Swaziland Newsletter No. 840 – 16
August 2024
News from and about Swaziland, compiled by
Global Aktion, Denmark (www.globalaktion.dk)
in collaboration with Swazi Media Commentary (www.swazimedia.blogspot.com),
and sent to all with an interest in Swaziland - free of charge.
Task team to probe workers’ rights violation claims
By Timothy Simelane, Times of eSwatini, 13
August 2024
MBABANE: Government has
assembled a high-powered task team to investigate the alleged violation of
workers’ rights, as concluded by the recent International Labour Conference.
The task team will conduct its
functions backed by the Commissions of Enquiry Act. This year was the 16th time
Eswatini came under discussion for allegedly violating the same International Labour
Organisation (ILO) convention. The conclusions of the conference dealt with a
number of alleged workers rights violations, such as the alleged harassment in
the education sector involving the President of the Swaziland National
Association of Teachers (SNAT), Mbongwa Dlamini, and the teargassing of workers
in a bus. They also included the brutal murder of Human Rights Lawyer Thulani
Maseko, who represented workers on legal issues and alleged physical attacks of
trade unionists such as Sticks Nkambule, General Secretary of the Swaziland
Transport, Communication and Allied Workers Union (SWATCAWU), who fled the
country.
Minister of Labour and Social
Security Phila Buthelezi announced a 14-member committee comprising of
government office bearers. It will be chaired by Principal Secretary in
his ministry, Makhosini Mndawe, while members include Acting Director of Public
Prosecutions Lomvula Hlophe, Assistant Attorney General Mndeni Vilakati,
Principal Secretary of the Ministry Housing and Urban Development Dr Simon
Zwane and others. The minister said the task team had been empowered by
Cabinet, among other things, to verify the allegations that were made during
the discussion of the country in Geneva, by summoning and examining witnesses
under oath. It will also demand disclosure of information, documentation, and
book, including conducting site inspections, in terms of Section 11 of the
Commissions of Enquiry Act.
It will also co-opt any
relevant government ministry, department or institution, including inviting
officials from the ILO, as may be necessitated by the need to validate and/or
obtain clarities in the implementation of the ILO conclusions, comments or recommendations. The
team will also consult with social partners and other relevant stakeholders.
The minister said government had exerted enormous effort to enhance relations
with the social partners, including attendance to various workers’ events, such
as May Day. “Government was taken aback by the discussion of the country during
the recent International Labour Conference, wherein the country was accused of
violating ILO Convention 87. “This discussion was viewed by government to have
been premature and constitute a major setback to the concerted efforts of
reaching out to join hands with the labour movement to promote the spirit of
tripartism and social dialogue on worker-related issues,” he said.
Buthelezi said government
committed itself to addressing the conclusions of the Conference. “As a
result, Cabinet has deemed it proper to appoint a Government Technical Task
Team to consider with a view to address, the conclusions that were adopted by
the Conference in June. During the 112th session of the annual
International Labour Conference, government was among the list of 24 countries,
which were discussed by the Conference Committee on Application of Standards
(CAS), wherein the government was requested to provide information regarding
the implementation of Convention No. 87 on Freedom of Association and
Protection of the Right to Organise Convention (1948), ratified by Eswatini on
April 26, 1978.
Activists call for ‘decisive’ SADC action on
crisis-ridden eSwatini ahead of Harare summit
By Victoria O’Regan, Daily Maverick (South
Africa), 13 August 2024
Activists calling for
political reforms in Eswatini have urged the Southern African Development
Community (SADC) to take decisive action to deal with the deteriorating
situation in the kingdom, ahead of the 44th SADC Summit in Harare, Zimbabwe, this week.
In a 1 August letter addressed
to the SADC Secretariat and its member states, the Multi-Stakeholder Forum
(MSF) – a coalition of political parties and civil society pro-democracy
organisations – called on the regional bloc to “intensify its engagement with
the Eswatini government” and apply “pressure to ensure that the recommendations
previously made by SADC are fully implemented”.
“As the 44th SADC Summit
approaches, we implore you, the Heads of State and Government, to take decisive
action to address the deteriorating situation in Eswatini. The time for
collegial approaches has passed; SADC must now assert its position firmly and
revive the stalled and prolonged efforts to resolve the situation in Eswatini,”
the letter read.
“Despite numerous
recommendations from SADC and the international community, the Eswatini
government continues to violate the fundamental civil rights of its citizens,
contravening several SADC protocols and charters.”
The group listed its demands,
which include a “genuine, inclusive dialogue” with the Eswatini government,
civil society, unions, political opposition and the regional community “to
chart a path forward”; the SADC monitoring the government’s implementation of
its recommendations and the status of civil rights in the country by requesting
detailed reports from the Eswatini government; and the SADC ensuring these
reports are made public.
Speaking to Daily Maverick,
MSF spokesperson Sivumelwano Nyembe said the forum viewed the implementation of
a “national dialogue to be of urgency”. The MSF has, for years, called for an
“internationally mediated dialogue” with the primary aim of reforming the
current political system in the country and ushering in a new constitution that
guarantees multiparty democracy.
To read more of
this report, click here
Government wins Supreme Court appeal against
assassinated human rights lawyer Thulani Maseko and other political activists
By Zweli Martin Dlamini, Swaziland News, 13
August, 2024
MBABANE: Thulani Rudolf
Maseko,the assassinated eSwatini human rights lawyer has lost a Supreme Court
case declaring provisions of the Suppression of Terrorism unconstitutional.
