King Mswati III views all opposition to the elections in his kingdom later this year as ‘treason’, the Communist Party of Swaziland (CPS) said.
Activists have been arrested and charged with sedition for
trying to hold an election rally earlier this month (April 2013).
The CPS said the charges showed King Mswati, ‘views
opposition to his elections as treason’.
Those arrested include Swaziland Youth Congress (SWAYOCO)
Secretary General Maxwell Dlamini; SWAYOCO International Affairs Secretary
Sonkhe Dube; Peoples United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) National Organiser and
trade union leader Wonder Mkhonza, and members of Communist Party of Swaziland
Central Committee Mfanawenkhosi Mtshali and Derrick Nkhambule.
CPS general secretary Kenneth Kunene said in a statement,
‘The regime is desperate to make its elections appear respectable, fair and
free so as to appease the international community. But in reality they are the
very opposite of freedom or fairness.’
No political parties are allowed to take part in the
elections which are due to be held this year, at a date yet to be announced by
the king.
Kunene added, ‘The Mswati dictatorship is also clamping
down more widely on opposition at this time. Increasingly, we are seeing shows
of force by the police and army, designed to intimidate anyone contemplating
resisting the regime.’
A report on human rights over the past year in the
kingdom released last week by the US State Department confirmed a raft of human
rights abuses in the kingdom, ruled by King Mswati, who is sub-Saharan Africa’s
last absolute monarch.
The report stated, ‘Citizens remained unable to change
their government. The three main human rights abuses were police use of
excessive force, including use of torture, beatings, and unlawful killings;
restrictions on freedoms of association, assembly, and speech; and
discrimination and abuse of women and children.’
The CPS has called on international organisations,
including the Southern African Development Community, African Union, European
Union and the United Nations to, ‘take a resolute stand on the crimes of the
Mswati regime and to demand an end to the dictatorship’.
See also
NOW, ELECTION MEETINGS ARE ‘SEDITIOUS’
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