Link to Article: “Eswatini’s Ambrose Dlamini dies after contracting COVID-19”
On December 13th, Ambrose Dlamini, the prime minister of Eswatini, passed away after a four-week fight against COVID-19. In hopes to speed up recovery, the prime minister was transferred to South Africa for medical attention. Dlamini had served as prime minister to Eswatini since 2018, after spending time in the banking industry.
The small country now has over 6,700 confirmed cases, including 127. The Swaziland Solidarity Network has raised concerns over “special treatment” being given to the prime minister over the many other citizens struggling with the pandemic, with over 39% of its citizens living in poverty between 2016 and 2017.
Dlamini is now the first world leader to have died of the virus. With the country already struggling during the pandemic, with rising cases and poverty, the loss of their prime minister could set the country further back. Eswatini’s king, Mswati III, will now look to appoint a new member as head of government. Furthermore, the concerns shown by the SSN towards the government for its neglect of civilian cases may cause further issues. Eswatini’s leadership has previously been criticized by its citizens, as they became frustrated with their king’s harsh ruling and requests for public money for personal luxury. With a mounting reputation of unfair treatment towards its citizens, Eswatini may begin to see civil unrest in order to invoke change within the government.
Eswatini, or the Kingdom of Eswatini, operates under an absolute monarchy, with a king as the head of state, and a prime minister, elected by the king, who serves as the head of government. This issue mainly affects the national level, as Eswatini as a nation has lost its prime minister, the person in charge of making decisions and policies for and on behalf of the country. This does, however, affect the global level too, as Eswatini’s relations with other nations in the international system will be affected by the change and loss of the head of government.