Blossom of Thought

The subject of this episode is trauma on mind and body. My guest is Emerald Wilkins from Florida, US. She is a Life Coach and has a Youtube channel - Diamond Net where she shares her perspective on the topics of wisdom, spirituality, enlightenment, depth psychology, the psyche, creativity, altered states of consciousness, and many other forms of exploration of Self and reality.

We divide deep on:

Find Emerald's brilliant work in the links below:

Youtube - youtube.com/thediamondnet

Masterclass - shadowintegration.org/masterclass

In a quest to find healing for our bodies and minds, we find ourselves confronted with huge medical bills. Our world is one of complex medical issues. Western medicine's inadequacies are indisputable. Are there other healing modalities or alternatives to western medicine? Today we can draw so much from eastern wisdom and ancient traditions or spiritual practices to address the forever growing medical problems. Wendy Cox, a US citizen, yoga teacher, and certified life coach joins me today on this episode to discuss yoga - a very beneficial healing modality resuscitated from the ancient world.

Wendy advises that yoga may help us:

You can learn more and also join Wendy's online yoga practice @ www.ajoyouslife.com

Wendy's social networks:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/manifestyourjoyouslife/

Music artist, minister of religion, teacher, legislator, and activist of social justice - Honorable Mduduzi 'Gaw'zela Simelane, a man, amongst others, at the heart of political turmoil in Swaziland records with me his sentiments on the political warfare in Africa's last absolute monarch. A black cloud continues to hang over the kingdom of Swaziland. Calls for democracy are as vibrant as never before. Bloodshed and carnage persist – the king, his military, and police are killing unarmed citizens on their peaceful protests and call for democratic changes.

Highlights from my conversation with the "Legislator of Love:"

Armed forces in eSwatini continue to brutalize and kill emaSwati who are calling for a democratic dispensation in the country. During recent protests, police and the military fired live ammunition, killing over 80 unarmed civilians, while hundreds of others sustained major injuries and were left permanently disabled or in need of continued medical care. Most of their stories have not been reported due to the regime’s silencing tactics which include the state capture of the media, internet shut down in the height of civil unrest, as well as continued targeted harassment and intimidation of ordinary citizens. The atrocities committed by the monarchy’s police and military are now being exposed in a new documentary called “The Unthinkable”, where some of the Swazis who have been gravely affected tell their stories. We are joined by the executive producer of the film Comfort Ndzinisa, as well as Mandla Dlamini, who is the convenor of the eSwatini Solidarity Fund. The documentary titled “The Unthinkable: The bloodiest week in Africa’s last absolute monarch” premiers at 6 pm GMT+2 on Sunday, 3 October 2021 on the SWAZILAND NEWS Facebook page.

Highlights

Þ Comfort explains how the unbelievable nature of the victims’ circumstances inspired the title of the documentary.

Þ Mandla clarifies Comfort’s critical role in the documentary inception and the importance of hearing firsthand stories from the survivors beyond looking at the statistics.

Þ Comfort explains how his personal experience with his sister’s murder and being failed by the justice system motivated him to create this documentary.

Þ Comfort talks about how making the documentary and seeing the aftermath of the massacre conscientized him politically, and encouraged him to play a role in making others understand the extent of what the people are through.

Þ Mandla describes how the solidarity fund has evolved beyond humanitarian efforts, into being an accessible platform for people to contribute to the emancipation of the Swazi people.

Þ In terms of reporting by the media, Comfort speaks of time being a major limitation in terms of how much he could document. He explains the difficulty in extracting information from the victims who still fear further victimization. He insists on the need to revisit the events of that fateful week of killings and believes we do not have a clear picture of the extent of the tragedies.

Þ On how far the solidarity fund has gone in reaching the victims of the massacre, Mandla says “not far enough” in terms of the scale of the damage. Support is needed from Swazis and the international community.

Þ Mandla appeals to public to commit to sustained contributions; monetary and otherwise, as once-off donations are not enough to address the needs of those affected on the ground.

Þ The solidarity fund is being steered by a group of Swazi volunteers, and mainly funded by other Swazis in the country and the diaspora, as well as partnerships with other international humanitarian groups such as COSPE.

Þ Comfort explains how his personal motivation is enough to keep doing the work without any monetary benefit. Mandla shares similar sentiments of personal conviction driving him and the eSwatini Solidarity Fund team

Þ Mandla: The documentary airs on Sunday the 3rd October 2021, 6 pm GMT+2 on the Swaziland News Facebook page. The eSwatini Solidarity Fund is coupling the premier with a feedback session and fundraising activity for the fund.

Þ Comfort and Mandla conclude by appealing to the public to recognize that victims of the massacre are also those that have been left behind after the death or incapacitation of a breadwinner.

In the height of a pandemic, while many were still mourning lives lost to COVID19, political unrest ensued in Swaziland. Armed forces brutalized and killed dozens of emaSwati who were calling for political reforms and even some who were bystanders. The tremendous impact of such traumatic events on the mental health of all affected has been a subject of discussion on social media. We speak to Swazi psychologist, Senele Mdluli on how to navigate mental health concerns as the struggle towards a new democratic dispensation continues. Senele is the co-director of Kushamiri Consulting; a woman-owned human capital and wellness consultancy. She holds a Master's degree in Counselling Psychology and has worked as a lecturer in the Psychology department at the Eswatini Medical Christian University. Through her private practice, she provides psychotherapeutic services to individuals, couples, and groups.

Highlights

Þ Senele speaks candidly on how she has been impacted personally by the recent events, particularly secondary traumatization as a result of patients’ grief and trauma from both the COVID19 pandemic as well as the political unrest.

