Swaziland The costs for setting up a station, though, are so prohibitive that most communities cannot raise enough funds. It should be noted that the Broadcasting Draft Bill does include community broadcasting. SCORES: Individual scores: 2, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1 Average score: 1.1 2.6 (2005=1.1) The editorial independence of print media published by a public authority is protected adequately against undue political interference. ANALYSIS: The Swazi Observer is owned and published by Tibiyo TakaNgwane, which in turn is owned by the King on behalf of the Swazi nation. There was much debate among panellists as to whether Tibiyo could be classified as a public authority because legally it is a private entity. It was agreed that although Tibiyo is registered as a private company and does not use taxpayer funds, it is effectively controlled by the King and “held in trust for the Swazi nation” and, therefore, is a public authority. Tibiyo appoints the board of the Observer and though the King is not directly involved in the appointments, he is kept informed and theoretically could influence the decisions. The dominant public perception is that the Swazi Observer is a state newspaper. The Observer is not able to publish criticism of the King and the Queen Mother, but “this is the only editorial restriction.” And the same restriction applies equally to the privately owned Times of Swaziland. The Observer regularly carries stories critical of govern18 African Media Barometer - Swaziland 2007