LARKIN32
09-19-2008, 01:09 AM
SADC And AU Must Intervene To Bring About Democracy In Swaziland
18 September 2008
The news of the arrest of various protestors including the PUDEMO President Mario Masuku, SNAT leadership, SFTU General Secretary Jan Sithole, and trade union leader Vincent Dlamini has demonstrated the willingness of the Tinkudla regime to subvert democracy in Swaziland.
It is a shame that this happens whilst King Mswati III is the head of the SADC Organ on Politics, Safety and Defense. How opportunistic that the rest of the region and the continent has chosen to keep quite whilst thousands of people in Swaziland are subjected to extreme poverty and the brutal dictatorship of the King.
We call on SADC and the AU to stand up and take a stand to defend democratic principles. South African governments deafening silence speaks volumes about the cornerstone of our foreign policy, more so because many Swazis died in the struggle against apartheid on the side of democratic forces together with their South African counterparts. We owe it to our own revolutionary martyrs who fell on the Swazi soil fighting for the freedom we enjoy today and to liberate Swaziland from this draconian rule. The forthcoming elections are nothing but a sham and a cheap attempt to fool the world about democracy in Swaziland.
Furthermore the stance taken by other international institutions including the EU and Britain in refusing to send observes to the elections must be applauded. This is mainly informed by Swaziland’s flagrant attack on the SADC Protocol on Elections.
Issued by the SACP
Contact:
Malesela Maleka
SACP Spokesperson –
http://www.sacp.org.za/main.php?include=docs/pr/2008/pr0918.html
18 September 2008
The news of the arrest of various protestors including the PUDEMO President Mario Masuku, SNAT leadership, SFTU General Secretary Jan Sithole, and trade union leader Vincent Dlamini has demonstrated the willingness of the Tinkudla regime to subvert democracy in Swaziland.
It is a shame that this happens whilst King Mswati III is the head of the SADC Organ on Politics, Safety and Defense. How opportunistic that the rest of the region and the continent has chosen to keep quite whilst thousands of people in Swaziland are subjected to extreme poverty and the brutal dictatorship of the King.
We call on SADC and the AU to stand up and take a stand to defend democratic principles. South African governments deafening silence speaks volumes about the cornerstone of our foreign policy, more so because many Swazis died in the struggle against apartheid on the side of democratic forces together with their South African counterparts. We owe it to our own revolutionary martyrs who fell on the Swazi soil fighting for the freedom we enjoy today and to liberate Swaziland from this draconian rule. The forthcoming elections are nothing but a sham and a cheap attempt to fool the world about democracy in Swaziland.
Furthermore the stance taken by other international institutions including the EU and Britain in refusing to send observes to the elections must be applauded. This is mainly informed by Swaziland’s flagrant attack on the SADC Protocol on Elections.
Issued by the SACP
Contact:
Malesela Maleka
SACP Spokesperson –
http://www.sacp.org.za/main.php?include=docs/pr/2008/pr0918.html