The lawyer who was allegedly
assassinated by King Mswati’s mercenaries for demanding democracy, had
challenged the constitutionality of the Suppression of Terrorism Act together
with Mlungisi Makhanya, the President of the People’s United Democratic Movement
(PUDEMO), the late former PUDEMO President Mario Masuku and current Deputy
Secretary General(DSG) Maxwell Dlamini.
But Government successfully
appealed Judge Mbutfo Mamba’s judgement declaring some provisions of the
Supression of Terrorism Act unconstitutional.
Chief Justice (CJ) Bheki
Maphalala,Justice JM Van Der Walt, Justice JM Currie, Acting Justice MJ Manzini
and Acting Justice LM Simelane ruled that, the fact that PUDEMO was proscribed
without being afforded the right to be heard does not mean provision of the
Supression of Terrorism Act should be declared unconstitutional.
“The underlying reasoning
essentially boils down to this-because the Respondents we’re not afforded an
opportunity to be heard before PUDEMO was declared a specified entity, sections
11(1) and (2) of the STA Act are invalid and unconstitutional, since they have
been declared “terrorists” without being heard. As indicated earlier, the above
reasoning conflates the process of proscription without a criminal trial.
Whether or not Respondents were afforded an opportunity to be heard before
PUDEMO was proscribed as a specified entity is a separate issue. Moreover,
could the Majority have reached a different conclusion if none of the
Respondents had admitted to be members of PUDEMO?. It is implicit in the
reasoning of the Majority that in the latter instance, no infringement would
have been found to exist”, reads the Supreme Court judgment in part that
upheld the appeal and dismissed the application by Maseko and others.
Eswatini is ruled by King
Mswati as an absolute Monarch, political parties are banned and declared as
terrorists for demanding democracy while human rights defenders, political
activists, independent journalists and pro-democracy Members of Parliament(MPs)
are arrested, tortured or even killed.
Thulani Rudolf Maseko, the
human rights lawyer who was among those challenging the constitutionality of
the Supression of Terrorism Act that is used against those demanding democracy,
was assassinated allegedly by King Mswati’s mercenaries and a few hours after
King Mswati threatened those calling for democracy.
Before Government declared
PUDEMO as a terrorist entity, King Mswati issued an order directing the then
Prime Minister Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini to ensure that,citizens calling for
democracy are strangled to death.
As a result of the King’s
order, Sipho Jele, a member of the People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO)
was allegedly arrested and subsequently killed by the inside prison,the
judgement was delivered by the Supreme Court on Tuesday.
Complete restoration of police service through prayer
By Crime Watch, eSwatini Observer, 14 August
2024
The National Commissioner of
Police – Vusie Manoma Masango believes in the complete restoration of the Royal
Eswatini Police Service as a law enforcement agency through heavenly
intervention.
Masango revealed this during a
thanksgiving prayer service for a successful Police Day celebration held at the
Police Academy last week Wednesday. He stressed the importance of giving thanks
to the Almighty God for a perfect Police Day, quoting the scripture from Luke
17, whereby the only leper who went back to Christ was completely restored.
“We are praying for the
complete restoration of the police organisation,” he said.
The police chief stated that the thanksgiving service a completion of a
sequence of prayer services was that preceded the Police Day celebrations.
He recognised and appreciated
the legacy and vision of the then acting national commissioner for seeking
divine intervention for a successful Police Day. He expressed sincere gratitude
to all the men of the clergy who were responsible for sharing the Word of God
during the services.
The national commissioner
noted that the policing mandate demands that officers be guided by the Almighty
God and not rely on human intelligence in the performance of duty. He said
divine intervention is important because police cannot successfully combat
crime on their own accord.
He said police officers need
to individually and collectively seek the Lord’s intervention and guidance in
the execution of the policing mandate.
To read more of
this report, click here
http://new.observer.org.sz/details.php?id=22628
Spokesperson Percy Simelane says King Mswati not in
any way involved in secret ship dealings with sanctioned Russia, hoisting of
flag not authorised
By Zweli Martin Dlamini, Swaziland News, 9
August, 2024
MBABANE: King Mswati is not,
in any way involved in ships dealing with Russia, his Spokesperson Percy
Simelane has clarified.
The King’s Spokesperson was
responding to this Swaziland News on Thursday evening after being asked to
clarify allegations contained in an article published by News24 suggesting
that, ships with eSwatini flag, assisting Russia to transport oil and other
goods “have been banned” by the United Arab Emirates(UAE).
“To the best of my knowledge,
we have no ships anywhere in the seas as a country. We have not authorized any
hoisting of our flag or Blue Peter on any ship or boat anywhere in the world”,
said the King’s Spokesperson.
It has been reported that, the
eSwatini flag “is now on a list that restricts calls to UAE ports and waters”,’
according to a government circular posted on the Port of Fujairah website,
Eswatini was allegedly colluding with Cameroon to assist Russia amid United
States (US) sanctions.
“Vessels sailing under both
flags have transported oil for Moscow after it assembled a shadow fleet of
ships to help keep sanctioned supplies moving. The ban won’t apply to ships
assessed by a wider international classification body. Flag states are key to
maintaining safety standards in global shipping. For oil tankers, Liberia and
the Marshall Islands are among the largest providers, but after the invasion of
Ukraine a series of less well-known flags emerged, with questions about the
strength of their safety standards. Eswatini-formerly Swaziland-is a
particularly new player, with no ships sailing under its flag in 2023,
according to Clarkson Research Services, a unit of the world’s largest ship
broker. That number is now at 26 ships, though not all of them would be tankers.
Of 18 Eswatini-flagged ships visible in ship-tracking data compiled by
Bloomberg, the ownership of 16 is unclear. Several tankers on that list have
hauled oil produced in Russia and Iran, according to Kpler data”, News24
reported.
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