A delegation representing civic organisations in Swaziland on Wednesday told members of parliament that a new constitution produced for their country places too much power in the hands of the Swazi king and denies basic rights to the Swazi citizenry.

Addressing the Portfolio Committee on Foreign Affairs, members of the Swaziland Coalition of Concerned Civic Organisations said that the constitutional process was flawed and undemocratic itself, as it denied submissions from political parties and interest groups.

"The constitution-making process has been unilaterally governed by, not even the government, but the king," a delegate told the committee, referring to the country's King Mswati III, crowned in 1986.

Bishop Meshack Mabuza of the Anglican church of Swaziland, who led the delegation, also cited the "profligate spending" of the Swazi government and/or monarchy as fiscal indiscipline, exemplified by government's intentions to purchase a private jet for the king worth hundreds of millions of rands.

The rule of law in Swaziland is also regularly flouted, said the delegation, citing the example of the resignation en masse of appeal court judges after a ruling they made was ignored.

Under the new constitution, said the delegation, a citizen cannot seek redress in court if the king's name is mentioned in legal proceedings, because of the legal immunity the king enjoys.

Further, the king can "withhold his assent" on bills passed in parliament, preventing them being passed into law using in what effectively amounts to a power of veto over all legislation, the portfolio committee heard.

The king is also empowered by the new constitution to disband the 104-seat (70 seats in the assembly and 30 in a senate, with four seats reserved for women) parliament, in which retains a quota of a total of 30 appointees.

"The king is not enjoined to follow advice from any structure," a Swazi delegate told the committee, adding that government officials have to swear an oath only to the king and "his heirs and successors", not Swaziland as a nation.

And Swaziland's Human Rights Commission cannot investigate charges against the king or any member of the Swazi royal family, the delegation said.

The "pervasive influence" of the king's powers in the three arms of government "severely compromises" the notion of the separation of powers, which is a cardinal tenet of democracy, the group's presentation read.

And this new, undemocratic constitution, according to the delegation, comes against a background where more than four people in 10 is HIV-positive, where 69% of the population lives on less than $1 (R6) a day, and where unemployment is estimated at 50%.

The Swaziland Coalition of Concerned Civic Organisations comprises the Federation of Swaziland Employers and the Chamber of Commerce, the Association of Swaziland Business Community, the Federation of Trade Unions, the Federation of Labour, the Church, the Law Society of Swaziland,, the National Association of teachers, Lawyers for Human Rights, the Swaziland chapter of the Media Institute of Southern Africa as well as women's groups and non-governmental organisations. - BuaNews