Swaziland@Newsletter
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Support the democratic movement in
1. Anti-Terrorism
Law an Excuse to Suppress Freedom of Expression, Says Article 19 .
PRESS
RELEASE, Aricle 19 (
2. AIDS
ACTIVISTS TO MARCH ON TERROR LAW
By Faith Vilakati, www.observer.org.sz
25. November 2008
3. SWAZILAND
‘IN STATE OF EMERGENCY’
http://swazimedia.blogspot.com,
Tuesday,
25 November 2008
4. Bombings
'a cry for attention', says Swazi bishop
www.totalcatholic.com,
Monday, 24
November 2008
5.
By Peter
Clottey,
24 November 2008
6. PUDEMO
CHIEF'S KILLER CONFESSES
7. Swaziland’s
battle in the shadows of world news
Priti Patel, Business Day - Johannesburg,South Africa, 24 November 2008
8. Mario’s children left in the cold
By MANQOBA
NXUMALO The Times, November 26, 2008
9. Justice
Minister Ndumiso defends Terrorism Act
By
MBONGISENI NHLEKO The Times November 25,2008
--------
1. Anti-Terrorism
Law an Excuse to Suppress Freedom of Expression, Says Article 19
PRESS
RELEASE, Aricle 19 (
ARTICLE 19
is seriously concerned about the constricting environment the
government of
The
Swaziland Act is the latest in a series of anti-terrorism laws that
have been
enacted since the September 2001 attacks on the
As recently
as September at the 40-40 celebration, the Monarch's 40th birthday and
"Frankly,
terrorism is a specious argument for repression of free expression in
ARTICLE 19
strongly urges the government of
For the
full statement, see: http://www.article19.org/pdfs/press/swaziland-counter-terrorism-not-a-pretext-for-repression.pdf
For further
information on the Suppression of Terrorism Act, see: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/98624
2. AIDS
ACTIVISTS TO MARCH ON TERROR LAW
By Faith Vilakati, www.observer.org.sz
25. nobember 08.
THE Swaziland Positive Living (SWAPOL) members, who live with HIV and
AIDS, say the existence of the Anti Terrorism Act of 2008 dropped their
CD4 count immensely.
As a result, they have decided to march to Prime Minister Sibusiso
Barnabas Dlamini to deliver a petition against this piece of
legislation.
The march will be held early next year shortly after the Incwala. The
resolution was taken yesterday during a meeting held at the Tum’s
discovered that the Act was not fit for the country. They stated that
there were no terrorists in the country and lamented that they were not
involved when the Act was formulated.
“We believe that the law can be re-drafted because, as citizens of the
country, we are not happy with it. We will march to the PM’s office
where we would demand an explanation as to what it means to us as women
and the country as a whole because we foresee a situation whereby it
will bring negative consequences that would affect us a lot,” said one
member.
It was agreed that the PM would be expected to explain why the trial of
alleged serial killer David Simelane is still not concluded - seven
years after his arrest.
They will also demand that grants for senior citizens be improved and
paid on a monthly basis and that people living with HIV get monthly
grants. They said they would demand that the minister of finance,
Majozi
Sithole, include the grants on his budget speech of 2009.
“I believe that we have chosen the right time to march to the PM given
that when Simelane was arrested, Dlamini was serving as prime minister.
We will raise the issue now that he has been re-appointed,” said
another
participant.
Others wanted the march to be held there and then - but it was
explained
that they would probably find no-one at Cabinet offices to give their
petition to.
SWAPOL Chairperson, Siphiwe Hlophe said they were aware that there
would
be some people who might join the march who are not members of SWAPOL
and they would see how to deal with that. She added that they did not
want people who would make the march a violent one because they wanted
a
peaceful march.
“We are optimistic that the march will be a success if we are together
as a team, we so much believe that there will soon be change after the
march,” she said. It was finalised that all the women who would
participate in the march would be clad in traditional attire as
Lutsango
LwaKangwane.
The petition
* Shortage of drugs in Hospitals.
* Bogogo must get their grants on a monthly basis.
* People living with HIV and AIDS must get monthly grants.
* Shortage of water and firewood while people are assaulted and killed
for trying to access such basic needs in the country.
* Killing of innocent citizens and sometimes beating of the elderly in
the presence of police - one is innocent until proven guilty.
* David Simelane to be immediately tried and sentenced.
* The cancellation of the Terrorism Act of 2008 and that it be
revisited
and re-drafted.
* To demand the finalisation of a matter involving a certain Make
Ngcamphalala whose husband was shot to death by people and the matter
is
still with the police, 16 years ago.
* Water Party.
