Swaziland journalist and
former government cabinet minister Mfomfo Nkambule said he was tortured by
police after he wrote articles critical of absolute monarch King Mswati III.
Nkambule writes for the
online newspaper Swaziland News.
In an interview he told the
newspaper that on Thursday (12 March 2020) police raided his home
and seized electronic gadgets. He said he was taken to Manzini police regional headquarters
where he was harassed and tortured.
He told the Swaziland News,
‘They tortured me saying I risk being charged with high treason and under the
terrorism law.’ He said police complained about articles he wrote critical of
the political system.
In Swaziland political parties
are barred from contesting elections. Groups that advocate for democracy are
banned under the Suppression of Terrorism Act. King Mswati appoints the prime minister
and the cabinet. He also chooses top judges and civil servants.
Swazi police spokesman Superintendent
Phindile Valakati, told the newspaper, ‘We summoned Nkambule seeking clarity on
his published articles. However, we didn’t torture him.’
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| Mfomfo Nkambule |
Earlier this week the
editor of Swaziland News Zweli Martin Dlamini
told the South African Broadcasting Corporation’s Media Monitor programme that
police raided his home after he published articles in his newspaper. He said
police tied him up and suffocated him with a plastic bag. He was speaking from
South Africa and said he feared returning to Swaziland (eSwatini).
In December 2019, Dlamini called for an investigation
after Nkambule reported he had been the victim of an attempt by a government minister
and members of an elite group linked to the Swazi Royal Family to poison him at
a braai.
This followed an article in Swaziland
News in which Nkambule wrote, ‘He [the King] has
given us the status of servants in this country. As servants, we do not have
any right whatsoever. We have no right to vote, no right to form political
parties, no right to form a government of our choice, no power to legislate and
to appropriate resources. We need a referendum on the King!’
Nkambule has been a critic of the political system in
Swaziland and the role of the monarch for many years.
He attracted international attention in 2008 and 2009
for outspoken articles he wrote each week in the Times of Swaziland, the kingdom’s only independent daily newspaper.
Nkambule specialised in criticising Swazi Royalty and
the traditionalists who supported the King.
Nkambule, who had formerly been Health and Social Welfare Minister appointed by the King, was hauled in by Swaziland’s state police and threatened with torture if he continued to criticise the King.
Nkambule, who had formerly been Health and Social Welfare Minister appointed by the King, was hauled in by Swaziland’s state police and threatened with torture if he continued to criticise the King.
He was later dropped from
his traditional
regiment, threatened with banishment
from his homeland, and his family
was threatened because he refused to be silenced.
See also
Newspaper
editor flees Swaziland for second time after arrest and police torture
‘Attempt
made to poison journalist critic of Swaziland’s absolute monarch,’ editor says
https://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2019/12/attempt-made-to-poison-journalist.html
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