Princess Sikhanyiso Dlamini (; born 1 September 1987) is a Swazi

princess Princess is a title used by a female member of a regnant monarch's family or by a female ruler of a principality. The male equivalent is a prince (from Latin '' princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for ...

and politician. She is the eldest daughter of King

Mswati III Mswati III (born Makhosetive Dlamini; 19 April 1968) is the ''Ngwenyama'' (King) of Eswatini and head of the Swazi royal family. He heads an absolute monarchy, as he has veto power over all branches of government and is constitutionally immune fr ...

Eswatini Eswatini, formally the Kingdom of Eswatini, also known by its former official names Swaziland and the Kingdom of Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa on all sides except the northeast, where i ...

, and is the country's former Minister of Information and Communication Technology.

Early life and education

Sikhanyiso Dlamini was educated in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

at a mixed

private school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...

, St Edmund's College, Ware, in

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

, where she was in Challoner House. She continued to study drama at

Biola University Biola University () is a private, nondenominational, evangelical Christian university in La Mirada, California. It was founded in 1908 as the Bible Institute of Los Angeles. It has over 150 programs of study in nine schools offering bachelor' ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. In 2012, Princess Sikhanyiso graduated from the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

with a master's degree in digital communication. While in Australia, she resided in

Glebe A glebe (, also known as church furlong, rectory manor or parson's close(s)) is an area of land within an ecclesiastical parish used to support a parish priest. The land may be owned by the church, or its profits may be reserved to the church. ...

with her palace-appointed aide, Yemma Sholo. She is the first child of Inkhosikati LaMbikiza and has more than two hundred blood-related uncles and aunts through her grandfather, King

Sobhuza II Sobhuza II (; also known as Nkhotfotjeni, Mona; 22 July 1899 – 21 August 1982) was ''Ngwenyama'' (King) of Swaziland (now Eswatini) for 82 years and 254 days, the longest verifiable reign of any monarch in recorded history. Sobhuza was bo ...

, who had seventy wives and two hundred and one children. She is also one of his one thousand grandchildren in the Royal Swazi

House of Dlamini The House of Dlamini is the royal house of the Kingdom of Eswatini. Mswati III, as king and Ngwenyama of Eswatini, is the current head of the house of Dlamini. Swazi kings up to the present day are referred to as '' Ingwenyama'' and they rule to ...

. She is the first-born of three children born to King Mswati III and Inkhosikati LaMbikiza. She has two hundred aunts and uncles, not including their spouses. In 2001, Mswati III instituted the '' umchwasho''—a traditional chastity rite—in Swaziland as a means of combating the

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

epidemic. The princess became a focus of controversy because while she was staying abroad, she was not bound by the strictures of the ''umchwasho''. While studying abroad, Princess Sikhanyiso developed a reputation for ignoring or rebelling against her native country's traditions.

Controversies

Princess Sikhanyiso Dlamini at Reed Dance Festival 2006-011

On 14 December 2003, a report appeared in the ''

Times of Swaziland The ''Times of Swaziland'' is a newspaper in Eswatini (formerly called Swaziland). It is the oldest newspaper in Eswatini, having been established in 1897 by Allister Mitchel Miller (1864–1951). References External links

* {{Media in Es ...

'' claiming that Princess Sikhanyiso had gone on a trip to the US and Britain, and that the Swazi government had spent close to E1 million (

US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

100,000) on her trip. The prime minister's office subsequently issued a press statement denying these claims. At the end of the ban in 2005, Princess Sikhanyiso, then 17 years old, celebrated with a party involving loud music and alcohol at the Queen mother's residence. As punishment for the princess's disrespect of the royal residence, during which Mswati announced his engagement to a new wife-to-be, an official overseeing traditional affairs beat Princess Sikhanyiso with a stick. The following year, the princess criticized the institution of

polygamy Polygamy (from Late Greek , "state of marriage to many spouses") is the practice of marriage, marrying multiple spouses. When a man is married to more than one wife at the same time, it is called polygyny. When a woman is married to more tha ...

in Swaziland, saying, "Polygamy brings all advantages in a relationship to men, and this to me is unfair and evil." The princess was subsequently "gagged" by the Royal Palace and the press was not allowed to contact her. She was featured in a 2007 documentary titled '' Without the King'' about the monarchy in Eswatini, the disparity between the royals' wealth and the widespread poverty of their subjects, and Eswatini's

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...

crisis.

Achievements

The king supported the princess with her launch of the Imbali Foundation in April 2014. The foundation focuses on the health, education, and spirituality of Imbali YemaSwati (the regiment of Swazi maidens headed by the Inkhosatana or chief maiden). The princess runs the beauty pageant Miss Swaziland Tourism. The Swaziland Deaf Association requested her patronage for Miss Deaf Africa and received the government's support. The princess is an aspiring actress and rapper and is commonly known as "Pashu" in Eswatini. During her brief stay in Malaysia for an internship program at Limkokwing University, she recorded a single titled "Hail Your Majesty" in honour of her father, the king. The debut of the tribute song received a standing ovation at Limkokwing during the conferment of an honorary doctorate to King Mswati III on 4 July 2013. The princess is a member of the board of directors of MTN Swaziland, a multinational mobile

telecommunications Telecommunication, often used in its plural form or abbreviated as telecom, is the transmission of information over a distance using electronic means, typically through cables, radio waves, or other communication technologies. These means of ...

company. She has appointed a businessman from Malaysia, the director of MyStartBiz Sdn Bhd, Muhammad Qadeer, as her special envoy for investment promotion in the Kingdom of Swaziland. She recently recuse herself from being Miinister of ICT

Discography

# "Abeze Kim" (feat M'du and Prince Lindani) # "Hail Your Majesty"

Ancestry

References

External links

eSwatini Ministry of Information, Communications and Technology website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dlamini, Sikhanyiso Swazi royalty Biola University alumni University of Sydney alumni Living people 1987 births African princesses People from Mbabane Communication ministers of Eswatini Information ministers of Eswatini Women government ministers of Eswatini Daughters of kings 21st-century women politicians