Ten Swaziland police officers threw a woman into a kombi,
drove her to a forest and tortured her for six hours. One woman police officer
kicked her in the private parts.
This is the latest in a string of torture cases involving
the Swazi police.
The woman told local media in Swaziland she was in bed at
11pm when police arrived at her home demanding she tell them the whereabouts of
her husband who was wanted on criminal charges.
‘I explained to them that I did not know where he was and
this seemed to irk them and they got violent,’ the woman said.
The Swazi Observer newspaper reported, ‘They then dragged her out of the house and threw her
inside the kombi. She said she was not given a chance to dress up and she
found herself leaving from the house with only a kanga around her waist and was
barefooted.’
She told the Observer,
‘I cried for mercy to no avail. I was pushed, kicked, slapped and shoved around
while being threatened with death if I did not co-operate.
‘They later tied me against a tree and told me to say my
last prayers. I even wet myself due to fear as the officers took turns
torturing me.’
The newspaper reported, ‘She said among them was a female
police officers who kicked her in her private parts and other sensitive parts of
her body. She was also “showered” with a bucket full of cold water, which
made her shiver more and she felt like vomiting.’
She said, ‘After about six hours of serious torture the
police realised that I did not know my husband’s whereabouts and then untied
and drove me back to my house.’
Police in Swaziland have the reputation for torturing
people with impunity. In May 2012 the US State
Department investigated the use of torture in Swaziland and found,
‘Security officers reportedly used torture during interrogation, assaulted
citizens, and used excessive force in carrying out their duties. Reported
practices included beatings and temporary suffocation using a rubber tube tied
around the face, nose, and mouth, or plastic bags over the head.’
See also
SWAZI STUDENT LEADER TORTURED
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