Hundreds of Swazi women have marched through the streets of the capital to protest about a shopping trip taken by nine of the king's 13 wives

They chartered a plane to go to Europe and the Middle East. The protesters handed in a petition to the finance ministry saying the money could have been better spent. "We can't afford a shopping trip when a quarter of the nation lives on food aid," they chanted. Swaziland, Africa's last absolute monarchy, is one of the poorest countries in the world and more than 40% of the population is believed to be infected with HIV.