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One of King of Swaziland’s 15 Wives Commits Suicide

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One of King of Swaziland’s 15 Wives Commits Suicide

One of the wives of the polygamous king of Swaziland has been found dead at his private palace after reportedly taking her own life, the Daily Mail reported.

The body of Senteni Masango, 37, was discovered on Friday afternoon amid reports she had been suffering from depression having not been allowed to attend her sister's funeral.

Queen LaMasango, as she was known after her marriage, was one of 15 wives of King Mswati III of Swaziland - Africa’s last absolute monarch. She married the king back in 2000.

She married the king at the age of 18, after being specially selected from a dance ceremony. The couple had two children together.

According to sources close to the palace, the queen was said to have struggled with life at the palace.

She resorted to plastic surgery and painting in her spare time to relieve the misery of her royal life.

However, a source close to the king said “The king finds her death very painful. They were a happy couple.”

In 2002 Amnesty International accused the king and his agents of “violating the human rights” of Zena Mahlangu, another 18-year-old who was snatched from school and forced into marriage.

He married his most recent wife, Siphelele Mashwama, 19, who is the daughter of one of his cabinet ministers, last September.

Two of his wives have left him. Putsoana Hwala and Delisa Magwaza left the royal house in 2004. Magwaza fled the king’s palace for London.

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Varieties

Japan's 400,000-follower 'Insta-gran' Dies Aged 97

(FILES) This file picture taken on January 16, 2018 shows Kimiko Nishimoto posing next to a picture of her on the sliding window of her house in the western Japanese city of Kumamoto. (Photo by Behrouz MEHRI / AFP)
(FILES) This file picture taken on January 16, 2018 shows Kimiko Nishimoto posing next to a picture of her on the sliding window of her house in the western Japanese city of Kumamoto. (Photo by Behrouz MEHRI / AFP)
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Japan's 400,000-follower 'Insta-gran' Dies Aged 97

(FILES) This file picture taken on January 16, 2018 shows Kimiko Nishimoto posing next to a picture of her on the sliding window of her house in the western Japanese city of Kumamoto. (Photo by Behrouz MEHRI / AFP)
(FILES) This file picture taken on January 16, 2018 shows Kimiko Nishimoto posing next to a picture of her on the sliding window of her house in the western Japanese city of Kumamoto. (Photo by Behrouz MEHRI / AFP)

A Japanese great-grandmother with 400,000 Instagram followers who shot to fame for her goofy self-portraits after taking up photography aged 72 has died, her son said on Thursday.

Kimiko Nishimoto, who died this week at the age of 97, told AFP in a 2018 interview that "you can take photos no matter how old you get".

"Wherever it is, in your house, outside, or in your bed, you can do it. That is the nice thing about a camera," she said.

Dubbed the "selfie queen" by Japanese media, Nishimoto's posts showed her in various candid poses -- from riding a broom like Harry Potter to imitating an off-duty sumo wrestler on their fifth beer of the night.

"Our mother always created her work with a smile," a post from her son Kazutami Nishimoto said on her Instagram account.

"We are deeply grateful to everyone who visited her photography exhibitions held across the country, to those who shared warm words of encouragement through Instagram... and to all who supported her warmly throughout her journey."

Nishimoto's son teaches photography classes, which his mother started taking in retirement.

"Though she began photography at the age of 72, she was blessed with countless encounters, which enriched this third chapter of her life tremendously," he said.

Nishimoto appeared on national television as her online following grew and was interviewed by major news outlets.

But her more out-there visual scenarios were also the cause of some confusion over the years.

One snap -- showing her wrapped in a garbage bag, as if she had been discarded -- drew criticism from people who didn't know she was involved in its set-up.

"It's not like ideas just suddenly pop into my head but wherever I go I think about what it would be fun to dress up as in that place," she said in 2018.