* The IGCSE system of education is not good for children of the country
which is why the ministers and top government officials’ children go to
schools outside the country where there is no IGCSE system of education.
* Bagcugcuteli and Banakekeli’s monthly salaries should be reviewed.
3. SWAZILAND
‘IN STATE OF EMERGENCY’
http://swazimedia.blogspot.com,
Tuesday,
25 November 2008
The Act has
the same effect on
Vusi
Sibisi, writing
in the Times
Sunday (23 November
2008), says, ‘The stupendous paradox between the two eras—post-1973 and
since
the enactment of the Suppression of Terrorism
Act
of 2008—being that while the coup against the Westminster-styled
independence
constitution in 1973 was entirely an operation of the ruling class to
the
exclusion of the ordinary people, the same cannot be said of the
anti-terrorism
law yet in all honesty the objectives of these instruments remain the
same—to
silence the nation and retain the political playing ground as an
exclusive
preserve of the ruling class.
‘The King’s
Proclamation to the Nation to which the people had no input, which
effectively
outlawed democracy and the people’s individual rights and freedoms, was
dictated from the throne. And to ensure compliance with the string of
decrees
that made up the King’s Proclamation to the Nation was the draconian
indefinite
60-Day Detention Order the fear of which inculcated the culture of
silence that
is permeating Swazi society even today.
‘It is the
culture of silence inculcated by the King’s Proclamation and its
accompanying
draconian laws that the ruling class has perversely marketed to the
outside
world as peace and tranquillity, a trademark of the Swazi nation.
Frankly there
never was peace in this country, but pervasive fear of the terror of
the ruling
regime that engendered silence on the citizenry.
‘And from
1973 onwards it was easier to cow the nation into supplication and,
therefore,
silence because not so many people were as educated and enlightened as
they are
today. Thus an educated and enlightened elite prone to challenging
anything and
everything that the ruling elite stands for has replaced the generation
that
could accept the imposition of dictatorship in 1973 without putting up
any form
of challenge or resistance.’
He goes on,
‘The paradox is that when in 1973 the ruling class used naked
aggression to
forcefully appropriate to itself all political power not to speak of
all
faculties of the nation’s human resource, in 2008 it used the
poverty-alleviating institution of Parliament to rubber stamp its
unconstitutional and just as draconian Suppression of Terrorism Act
that is the
successor to the notorious 60-Day Detention Order.
‘And if
anyone was in doubt about the Tinkhundla Parliament as an effective
legislative
institution, now that doubt has been evaporated by the facts that just
about
confirm its role as a rubber stamp of whatever is desired by the ruling
class. For
if it was not, the 8th Parliament would have refused to be party to the
draconian anti-terrorism legislation that is inherently also in breach
of the
constitution that is supposedly the supreme law of the land.’
He goes on,
‘And that silence can never translate into peace and tranquility even
with the
Suppression of Terrorism Act that has essentially thrust this country
into a
permanent state of emergency in tow. ‘
To read the
full article, click
here.
4. Bombings
'a cry for attention', says Swazi bishop
www.totalcatholic.com,
Monday, 24
November 2008
The recent
series of bombings in
Bishop Louis Ndlovu of Manzini said the Church believes some people
have adopted
"crude and violent methods so as to force change in the country."
Two bombings in November coincided with a march by 15,000 trade union
members
in the capital,
Prime Minister Sibusiso Dlamini recently branded several liberation
movements
as terrorists and said that "anyone found to be a member or even
associating with them would face the full might of" the 2008
Suppression
of Terrorism Act.
The Church in
Political appointments since the country's September legislative
elections have
been given to relatives and friends of the ruling class and are "a
clear
indication" of the king's intention to maintain the status quo, Bishop
Ndlovu said.
"Such nepotism can only" drive the marginalised "to a point of
despair," Bishop Ndlovu said.
"The recent bombings are a manifestation of the failure by the ruling
elite to engage in serious and honest dialogue with the citizenry," he
said.
Noting that "the Church condemns all forms of violence," including
terrorism, which "shows complete contempt for human life and can never
be
justified," Bishop Ndlovu said the Church "also pays attention to the
causes of terrorism" and "wishes that all should work together to
avoid these unfortunate acts”.
"Excessive economic, social and cultural inequalities among people
arouse
tensions and conflicts and are a danger to peace," he said, noting that
"to wage war on misery and to struggle against injustice is to promote,
along with improved conditions, the human and spiritual progress of all
persons, and therefore the common good of all humanity”.
5.
By Peter
Clottey,
24 November 2008
The leader
of
"It is
a bit broad because the act (terrorism act) has got various activities
defined
as constituting an offense under the act. Not only that of causing
terror by an
application or by violence of one form or another, including
explosives, bombs
or whatever means of description, it's a whole list of activities
intended to
suppress terrorism," Dlamini noted.
