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Swaziland reported to African Commission

15/05/2012 00:00:00 LINDA JELE

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MBABANE – The Lawyers for Human Rights Swaziland (LHRS)has reported the country to the African Commission for disallowing the partici-pation of political parties in the 2013 elections.

In a statement LHRS said there were concerns on Swaziland’s ‘stamping on efforts by people to improve human rights recognition.’

This, according to LHRS Chairman Mandla Mkhwanazi, was necessitated by government’s failure to abide by a resolution taken by the African Union after it reported the country in 2005.

The LHRS had sent three delegates to the Gambia to attend the 51st Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights, held between April 12 and May 2, 2012. Mkhwanazi, speaking on behalf of the LHRS management committee, said various international and national human rights organisations had raised a concern on Swaziland’s ‘flagrant’ violations by government and its agencies.

He said the Non-Governmental Organisations Forum formed by human rights organisations such as Women and the Law in Southern Africa (WLSA), Human Rights Watch, Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA) and others, took a resolution about Swaziland and called upon the African Commission to urge Swaziland to comply.

"The NGO Forum notes that Swaziland is a signatory to the African Union’s Charter on Human and People’s Rights, SADC Principles and Guidelines on Democratic Elections as well as signatory to other bilateral and multilateral mechanisms for the promotion of democracy and human rights. Swaziland, therefore, is duty-bound to practically observe, respect and fulfil these commitments," Mkhwanazi said.

He further said there was also a feeling that efforts to improve the atmosphere for the protection and promotion of human rights have not enjoyed genuine goodwill. He also said government has "excelled in articulating the rhetoric of commitment, but has failed the citizens in the practical implementation of human rights standards."

He said the NGO Forum called upon the African Commission to urgently intervene in the human rights and workers’ rights violations in Swaziland.

"This appeal becomes a necessity and urgent as renewed waves of repression and intimidation by Swazi authorities against workers, human rights advocates and pro-democracy activists once again came under focus during the May Day celebrations," Mkhwanazi stated in a press release.

...also told to urge SD to stop unlawful evictions

MBABANE – The African Commission has also been called on to urge Swaziland to stop unlawful evictions and the torturing of pro-democracy activists and human rights defenders.

This is contained in a press release issued by the Human Rights Lawyers of Swaziland. This is one of the calls made by the local organisation and other international human rights organisations in a meeting with the African Commission in the Gambia recently.

"The role of civic groups in decision-making has been relegated to the backyard as they are being treated with hostility and suspicion as mere nonentities where national policy formulation and implementation are concerned. The entire social dialogue process is heavily manipulated and does not include political discussions.

Mass meetings that are organised by civic groups are regularly banned and broken up by the police, who often use excessive force against peaceful citizens sometimes resulting in death (in custody such as the case of Sipho Jele), injuries, arbitrary arrest and unlawful detention," Lawyers for Human Rights Chairman Mandla Mkhwanazi alleged in the statement.

Calls for Tucoswa re-registration intensify

MBABANE – The calls to reregister TUCOSWA continue to intensify.

The African Commission on Human and People’s Rights has been called upon to urge Swaziland to bring into existence, once again, the Trade Union Congress of Swaziland (TUCOSWA), which was ‘deregistered’ by government last month.

contained

This is contained in the statement by the Lawyers for Human Rights Swaziland, who had attended the 51st Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights held in the Gambia earlier this month.

Chairman Mandla Mkhwanazi has said the TUCOSWA ‘deregistration’ was one of the many issues that were deliberated upon in the meeting and the African Commission was called on to urge Swaziland to reregister it.

"One of the most heartening developments in Swaziland over the last year has been the emergence of a united and purposeful trade union federation bringing together all Swazi trade unions into a single entity, TUCOSWA.

deregistration

The attention of the NGO Forum has been drawn to the deregistration of the recently formed TUCOSWA by the office of the Commissioner of Labour on the advice of the Attorney General (Majahenkhaba Dlamini) of the government of Swaziland," Mkhwanazi said in the statement.

He also said, "The action unjustly infringes on the rights of workers in Swaziland to freely and independently form and join trade union organisations of their choice. This is unacceptable and demands urgent redress."

He said the African Commission was called upon to urge the government of Swaziland to reverse the TUCOSWA ‘deregistration’ speedily and to desist from the continued intimidation of its leaders and members.

Comments

I THANK GOD THAT THERE ARE STILL PEOPLE IN THIS COUNTRY THAT CAN COME OUT CLEAN TO TELL THE TRUTH WITHOUT FEAR OR FAVOUR. KEEP IT UP GUYZ, THAT IS GODS MISSION. DO YOUR BEST TO SEE JUSTICE SERVED. THE TRUTH WILL ALWAYS PREVAIL OVER PROPAGANDA. ALUTA CONTINUA!!!!
May 15, 2012, 1:17 PM, Dlamini Sicelo (skakadza@yahoo.co.uk)