|
2021–2023 Eswatini Protests
A series of protests in Eswatini against the absolute monarchy and for democratisation began in late June 2021. Starting as a peaceful protest on 20 June, they escalated after 25 June into violence and looting over the weekend when the government took a hardline stance against the demonstrations and prohibited the delivery of petitions. Lower-level unrest and protests continued until summer 2023. Background and cause Eswatini is one of the world’s few countries (and the only Monarchies in Africa, in Africa) that is an absolute monarchy, with Mswati III having been the List of monarchs of Eswatini, King since 1986. Political parties have been banned since 1973, under the preceding King Sobhuza II, due to a "state of emergency" that has remained to this day, and are heavily persecuted under "anti-terrorism" laws. The prime minister is appointed by the monarch. Although protests are reportedly rare, there have been demonstrations in 2018 and 2019 over Mswati III's lavish lifest ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eswatini
Eswatini, formally the Kingdom of Eswatini, also known by its former official names Swaziland and the Kingdom of Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa on all sides except the northeast, where it shares a border with Mozambique. At no more than north to south and east to west, Eswatini is one of the smallest countries in Africa; despite this, its climate and topography are diverse, ranging from a cool and mountainous highveld to a hot and dry lowveld. The population is composed primarily of Swazi people, ethnic Swazis. The prevalent language is Swazi language, Swazi (''siSwati'' in native form). The Swazis established their kingdom in the mid-18th century under the leadership of Ngwane III. The country and the Swazi take their names from Mswati II, the 19th-century king under whose rule the country was expanded and unified; its boundaries were drawn up in 1881 in the midst of the Scramble for Africa. After the Second Boer War, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
State Of Emergency
A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state before, during, or after a natural disaster, civil unrest, armed conflict, medical pandemic or epidemic or other biosecurity risk. Relationship with international law Under international law, rights and freedoms may be suspended during a state of emergency, depending on the severity of the emergency and a government's policies. Use and viewpoints Democracies use states of emergency to manage a range of situations from extreme weather events to public order situations. dictatorship, Dictatorial regimes often declare a state of emergency that is prolonged indefinitely for the life of the regime, or for extended periods of time so that derogations can be used to override human rights of their citizens usually protected by the International Covenant on Civi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Guardian Media Group, owned by the Scott Trust Limited. The trust was created in 1936 to "secure the financial and editorial independence of ''The Guardian'' in perpetuity and to safeguard the journalistic freedom and liberal values of ''The Guardian'' free from commercial or political interference". The trust was converted into a limited company in 2008, with a constitution written so as to maintain for ''The Guardian'' the same protections as were built into the structure of the Scott Trust by its creators. Profits are reinvested in its journalism rather than distributed to owners or shareholders. It is considered a newspaper of record in the UK. The editor-in-chief Katharine Viner succeeded Alan Rusbridger in 2015. S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thulani Maseko
Thulani Rudolf Maseko (1 March 1970 – 21 January 2023) was a Swazi human rights lawyer who previously served as the Secretary General of the People's United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO). He was imprisoned from 2014 to 2015, and declared a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International. He launched a court challenge to King Mswati III of Eswatini in 2018 and was assassinated in 2023. Early life and education Maseko was born in Luhleko, near Bhunya in Swaziland's Manzini Region on 1 March 1970. He attended the University of Swaziland, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Law in 1994 and a Bachelor of Laws in 1997. In 2011, he earned a Master in International Legal Studies from the American University's Washington College of Law. Activism and imprisonment Maseko was a democracy advocate, and a human rights lawyer noted for his efforts to protect minority groups and people who had been evicted from their homes. In 2009, he represented the Swaziland National Ex-Miners Worke ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Human Rights Lawyer
International human rights law (IHRL) is the body of international law designed to promote human rights on social, regional, and domestic levels. As a form of international law, international human rights law is primarily made up of treaties, agreements between sovereign states intended to have binding legal effect between the parties that have agreed to them; and customary international law. Other international human rights instruments, while not legally binding, contribute to the implementation, understanding and development of international human rights law and have been recognized as a source of ''political'' obligation. International human rights law, which governs the conduct of a state towards its people in peacetime is traditionally seen as distinct from international humanitarian law which governs the conduct of states and non-state armed groups during conflict, although the two branches of law are complementary and in some ways overlap. A more systemic perspective e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Manzini
Manzini (formerly Bremersdorp) is a large city in Eswatini, which is also the city of Eswatini's Manzini Region. The city is the country's second largest urban center behind the capital Mbabane, with a population of 110,000 (2008). It is known as "The Hub" of Eswatini and lies on the MR3 road. Eswatini's primary industrial site at Matsapha lies near the town's western border. History A commercial center from the time a trading post was opened in 1885, Bremersdorp was designated a township in 1898. Arthur Bremer sold his hotel for use to British Colonial authorities who had administered Swaziland since 1894 as their national administrative headquarters, and stipulated that the settlement would bear his name (''dorp'' is the Afrikaans word for "village"). The name reverted to its original Swazi name, Manzini, in 1960 in honor of Chief Manzini Mbokane who was one of the trusted confidant and senior indvuna of King Mbandzeni. Chief Manzini Mbokane was the father to Ntengu kaGama M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
