It is also unhappy that Mario Masuku, President of the People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO), and Maxwell Dlamini, from the Swaziland Youth Congress, were also arrested in May 2014 for allegedly seditious comments contravening controversial terrorism legislation and remain in prison awaiting trial.
The UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office in its 2014 Human Rights and Democracy Report
on Swaziland,
recently published, said, ‘According to the Ibrahim Index of African
Governance, political participation in Swaziland is amongst the worst in
Africa. Swaziland ranks 50 out of 52 countries on this indicator for 2014.
‘This
year [2014] saw a number of worrying developments that further constrained the
ability of people to engage in politics, in particular to exercise their rights
of freedom of expression and assembly. Swaziland dropped to 156 out of 180
countries in the World Press Freedom Index.
‘High-profile
examples included the sentencing of journalist Bheki Makhubu and lawyer Thulani
Maseko to two years in prison after writing an article criticising Swaziland’s
judiciary. Mario Masuku, President of the People’s United Democratic Movement
(PUDEMO), and Maxwell Dlamini, from the Swaziland Youth Congress, were also
arrested in May for allegedly seditious comments contravening controversial
terrorism legislation.
‘The UK
raised concerns about these cases, and the broader human rights environment,
with the Swazi authorities throughout 2014, including alongside other EU [European
Union] member states at the EU-Swaziland “Political Dialogue” on 3 October. We
remain concerned that there has been no progress on these cases.
‘At the
end of 2014, the US withdrew preferential access to the US market for Swazi
exports, having placed five conditions, relating to freedom of expression and
assembly. An amendment to the Industrial Relations Act in November had
addressed two of these conditions, permitting the registration of federations
such as the Trade Union Federation, but did not address other areas. Failure to
take the necessary steps threatens an estimated 13,000 jobs in Swaziland’s
textile industry, damaging an already vulnerable economy.
‘More
broadly, there are long-running, institutionalised constraints on political
participation.
‘We
continue to be concerned that the Tinkhundlha electoral system was used in the
2013 elections. It allows only individuals (not political parties) to
participate, and is widely seen as failing to meet international standards. The
concentration of power around the monarchy also limits political participation.’
In
Swaziland, King Mswati III, rules as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute
monarch. Political parties are banned from taking part in elections and all
groups advocating multi-party democracy have been banned as terrorist groups
under the Suppression of Terrorism Act.
The UK
report continued, ‘The King has a direct say in the composition of the
judiciary, parliament and government, as well as the succession of traditional
chiefs who wield considerable power at a local level. Parallel customary and
judicial court structures cloud accountability and access to justice.
‘Political
space for civil society is restricted, and its capacity to hold the government
to account is limited. Gender inequalities also act as barriers to entry for
women in the political sphere. Women face unequal social, economic, legal,
political and cultural treatment. Some laws still treat women as minors and
second-class citizens, despite the 2005 Constitution’s Bill of Rights declaring
that women should be free from any form of discrimination or abuse. Legislation
to help make this a reality continues to be delayed.
‘Alongside
the resident EU and US missions to Swaziland and other international partners,
the UK has consistently urged the Swazi government to implement democratic
reform and to open up political space. The UK contributes to EU programmes to
raise the capacity of civil society and promote advocacy at a grassroots level
to encourage greater political engagement.
‘The UK
will continue to pursue this agenda in 2015, including working with the
Southern African Development Community and the Commonwealth through its Special
Envoy to Swaziland, former Malawian President Bakili Muluzi.’
No comments:
Post a Comment