Þ Senele cautions against being quick to label normal human responses to trauma as mental disorders and gives guidance on what symptoms are a cause for concern.

Þ Senele explains the ways in which we are broadly affected by the political unrest; directly or indirectly, as well as vicariously through constant exposure via social media. She expands on the factors that contribute to the differing responses people will have to the trauma.

Þ On remedies, Senele emphasizes normalizing certain human reactions and educating people on when to seek help. She calls for the creation of support systems in light of the limited access to mental health services in eSwatini.

Þ Asked how we can be effective support systems, Senele advises caregivers to be present, supportive, and listening, and encourages awareness of the state of their own mental health to prevent burnout.

Þ Senele further calls for advocacy towards strengthening professional mental health support for frontline workers and urges those around them to continue to be supportive.

Þ Senele offers her perspective on how the perpetrators of the violence get desensitized to the humanity of their victims to justify the killings.

Þ Finally, Senele cautions on the dire consequences of not addressing the traumas Swazis have recently been subjected to.

Connect with Senele on:

Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/senele.mdluli

Twitter

In light of the recent Swaziland massacre, many believe the monarchy has no place in future democratic Swaziland they envision. We speak to Virginia-based accountant and activist Mandla Monty Nkosi on his vision for how Swaziland can transition into the new democratic dispensation. Born and raised in Swaziland, Monty obtained his Association of Accounting Technician (AAT) Level 1 certificate from the Swaziland College of Technology. He moved to the United States of America to study at the University of the District of Columbia, where he obtained his undergraduate degree in Accounting and Finance. He has since been working as an accountant in the United States, lending his skills to multiple multi-billion-dollar entities.

Highlights:

Þ Monty takes a strong stance against the institution of a monarchy in its totality. He asserts that having somebody born into a position does not make sense in present-day society.

Þ On culture, Monty suggests Swazis distinguish ceremonial events from culture and then choose what they can do away with. For example, the way that we raise our children can be attributed to our culture, which we ought to be proud of. However, there are heinous activities associated with ceremonies. Umhlanga, Lusekwane, Incwala are some of the ceremonies he believes Swazis can toss.

Þ Asked on his take on an armed struggle, Monty stresses that he is opposed to it because of the precedence it sets. He cautions that we should learn from countries where peace has not necessarily followed the revolution.

Þ Monty proposes that a Government of National Unity (GONU) in waiting be formed immediately to inspire the confidence of the international community that there will not be a power vacuum when the current monarch is removed. He believes that the monarch’s unseating is imminent: “King Mswati is technically finished, he is in a coffin, we just need to put the nail on the coffin!”

Þ On his role in GONU, Monty feels his skills would be best leveraged on a consultancy basis, where he would work towards creating livable wage jobs and building sustainable domestic economies in Swaziland’s rural areas. Should Swazis call him home to serve, however, he is prepared to heed that call.

Þ Monty has a strong message for Independence Day on 6 September: “Independence Day is not worth celebrating. It should be boycotted year after year!”

He also opines why the US Marine has descended in Swaziland.

In this episode, I’m joined by Aaron Steven Thoming, a US citizen. We speak about democide, liberties, and freedoms - a citizen's perspective. Aaron has lived for years in the east (Taiwan, China, and South Korea). He is a Strategic Communications expert.

Highlights of the conversation:

To discuss crimes against humanity, with a particular focus on eSwatini, I’m joined by Prof. Angelo Dube. He is a professor of International Law at the University of South Africa. Prof Angelo is an expert in international criminal law, universal jurisdiction, comparative constitutionalism, amongst other things. He is also the Chief Editor of the South African Yearbook of International Law

Highlights of the conversation:

Find Prof. Dube @:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DubeProf

LinkedIn:linkedin.com/in/prof-angelo-dube

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=Angelo%20Dube

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/capt_angelodube/

Thulani Rudolf Maseko is my guest in this episode, and we discuss the intervention of the international community in Swaziland amidst the country’s political unrest. He also gives a high-level constitutional opinion and on the democratization of the country.

Thulani is an experienced human rights lawyer with a passion for the rule of law. He holds a Master’s Degree in Human Rights and Democratization in Africa from the University of Pretoria, Centre for Human Rights. He holds a Hubert Humphrey Fellowship in Leadership from the American University Washington College of Law where he obtained a Master’s Degree in International Legal Studies. He holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Swaziland.

Thulani is a founder member of Lawyers for Human Rights (Swaziland) and has worked for the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) for several years as a consultant based in Swaziland.

He has worked as an attorney in private practice for the last twenty-one years focusing mostly on human rights and constitutional litigation. In 2018, he was elected to be the Secretary of the Law Society of Swaziland for a period of two years. He has represented a number of the pro-democracy activists who constantly face prosecution and persecution by the State in the courts of Swaziland. He, himself, is a victim of abuse of power and authority, spent two years in prison before he was acquitted on appeal.

On 18 March 2014, Thulani was jailed for contempt of court after criticizing Swaziland's judicial system.

In August 2014, Maseko wrote to US President Barack Obama from prison, seeking his intervention ahead of the 2014 United States–Africa Leaders’ Summit.

Maseko was released from prison on 30 July 2015. He had been declared a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International.

Some highlights from our conversation:

Join me and Robert McArthur as we discuss passion-driven goals and empathic listening from an architectural standpoint. Robert resides in Bountiful, Utah, USA. He has been practicing architecture since he was 15. His passion is home architectural design. Robert has a master’s degree in architecture and a degree in interior design and housing. He has done continued education in Japan, Switzerland, and the University of Harvard.