ESWATINI WILL NOT BE PEACEFUL IF…

Sir,

We are all human beings regardless of race, colour and gender, among others. And as such, we all deserve human dignity. At independence, Eswatini adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which was further domesticated through the 2005 Constitution, which states; “Whereas it is necessary to  protect and promote the fundamental freedoms of all in our kingdom in terms of the Constitution, which binds the Executive, Judiciary and other organs and agencies of government.” Chapter 3 Section 14 states that: “the fundamental human rights and freedoms of individuals in this charter are hereby declared and guaranteed.”

Freedoms

Section 3 further states: “A person of whatever gender, race, place of origin, political opinion, colour, religion, creed, or disability shall be entitled to the fundamental rights and freedoms of individuals contained in this chapter, but subject to  respect of the rights and freedoms of others and for public interest.” However, it is clear to me that just like African Americans during Dr Martin Luther Jr’s time, emaSwati are given a bad cheque marked ‘insufficient funds’.

Protected

The Constitution declares that the fundamental freedoms of all emaSwati are guaranteed and protected. It binds all institutions of government to guarantee this promise to every liSwati regardless of the status in society. But sadly, emaSwati’s rights are not guaranteed; most are ravaged by poverty, disease and hunger and some are landless because of evictions. Some are  languishing in jail and are crying for justice; emaSwati cannot associate politically; some who commit crimes against women are not jailed because of their status in society; many are without jobs because they are not connected; women continue to dominate the informal sector and are poorly represented in decision-making positions; children  continue to die of preventable diseases; the media is not free; some are being brutalised by security forces that should protect them; people with disabilities’ rights  are not guaranteed; freedom of speech is not guaranteed and citizens are not allowed to voice out their out views through  peaceful protests, among a host of others.

Government and all emaSwati are reminded that human rights are basic rights and freedoms that belong to every person from birth to death. They are universal, inalienable, indivisible and based on shared human values of dignity, fairness and equality. Eswatini will not be peaceful if it neglects human rights.

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