He denied
that the new terrorism law is violating the opposition leader's
constitutional
rights.
"If
you look at the act, it has got absolutely nothing to do with the
criticism of
the government. In fact it excludes certain political groups if they
ever
express whatever views they might be expressing like unions and all
those
groups those are excluded. It says absolutely nothing about political
party of
any description it is only concerned with entities responsible for
doing the
various acts or activities, which constitute an offence. And as we
understand
it is in line with international convention," he said.
Dlamini
said the opposition PUDEMO seems not to understand the terrorism act
which its
leader Masuku is currently facing.
"The
unfortunate thing is that in the first place like we are saying, the
act itself
makes an offence of what he (Masuku) is supposed to have said. That is
the
starting point, and secondly the person who is said to have perpetrated
the
offense, at least those who have been found are of course in custody
and I hope
they would be tried in due course. But not for a terrorist act because
at the
time the act happened the Suppression of Terrorism Act had not come
into force.
So, they would probably find some other offense that might have been
committed,
I don't know what it would be ultimately. So, that is the position,"
Dlamini pointed out.
He said
those who have been critical of government policies have not been
charged for
doing so.
"Of
course there are other political parties who have been criticizing the
government and they don't of course agree with the government polices,
nothing
has been done to those because they haven't committed offense by merely
criticizing government. But if they go beyond criticizing and take up
arms
against the citizens of the country, there is noting that the
government can do
except to respond in terms of the law," he said.
Dlamini
said the current terrorism law would support the government charges
against the
opposition PUDEMO leader.
"I can
only say it is unfortunate if other laws are drafted in different term.
But the
law in question will seem to support the charge. I don't know what the
court
will do at the end of the day because they are responsible for
interpreting the
law. But it seems that the acts that are supposed to have been
perpetrated by
Masuku are acts, which the law presently condemn as being in support of
a
terrorist group or a terrorist act. That I think is what they are being
charged
with," Dlamini noted out.
Mario
Masuku is the first person to be arrested under the new anti-terrorism
law,
which was introduced last September. If convicted, he could spend the
rest of
his life behind bars.
Meanwhile,
Reporters sans Frontières (RSF) has condemned the Swaziland
attorney-general's
threatening statement that journalists who criticize King Mswati III's
government could be arrested under a new anti-terrorism law that has
just been
used to crack down on opposition groups.
Attorney-General
Majahenkhaba Dlamini warned last week that journalists critical of the
government could be viewed as supporting terrorists and could be
arrested under
the Suppression of Terrorism Act, which provides for sentences of up to
25
years in prison.
Clottey
Interview With Attorney General Majahenkhaba Dlamini - Download (MP3)
Clottey
Interview With Attorney General Majahenkhaba Dlamini - Listen (MP3)
6. PUDEMO
CHIEF'S KILLER CONFESSES
Sowetan25. Nobember 2008
Dumisane
Mvhelase Maduna, 31, appeared briefly before the packed KaBokweni
magistrate's
court last monday on charges of murder and rape. He was remanded until
his next
court appearance on December 5, when he is expected to apply for bail.
Spokesman
for the
"He
also confessed that he [had] used his state-issued firearm to shoot at
his
mother-in-law."
Maduna
allegedly found Mkhumane, deputy president of
He locked
the doctor inside the boot before repeatedly raping the 18-year-old
woman
inside the car.
Maduna
later hauled Mkhumane out of the boot and instructed him to lie down on
the ground
next to the woman, then asked them who wanted to die first. He shot
Mkhumane
twice in the head.
Maduna then
drove with the teenager to a petrol station where he tried to withdraw
cash
using Mkhumane's bank cards, but the doctor had given him false Pin
numbers. The
woman escaped while he was at the ATM.
Maduna also
faces attempted murder charges after he allegedly shot at Solomon
Msimango and
his wife Phumzile on April 1. He is also charged with firing six shots
at his
mother-in-law, which all missed.
7. Swaziland’s
battle in the shadows of world news
Priti Patel, Business Day - Johannesburg,South Africa, 24 November 2008
IN THE past
few weeks we have been inundated with news of the historic
Maybe
because of the fascination with and excitement of the
The High
Court in
The
constitutional challenge, brought by the Swaziland Coalition of
Concerned Civic
Organisations, a coalition representing a wide array of civil society
groups in
Swaziland, argued that not only was the EBC not independent as required
by the
constitution, but that a number of its members were too enmeshed with
King
Mswati to be independent as they fail to meet the minimum
qualifications
required under the constitution.
