Eswatini: Major setback as Supreme Court upholds repressive Suppression of Terrorism Act

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Responding to the news that Eswatini’s Supreme Court upheld controversial provisions of the Suppression of Terrorism Act on appeal, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for East and Southern Africa, Vongai Chikwanda, said:

“The Supreme Court’s decision to uphold this repressive legislation is a major setback for human rights in Eswatini. The authorities must immediately repeal the Act, or significantly amend it so that it is precise, targeted and fully in line with international human rights standards.

“The law in its current form poses significant threats to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly. The Suppression of Terrorism Act is overly broad and vague, and authorities have frequently used it to arbitrarily arrest and prosecute dissenters and suppress media, including by branding political opponents, activists and journalists as ‘terrorists.’

“The fact that Eswatini’s highest court has given the Suppression of Terrorism Act its stamp of approval is a dangerous sign for the future of human rights in the country, especially because repression is already widespread.”

BACKGROUND

Authorities passed the Suppression of Terrorism Act in 2008 following a bombing incident near the Lozitha Bridge in Eswatini. The same year, authorities declared the People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) opposition party, Swaziland Youth Congress (SWAYOCO) and the South Africa-based Swaziland Solidarity Network as terrorist organizations.

In 2016, the country’s High Court declared several sections of the Suppression of Terrorism and Sedition Acts as unconstitutional, following a court challenge by human rights lawyer Thulani Maseko and SWAYOCO leader Maxwell Dlamini, who authorities had both charged under the Act in 2014, and PUDEMO leader Mario Masuku.

The government appealed that decision a week later. Throughout the lengthy and irregular appeals process, Eswatini’s government used the Suppression of Terrorism Act to harass and intimidate dissenters, including jailing opposition parliamentarians Mduduzi Bacede Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube in 2021 and designating Swaziland News and its editor Zweli Martin Dlamini as “terrorist entities” in 2022.

In 2023, Maseko was shot and killed in his home in a case the government has yet to investigate.

Along with the Suppression of Terrorism Act, on 13 August 2024 Eswatini’s Supreme Court upheld controversial provisions of the 1938 Sedition and Subversive Activities Act, which similarly has adverse human rights implications.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Amnesty International.