News24 (website)
News24 is an English-language South African news website created in October 1998 by the multinational media company, Naspers. Its team of approximately 100 journalists, led by editor-in-chief Adriaan Basson, is based in Cape Town, Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban and Gqeberha. Its brands include Fin24, Sport24, Channel24, Health24, Arts24, Parent24, Wheels24, W24, Ride24 and Business Insider SA. News24 is owned by Media24, a South African media company, with interests in digital media and services, newspapers, magazines, e-commerce, book publishing, print and distribution. In August 2021, News24 launched a digital subscription service that offers premium investigative journalism, opinion, analysis and more to paying subscribers at R109 per month. It reached 100,000 subscribers in February 2024, becoming the largest subscription-led news website in Africa. History News24 was launched in October 1998 as part of Naspers' new internet strategy under the company's new managing di ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mduduzi Bacede Mabuza
Mduduzi Bacede Mabuza is a Swazi politician and pro-democracy activist. Formerly a member of the House of Assembly of Eswatini, he was arrested during the 2021 protests, and in 2024 was sentenced to 25 years in prison on charges of terrorism, sedition, and murder, in a trial condemned by national and international human rights organisations. Political career Mabuza was elected as a member of parliament as an independent representing the Hosea inkhundla. He was a vocal critics of the Swazi electoral system, describing it as undemocratic, citing both the lack of official political parties and the overriding power of Eswatini's absolute monarch, Mswati III, over the Swazi parliament. In June 2021, Mabuza was among three pro-democracy MPs who advocated in parliament for the prime minister to become a democratically elected role, rather than chosen by the monarch. Mabuza ceased to be an MP following his arrest. Arrest, trial, and imprisonment In June 2021, anti-monarchy protests ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Themba Masuku
Themba Nhlanganiso Masuku (born 7 July 1950) is a Swazi politician who has served as Deputy Prime Minister of Eswatini since 2018 and as Acting Prime Minister from 13 December 2020 to 16 July 2021. Earlier, he served as Deputy Prime Minister from 2008 until 2013. Early life Masuku was born on 7 July 1950. He received his Master of Science degree from the University of Missouri. Career In the 1990s, he filled various posts in the government of Swaziland, including Minister for Agriculture and Cooperatives, Minister for Economic Planning and Development, and Minister of Finance from 1996 to 1998. He then worked with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, as director of the liaison offices in Geneva and later New York. He was appointed Deputy Prime Minister in 2008 by King Mswati III and served in that position until 2013, when he became the regional administrator for the Shiselweni district. Masuku returned to his position as Deputy Prime Minister when Pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tear Gas
Tear gas, also known as a lachrymatory agent or lachrymator (), sometimes colloquially known as "mace" after the Mace (spray), early commercial self-defense spray, is a chemical weapon that stimulates the nerves of the lacrimal gland in the eye to produce tears. In addition, it can cause severe eye and respiratory pain, skin irritation, bleeding, and blindness. Common lachrymators both currently and formerly used as tear gas include pepper spray (OC gas), PAVA spray (nonivamide), CS gas, CR gas, CN gas (phenacyl chloride), bromoacetone, xylyl bromide, chloropicrin (PS gas) and Mace (spray), Mace (a branded mixture). While lachrymatory agents are commonly deployed for riot control by law enforcement and military personnel, its use in warfare is prohibited by various international treaties.E.g. the Geneva Protocol of 1925 prohibited the use of "asphyxiating gas, or any other kind of gas, liquids, substances or similar materials". During World War I, increasingly toxic and deadly ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swaziland Solidarity Network
Eswatini, formally the Kingdom of Eswatini, also known by its former official names Swaziland and the Kingdom of Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa on all sides except the northeast, where it shares a border with Mozambique. At no more than north to south and east to west, Eswatini is one of the smallest countries in Africa; despite this, its climate and topography are diverse, ranging from a cool and mountainous highveld to a hot and dry lowveld. The population is composed primarily of ethnic Swazis. The prevalent language is Swazi (''siSwati'' in native form). The Swazis established their kingdom in the mid-18th century under the leadership of Ngwane III. The country and the Swazi take their names from Mswati II, the 19th-century king under whose rule the country was expanded and unified; its boundaries were drawn up in 1881 in the midst of the Scramble for Africa. After the Second Boer War, the kingdom, under the name ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Inkhundla
In Eswatini, an inkhundla (; plural: tinkhundla) is an administrative subdivision smaller than a district but larger than an umphakatsi (or "chiefdom"). There are 55 tinkhundla in Eswatini: 14 in Hhohho District, 11 in Lubombo District, 16 in Manzini District, and 14 in Shishelweni District. According to the constitution of Eswatini, the government for Eswatini is a democratic, participatory, tinkhundla-based system that emphasizes devolution of state power from central government to tinkhundla areas and individual merit as a basis for election or appointment to public office. The system is non-partisan since the constitution does not recognize political parties, although section 25 of the constitution allows for open freedom of assembly and association. Each inkhundla elects one representative to the House of Assembly of Eswatini, the lower chamber of the bicameral parliament (Libandla). The same trend is applied in local government elections. This governing system was desi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
