Fleeing eSwatini to safety in the nick of time

The co-owner of popular kosher eatery Frangelicas, Elana Godley, made it out of eSwatini (formerly Swaziland) in the nick of time on Tuesday afternoon, moments before the country plunged into total mayhem.

She had no idea when she arrived at the Royal Villas in the Ezulwini Valley on Sunday, 27 June, for a week-long workshop and conference that she would find herself caught in the middle of violent civil unrest.

Godley, an industrial psychologist, was holding a workshop for one of her clients in the mountain kingdom this week when tensions began to reach fever pitch as pro-democracy protests engulfed the country.

There have been scenes of chaos in eSwatini as violent protests against the rule of King Mswati III swept across the country. Chaos intensified in the tiny kingdom as citizens demanded that the king relinquish power and called for multiparty democracy.

Low-level protests have taken place since last month, resulting in the government imposing a ban on political gatherings last week. This apparently fanned the flames of discontent.

On 29 June, according to reports, the rioting spread to the capital, Mbabane, where journalists said residents were fleeing the city, causing traffic jams. The government imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew and closed schools.

Godley, who was meant be in the country until the end of this week, was frantically whisked away from her conference by concerned local clients who feared for her safety. They went out of their way to make sure that she was rushed to the border to get her safely back to South Africa before potentially finding herself trapped in the landlocked nation.

“It was surreal,” she told the SA Jewish Report, “I felt like I was in a movie.”

When she was collected from the airport on Sunday, her driver mentioned that he was surprised that her trip hadn’t been cancelled because of rising tensions in the country.

“I wasn’t aware at the time that things were so heated as there had been little news in South Africa. I was in the dark,” she said. “It was only on Monday night that I realised things were becoming tense.”

She still hadn’t grasped the gravity of the situation by the 10:00 tea break on Tuesday morning. However, “My clients gathered together during tea and decided that it was best for me to leave the country as soon as possible,” Godley said.

“They said, ‘Elana you have to leave now!’ and instructed me to go to my room and pack my bags. As I walked back to my room, I still didn’t quite absorb the urgency of the situation,” she said.

“I remember thinking I had all my kosher food in the little fridge, and wondered what I was going to do with it. There was a knock on my door. My driver, [whose name is known by the SA Jewish Report but has been withheld for his safety] summoned me to make haste. He seemed agitated about my safety.”

After throwing her things in her bag and leaving the food behind, Godley and her driver left the hotel. He told her they were going to the border and not the airport as originally planned. She relayed this information to her husband, Simon, who immediately left Frangelicas and “drove like a bat out of hell” for four hours to the border to reach her.

“This news threw me completely because I always fly to eSwatini – I never drive. I was a little shocked, and I felt a little anxious at that point,” she said. Little did she know that the roads to Mbabane and Manzini were blocked by protesters so there was no way to reach the airport.

“I was worried that my COVID-19 test had expired, and that I would be denied permission to enter South Africa,” she said.

“Along the route, there were dozens of cars travelling at pace that suddenly did frantic U-turns to go straight towards us in the opposite direction. There were burning tyres, barricades, and smoke.

“It was unnerving. I remember thinking that maybe I’d be stranded in one of the local rural villages for the night,” she recalled.

Her anxiety rose when she realised that she didn’t have a local cell phone to call Simon or any of her family who had no idea where she was at that point. Her driver had 1% of charge on his phone and was fielding calls along the route by those concerned about their safe passage.

“I don’t recall the time, it was all so crazy. My driver was intent on getting me to safety, and was concentrating on the roads. He pulled whatever strings he could when we eventually made it to the Oshoek border.

“He weaved his way around dozens of trucks to get to the top of the queue, and made me wait inside the car while he spoke to officials.”

After what seemed like an age, she eventually made it through passport control following a number of health checkpoints and a rapid COVID-19 test which turned out negative.

“Simon was frantic that I’d be left alone on the South African side. You can just picture this middle-aged woman from Glenhazel with her suitcase and laptop waiting on the side of the road.”

Her driver didn’t leave her side until he knew she had been reunited with Simon literally moments before the curfew and reports that the government had shut down the internet.

“I knew Simon and one of my client’s drivers were making their way to me. I also managed to reach Simon once I made it over the border when I got a shaky signal and there was a power cut.”

Her hosts were right about her travelling by road, as Eswatini Airlink cancelled all flights to and from South Africa amid the civil unrest.

Meanwhile, protesters torched and looted shops, ATMs, government offices, and official and commercial vehicles.

“I’m so relieved to be home but all the while, I felt protected by the kindness of the Swazi people who made it their responsibility to protect me and keep me safe,” Godley said.