A
human rights lawyer and the editor of Swaziland’s only political comment
magazine have
been charged with contempt of court.
Lawyer Thulani Maseko and
Nation editor Bheki
Makhubu were alleged to have written separate articles in the magazine
criticising the circumstances surrounding the case of Chief Government Vehicle
Inspector, Bhantshana
Gwebu. Gwebu had been arrested and charged with contempt of court after he
arrested a driver of High Court Judge Esther Ota. Gwebu spent nine days at the
Sidwashini Correctional facility before he was released on E15,000 (US$1,500) bail.
The arrests highlight the difficulty media have in commenting
on current events in Swaziland, which is ruled by King Mswati III as
sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch.
Makhubu
was also convicted in April 2013, along with the Nation magazine publishers, Swaziland
Independent Publishers, of ‘scandalising the court’ after two articles
criticising the judiciary were published in 2009 and 2010. Makhubu and the
publisher were fined a total of E400,000 (US$40,000) by the Swaziland High
Court, of which half had to be paid within three days or Makhubu would
immediately be sent to jail for two years. Both Makhubu and the publisher have appealed
the conviction.
The Sunday Observer,
a newspaper in effect owned by King Mswati, ran an apology for its own coverage
of the Gwebu case, but its editor was not arrested.
The apology said, ‘… it is not the intention of the
Swazi Observer and its newspapers to
disregard the independence of the judiciary, but to be seen to assisting it to
uphold the rule of law in the country’.
See also
SWAZI GOVT
HUMILIATED IN HIGH COURT
JUDGE ATTACKS SWAZI PRESS FREEDOM
No comments:
Post a Comment