MORE ON SWAZI POLICE BRUTALITY

Newspapers in Swaziland are continuing to pursue the Swazi police after officers went on the rampage outside the kingdom’s university and shot an innocent by-stander.

I reported yesterday (Sunday 20 January 2008) that the Times of Swaziland and the Swazi Observer both reported how a man was shot in his own home. A 14-month-old baby was also nearly shot.

The Times Sunday yesterday (20 January 2008) reported another example of the police being out of control during a demonstration by University of Swaziland (UNISWA) students protesting about examinations and semesterization.

The Times Sunday reported on one student who was shot at by police, who told his story to a meeting of university of students. Here is the report as published in the Times Sunday.

Police slapped, kicked and spat on my face – student

One of the four students who were arrested at the riot at the University of Swaziland submitted at the meting that he was slapped, kicked and spat at by a policeman, whom he went on to reveal his force number.

He said this happened during his arrest. Emmanuel Ngubeni an LLB3 [third year law] student further told the gathering that the police tried to shoot him three times on the fateful day.

‘They swore at me and shouted that I must not dare run away because they were going to shoot me dead. I jumped over the wall fence and I could hear their noise as I was running. I jumped into a maize field and the bullet hit the maize cobs and I could hear that,’ the student said.

He went on and said that he became weary and stopped when two police officers wearing helmets and bullet proof clothing came and arrested him.

‘They came to me, kicked me and spat on my face. One of them slapped me, I looked at him, he asked why I was looking at him and slapped me again. It is at that moment that I took and crammed his force number,’ he related, much to the excitement of the students who then formed a big circle around him and danced.

Ngubeni assured his fellow students that his experience had not deterred him and would not so long as he was able to fight for his rights as a student.


See also
SWAZILAND POLICE ON RAMPAGE