The Star: Eswatini celebrates King Mswati III's 40 years as critics decry royal spending
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Mswati III is the Ngwenyama (King) of Eswatini and head of the Swazi royal family since 1986. He is the head of an absolute monarchy, holding executive authority over all branches of government and constitutionally immune from prosecution. Along with his mother Queen Ntfombi, Mswati is the last remaining absolute monarch in Africa and one of twelve remaining absolute monarchs worldwide.
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politics · King of Eswatini since 1986 · sovereign · politician · monarch · also Mswati III, King Mswati III, Mswati III of Swaziland, Mswati III of Eswatini, III
Born 19 April 1968 · Q57340
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The Star: Eswatini celebrates King Mswati III's 40 years as critics decry royal spending
Indiatimes: 15 Wives, 30 Children, and a Private Jet: King Mswati III’s Grand Arrival Sparks Buzz Online
scmp.com: King Mswati III
An estimated 32% of the population lived below the US$2
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AFP Fact Check rated the claim “Swazi King Mswati III orders men to marry two women or face jail” False.
Shown as reported and rated by a fact checker, not as an established fact.
Under which malaria cases dropped significantly
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Mswati promulgated a decree renaming the country from Swaziland to Eswatini, restoring its pre-colonial name
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UPI: Topic: King Mswati III
Mswati promulgated a new constitution, ending the state of emergency that had been in force since 1973
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The king used his traditional powers to invoke a time-honoured chastity rite (umcwasho) under the patronage of a princess, which encouraged all Swazi maidens to abstain from sexual relations for five years
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Allegedly called for a parliamentary meeting to debate if HIV-positive people should be "sterilized and branded"
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Awarded Grand Cross of the Order of Good Hope (1995).
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Won: South Africa (August 1995).
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Won: United Kingdom (November 1991).
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To 65 years in 2026 according to figures cited during the Ruby Jubilee address
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Career landmark: King of Eswatini (1986).
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Born 1968-04-19.
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