Mbabane, Swaziland
A woman has brought a lawsuit against King Mswati to try to stop him from marrying her daughter. Swazi kings have multiple wives, and many families consider it an honor for a daughter to be selected. But when royal aides grabbed 18-year-old Zena Zoraya Mahlangu and took her away without first asking permission, her mother sued. The unprecedented move has spurred others to denounce the tradition of bridenapping. “Such a practice, Your Majesty, is degrading, dehumanizing, and traumatic to the dignity and person of womenfolk,” human-rights activist Vulindlela Msibi wrote to the king. But the king makes his own laws. Last year, just a few weeks after he decreed that girls under 18 may not have sex, he married a 17-year-old.
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