Africa's last absolute monarchy is holding its first LGBTI Pride event this weekend.

And anyone doubting the determination needed to undertake such an event in Swaziland, now known as eSwatini, just needed to open last week's Sunday Observer.

A full-page letter accused those organising the march of promoting "paedophilia and bestiality", calling on the organisers to "cancel this gay Pride until Emaswati have decided that they will choose this unnatural behaviour".

But for Melusi Simelane, communications officer for LGBTI rights group Rock of Hope, which is organising the event in the capital, it was a case of: "If not now, when?"

"The right time will never come," he told the BBC. "It is an issue of being courageous enough. So we decided if no-one is going to do it, we would."

So on 30 June, in a country where homosexuality is still illegal, Mr Simelane will join what he hopes will be 2,000 other LGBTI people and supporters in the capital Mbabane, united by the slogan "turn hate into love".

Read more on BBC.