Soldiers in Swaziland forced a bus-load of
passengers to strip naked as they were returning from a trip to neighbouring
Mozambique. Local media reported it happens all the time.
It follows reports of woman being routinely stripped
naked at other border posts.
In the latest case, a kombi bus was stopped by
soldiers just after it crossed the Mhlumeni Border Gate.
The Times of Swaziland, the kingdom’s only
independent daily newspaper, reported they were ordered to strip ‘stark naked’
as part of a ‘routine
body search’.
The
newspaper said the passengers had been on vacation in Mozambique.
The Times reported the Umbutfo Swaziland
Defence Force (USDF) – the official name of the Swazi army – ordered the passengers to alight from the
bus, ‘as per the norm for people entering the country’.
The
newspaper reported, ‘The soldiers were in a tent mounted not far from the
border gate, around Lugongolweni, on the junction to Sitsatsaweni. The
passengers said they followed instructions and lay on the ground.
‘After
their bags and vehicle were searched, a female soldier is said to have ordered
that everyone take off their clothes so that they could inspect them for hidden
items bought from Mozambique.
‘At
first, the shocked citizens said they were hesitant to do as ordered but the
female soldier insisted that they comply.
‘They
said they felt disrespected, embarrassed and reduced to nothing as they were
made to undress in the open whereas it was cold. Also, the fact that they were
a mixed gender made complying with the order quite uncomfortable.’
The USDF
has been under fire recently after local media revealed that soldiers at the informal crossing situated next to the Mananga Border Gate with South
Africa routinely made women remove their underwear so they could inspect their private parts with a mirror.
The Times of
Swaziland newspaper
reported on 7 June 2017 that soldiers were trying to see if women were carrying
‘illegal objects’. A spokesperson for the USDF told the newspaper there was
nothing new with the method used by soldiers to search people crossing through
the informal points.
USDF official spokesperson Lieutenant Nkosinathi Dlamini later said, ‘If they cannot cope with those security measures
used there, they should avoid using those crossings.’
See also
SOLDIERS INSPECT WOMAN’S PRIVATE PARTS
ARMY UNREPENTANT ON STRIP SEARCH
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