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The kingdom of Eswatini, until recently known as Swaziland, announced a curfew on Tuesday (June 29) when the army was sent out to quell protests against democracy. Clashes rallied against Democratic protesters on Monday night, June 28. In power for 35 years, King Mswati III is believed to be in South Africa, and the opposition says he fled there and promised to intensify their protests.
Tires burned, cars stoned, shops lit up, looting. These are the scenes described in several cities in Eswatini, where demonstrations take place.
Events qualified as “alarming and annoying” by the Prime Minister in a press release published on Tuesday night. “We have witnessed violence in several parts of the country, committed by an uncontrollable crowd,” writes Themba Masuku, who specified that security forces were in place to “maintain law and order.”
The riots started last Saturday and since then they are growing a little more every day. According to Amnesty International, protesters for democracy are calling for far-reaching reforms, freedom of political expression and union that they have been deprived of for almost 35 years, when the last absolute monarch on the continent, the king, came to power. Mswati III.
Strong mobilizations broke out across the country, and the authorities’ responses are brutal. The pictures that reach us show soldiers deployed in the cities where the uprising is taking place. According to local media and opposition parties, the army and police fired live ammunition at the crowd Monday night, only one death has been confirmed for us at the moment. Amnesty International also mentions 7 seriously injured.
The Secretary General of the United People’s Democratic Movement (PUDEMO), Wandile Dludlu, estimates that more than 200 people have been injured, including about 15 in critical condition.
Finally, a communication struggle is currently opposed by the opposition and the government, some claiming that the king fled to South Africa before the mobilization, others that he is in his palace and continues to deal with current issues.
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