He said their views got onto the Internet and ‘blemish’ the kingdom’s image.
His comments are reported in the print edition of the Times of Swaziland (but not in its online version) today (23 July 2010).
Dlamini, who was appointed by King Mswati III, sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch, with a special mandate to attack anyone who opposed the king, said the newspapers had many columnists who had openly stated that they were advocating for a change of the system of government. He said he was worried about the ample space they were being given by the newspaper houses.
The Times, the only independent daily newspaper in the kingdom, reported Dlamini saying that he was worried that the newspaper bosses allowed these columns to be published.
Dlamini said newspapers were seemingly dominated by ‘enemies of the state’ whose views find their way to the Internet and blemish Swaziland’s image.
‘There are columnists who have come out to say that they do not like how the country is governed but they are given huge space in the paper [to write] and their reports eventually make it to the Internet. I would like the media to answer this so that it can stop’, the Times quoted Dlamini saying.
This is not the first time in recent years that Dlamini has threatened the press. In February 2009 he warned journalists they would be charged with sedition if they wrote anything critical of King Mswati.
King Mswati IIIof Swaziland has ruled out any form of political dialogue with progressives in the kingdom who want democratic change.
The king, sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch, said the question of reviewing the political structures in Swaziland was a closed book that would not be opened.
King Mswati was speaking at the Smart Partnershipthis week in a tense meeting with journalists.
According to a report in the printed version of the Times of Swaziland, the only independent daily newspaper in the kingdom, today (23 July 2010), the question sparked an angry intervention from Prince Mahlaba, a member of Liqoqo, the shady group that advises the king.
Prince Mahlaba denounced Lushaba as ‘not Swazi enough’ to know what he was talking about. Prince Mahlaba claimed that the Swazi people were all behind the present system of government and did not want change.
When Prince Mahlaba allowed the king to answer the question, King Mswati said prospects of reviewing the kingdom’s political system were closed.
The Times reports that Lushaba told the king that political dissenters were also Swazi people and should be called so they could tell the king what their problems were.
King Mswati, who has banned political parties in Swaziland and branded groups who are in opposition to him terrorists, said dissenters would not be entertained.
Another member of the Swazi ruling elite has said journalists face death if they continue to criticise the kingdom’s leadership.
Prince Mahlaba, a member, Liqoqo, a shady group that advises King Mswati III, sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch, said some sections of the media were trying to undermine the kingdom’s system of governance.
According to the Times of Swaziland,the kingdom’s only independent daily newspaper, Prince Mahlaba, told a meeting of the Smart Partnership that he thought there were ‘clandestine manoeuvres in the media that sought to undermine the country’s leadership and system of governance and said that for prolonged periods of time he has been silent, hoping that people would come to their senses and stop the wrong they were doing.’
The Times quoted Prince Mahlaba saying, ‘It’s a fact that journalists earn their living by writing lies and if they do not write the lies then their source of livelihood is threatened and this is fact and beyond debate.’
He added, ‘I want to warn the media to bury things that have the potential of undermining the country, rather than publish all and everything even when such reports are harmful to the country’s international image.
‘Journalists who write bad things about the country will die.’
Prince Mahlaba is not the only member of Swaziland’s ruling elite to threaten journalists with death.
In June 2008, Jim Gama, the ‘traditional prime minister’ of Swaziland (who has more real influence in the kingdom than Barnabas Dlamini, the man King Mswati illegally appointed as the official prime minister)said that a journalist who had written a report critical of King Mswati should face serious punishment, including death.
Amnesty International (AI) has issued a special appeal to support political activists in Swaziland. AI appeals for protests to be made to both the Prime Minister and the Commissioner of Police in Swaziland. The full statement and details of the protest are below.
Political activists, human rights defenders and trade unionists in Swaziland are at risk of harassment, ill-treatment and arrest, as the authorities use draconian counter-terror legislation to investigate a spate of government-targeted petrol bombings.
Amnesty International has been in contact with more than a dozen activists in Swaziland who have been harassed, threatened, ill-treated or detained by the Swaziland police since June 2010, under the 2008 Suppression of Terrorism Act (STA). Activists have had homes and offices searched, been searched themselves at roadblocks; they have had documents and other materials seized and have been under intense surveillance. Amnesty International is not naming the activists for fear of increasing their risk.
