Swazis

There’s so much to say about Swazi people. They are a very demeur and quiet bunch highly value tradition, Christianity, and education. Physical affection isn’t a big part of their culture. Even close friends and family members greet with handshakes. However family is incredibly important to them. There are so many culture factors influencing the spread of HIV/AIDS in this country. Polygamy is completely socially acceptable even in the church. Almost all men have multiple cocurrent partners and so do most women. The stigma and shame surrounding HIV breeds myths and misconceptions. Some people even think condoms can give you HIV. Also, sex is not a subject people talk about, even with their children. Romantic relationships are like affairs here instead of partnerships, affairs nobody sees or talks about. I wish I knew how to explain it. Love for Swazis is this romantic notion with no real weight to it. Men will often express romantic sentiments to a woman simply because she’s a “lady” and not because he particularly likes her. Marriage is more of a familial tie than a tie between two people. In fact, during the initial marriage ceremony the man isn’t even present at all. The women of the family gather and perform a ceremony to bind a girl to their homestead, they physically force the girl to do this and occasionally do it against her will. Bride price (usually around seventeen cattle) is given to the girl’s family as a payment for the labor the woman will perform on the homestead and the children she will bear for the homestead. A man’s worth is determined by the number of cattle he has. The number of wives he has is also a status symbol. My Babe (father) has over a hundred cattle, making him fairly wealthy. He also has two wives and two homes in different cities, although both are considered one homestead. My family members often travel back and forth between the two. He also has several illegitimate children. I have too many bobhuti and bosisi (brothers and sisters) and nephews and nieces to count.