China has advised its citizens to leave Eswatini, also known as Swaziland, citing "security risks" including "rampant cyber fraud and criminal activities associated with gambling." The Chinese foreign ministry suggested its citizens relocate to neighboring South Africa or other "relatively safer" countries.
Eswatini is one of 12 countries worldwide, and the only one in Africa, that maintains diplomatic relations with Taiwan. China claims Taiwan as its territory and has consistently pressured countries to sever ties with the self-governing island.
Recent reports from the privately owned Times of Eswatini indicated that 40 Chinese nationals have been detained since last month. These individuals were reportedly arrested in March during raids on alleged illegal online gambling centers in Mbabane and surrounding areas. Lawyers for the group stated they had pleaded guilty to immigration offenses and paid court-imposed fines, asserting that their subsequent re-arrest, following release by the High Court, was unlawful.
The Eswatini government has not yet issued a comment on the detentions or the Chinese advisory. However, China's foreign ministry warned that citizens who choose to remain in or travel to Eswatini will face "extremely high security risks, and the timeliness of assistance may be affected."
This advisory follows a period of diplomatic tension between China and Taiwan. In April, Taiwan accused Beijing of attempting to disrupt then-President Lai Ching-te's planned travel to Eswatini by pressuring neighboring countries to revoke overflight permits. The trip, initially scheduled for late April to commemorate King Mswati III's 40th anniversary on the throne, was canceled. Lai eventually visited Eswatini in May.
Earlier this year, China also excluded Eswatini from tariff exemptions it offered to all other African countries.