The
government has responded to this challenge by arguing, in part, that
the
decisions of the king in choosing the EBC members are above the
constitution.
This all
may not seem like much, especially in the wake of election news from
the
We have
seen in
This case
is particularly important in
Though
marred with their own problems of voter registration and
misinformation, the
We now
await a verdict from the court, which is likely to be appealed. But
let’s hope
that as a first and important step, the High Court chooses to uphold
the
pre-eminence of the constitution and democracy. If the constitution is
to have
any meaning in this emerging democracy, it is the courts that will have
to
limit the power of the monarch and bring the country towards a working
constitutional democracy.
- Patel is
the acting director of the Southern Africa Litigation Centre.
8. Mario’s
children left in the cold
By MANQOBA
NXUMALO The Times, November 26, 2008
MBABANE-
Incarce-rated political activist Mario Masuku’s children have been
locked out
of the flat they were occupying at Mobeni.
Nobantu has
been living at the old Mobeni flats with her brother Mzwandile and
sister
Thandiswa for about a year now.
She has
since been locked out and told to move but has instructed lawyer
Thabsile
Vilakati from Robinson Bertram Attorneys to file an urgent application
at the
High Court where she demands to be reinstated back to the house.
In papers
filed at the High Court, she says she entered into a one year renewable
lease
with the Swaziland National Housing Board on April 24, 2008 and has
been paying
monthly rentals of E660.
She says
she has been staying with her sister Thandiswa and brother Mzwandile
until
November 2, 2008.
She said
while she was visiting a friend at Eveni, her brother Mzwandile sought
the
assistance of a friend, Wandile Dludlu, to help move Thandiswa’s
belongings out
of the flat to her new flat.
"I am
advised that whilst he and his friend Wandile Dludlu were moving
Thandiswa’s
belongings out of the flat, they were approached by a security
personnel,
Mduduzi Khumalo. I am further advised that the said Khumalo enquired
about the
destination of the furniture being moved out, to which he was duly
informed," reads Nobantu’s affidavit filed at the High Court.
She added:
"The security personnel then left, only to return a few minutes later
with
Mr Motsa, an estate manager based at the Matsapha branch of the
respondents. Mr
Motsa stated to Mzwandile that the lease provided that any furniture
being
removed from any of the leased premises should be made known to the
respondents. return, I am advised he entered the apartment and went
into all
the rooms and eventually ordered everyone out of the apartment so that
he could
lock. Mzwandile then requested that he waited until I had been
contacted as the
lessee. Mr Motsa refused and left.
Changed
"On my
arrival I found the doors locked and the locks presumably changed as I
could
not open same with the keys given to me, we then asked around for
Motsa’s
premises and were duly advised of same."
She said
when she finally got hold of Motsa she was told that she had lost the
apartment
and was advised to go to the Swaziland National Housing Board.
The
Swaziland National Housing Board has filed an opposing affidavit where
they
allege that Nobantu wanted to leave the flat and hand it over to her
sister,
something that they said was illegal.
They also
argued that by doing so she had breached the contract she entered into
with the
SNHB.
There has
been an order of court signed by the High Court Registrar Lorraine
Hlophe where
the SNBH is asked to motivate why the order sought by Nobantu should
not be
granted.
9. Justice
Minister Ndumiso defends Terrorism Act
By
MBONGISENI NHLEKO The Times November 25,2008
MATSAPHA –
The new Suppression of Terrorism Act of 2008 should not be seen as a
tool
sharpened by government to target certain individuals in the country.
Minister of
Justice and Constitutional Affairs Ndumiso Mamba said it should be
understood
that the law is aimed at protecting the entire nation.
"It is
not that the laws are targeting anyone.
"Government
has an obligation to protect citizens of this country," he said.
Mamba said
some people were wondering how the laws came into force but they should
understand
that they were part of the UN conventions, which
He said in
other countries such as
The
minister said there was a need to ensure that protective measures for
citizens
were in place in view of the fact that certain entities and individuals
had
already underlined their interests to see change in the system of
governance.
Change
"We
don’t know what the people seeking regime change need because we don’t
know
where they consulted," he said.
Mamba said
it was most unfortunate that whenever such laws were put in place and
effected,
people complained that they were aimed at suppressing their democratic
rights.
He commended
government particularly the Prime Minister Sibusiso Dlamini for
ensuring that
the law is passed because it will help keep citizens safe from acts of
terrorism.
"Acts
of terrorism have been there for a long time and this law came timely.
Some of
us will recall the 1998 incident when someone (a security guard) lost
his life
at the DPM’s offices (during a bomb blast)," he said.
He said law
enforcement agencies needed to understand the new law very well.
Mamba said
the workshop held at
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