Some of the house searches of individuals, including those accused of being members of, or sympathetic to, banned political organizations, have been conducted without search warrants and in the early morning hours by armed police. Some were denied the right to make calls during the prolonged search operations. Some were later taken to police stations for interrogation about their political activities. Testimony and other information received by Amnesty International indicate that several political activists have been subjected to torture and other forms of ill-treatment during interrogation. In one case, the victim was allegedly beaten with batons and subjected to suffocation torture. He was released without charge, but remains at risk of further ill-treatment.
Two political activists have also told Amnesty International that armed police recently came to their homes searching for them. Neither were present when the police arrived and do not know when the police may return. Both men have been unlawfully detained and allegedly tortured by the police in the past. Amnesty International is concerned that these men, and several others, may be at risk of ill-treatment again if they are arrested and interrogated by the police in the coming weeks.
High profile human rights defenders and trade unionists have also had their homes searched by armed police, usually under warrants authorizing them to search for evidence of terrorist activities.
PLEASE WRITE IMMEDIATELY in English or your own language:
Appeal to the government to ensure that official investigations into the recent spate of bombings in Swaziland are conducted in full compliance with the country’s obligations under international human rights law and in particular regarding the absolute prohibition against torture;
Express your concern that police, during investigations into the bombing incidents, have undertaken prolonged searches at the homes of a large number of alleged members of political organizations and some civil society activists, sometimes without warrants and followed by interrogations involving alleged threats, ill-treatment and torture in several cases at police stations;
Note that while all governments have a clear duty to protect their population from deliberate violent attack, all governments, including Swaziland’s, must adhere to their obligations under international human rights law in responding to incidents or threats of violent attacks.
PLEASE SEND APPEALS BEFORE 31 JULY 2010:
Prime Minister
Dr. Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini
P O Box 395,
Mbabane,
Swaziland,
Fax: +268 404 3943
Salutation: Dear Prime Minister
Commissioner of Police
Mr Isaac Magagula
The Royal Swaziland Police Service,
P.O. Box 49,
Mbabane H100
Swaziland
Fax: +268 404 4545
Salutation: Dear Commissioner
Also send copies to diplomatic representatives accredited to your country. Please check with your section office if sending appeals after the above date.
URGENT ACTION
ACTIVISTS AT RISK IN SWAZI POLICE CRACKDOWN
Additional Information
In August 2008, the Suppression of Terrorism Act was signed into law in Swaziland. The implementation of the law has led to arbitrary arrests, ill-treatment of detainees and the charging of political activists under provisions of law that are vague, sweeping and fail to meet international standards. The law has had an intimidating and silencing effect on political activists calling for democratic reforms and human rights defenders campaigning to address the country’s dire humanitarian situation. In November 2008, the government declared four political organizations, including the longstanding political organizations People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) and the Swaziland Youth Congress (SWAYOCO) to be terrorist “entities” under the provisions of the law.
Many of the circumstances regarding the recent spate of petrol bombings remain unclear. However, it appears that they have been largely targeted against government institutions. There are no reports of loss of life or injury but some damage to property has been caused. In June, two men were arrested and charged under the Suppression of Terrorism Act in connection with the incidents.
Among those directly affected by the current wave of repression are officials and members of trade unions, human rights defenders working with non-governmental organizations, leaders of new political coalitions including the Swaziland United Democratic Front and Swaziland Democracy Campaign, and members or suspected members of PUDEMO and SWAYOCO.
Amnesty International has confirmed information on incidents involving more than a dozen individuals but many other incidents have been reported on which it is seeking confirmation. Some of the political activists have gone into hiding out of fear of detention and ill-treatment.
In late 2005 –early 2006, following a similar spate of petrol bombing in Swaziland, 16 individuals were arrested and charged with treason and other offences. They were released on bail in March 2006 and have yet to be bought to trial. Allegations of suffocation torture, beatings and other ill-treatment emerged at magistrates court hearings. The High Court, when granting bail, ordered the government to investigate these allegations. While the Prime Minister established a commission of inquiry in October 2006, the results have never been made public.
The searches and interrogations of high profile human rights defenders and trade unionists appear deliberately intended to intimidate and undermine their lawful organizing and advocacy work and are evidence of the indiscriminate use and effect of the STA.
Here’s a relatively new blogsite that’s worth encouraging.
Jackson Rogers’ blog ‘Swazi Bill of Rights’ looks at constitutional issues in Swaziland, ruled by King Mswati III, sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch.
In his most recent post Rogers writes about the Human Rights Commission in Swaziland which he says will be able to investigate individuals at the behest of the state, and could end up being the exact opposite of what any right-thinking people would want from it.
