isn’t opposed to many of the “Western” solutions to the problems in his country.  In fact, culture can even be used as a weapon for good.  At a time when most African leaders refused to acknowledge the crisis of HIV/AIDS, King Mswati III became Africa’s first ruler to publicly shake hands with an openly HIV+ individual, thereby signaling that there is nothing “Swazi” in stigma and discrimination.  And while he received flack and anger from groups around the world for briefly imposing a law requiring young girls to wear sashes signaling their virginity, he was at least trying to come up with culturally appropriate solutions to stop the spread of HIV at a time when the epidemic was at its peak. 

There is some longing for the good old days in Swaziland, some decrying of Western values corrupting the youth.  This argument seems to increasingly revolve around women wearing pants.  At a recent protest against harassment in the bus ranks, police sent the protesting young women home to change into more modest clothing.  The irony was apparently lost on the police.  Also recently, a woman wrote an editorial about being humiliated and fined for wearing pants by Bemanti (people who come from the palace and who I have only been able to identify as the culture police).  Another mother wrote in to say something like “I’d rather end up with no culture if this is the kind of treatment our daughters receive.” 

I brought up the editorials to an elder female friend in the village, asking her opinion on the matter.  “Ah, but Zanele- it is not good.  If you wear pants, the men will rape you.”

“But if I wear pants, it’s much more difficult for them to rape me.” 

“Ahhhh…I see you!” She laughed. 

And while the idea of a pants ban might seem crass from an American perspective, it is healthy to remind ourselves that the politicization of women’s’ bodies occurs in America and around the world.  (Sluts wanting birth control and justified rape ring any bells?  FYI- Birth control is free of charge in Swaziland.) 

I think the debate that something is or is not culturally appropriate for Swaziland is healthy, as I see the most rational and progressive side winning out in the long run.  Both the good old days and Western values are put into a machine which disassembles and rebuilds them to better serve the people.  This occurs with healthy debate and without a sense of loss from either side.  The debates may take time, but they ensure that Swaziland will remain a place with beautifully visible cultural heritage for decades to come.