Police have announced that only “recognised unions” will be allowed to celebrate May Day and said that they will enforce “law and order” at any rally. The authorities have refused to recognise the legitimate trade union centre TUCOSWA as part of a blanket repression of free speech and freedom of association.
Sharan Burrow, ITUC General Secretary, said “King Mswati rules with an iron fist, and anyone who stands in the way of the plunder of Swaziland’s scarce resources by him and his small band of cronies risks beating, arrest and illegal detention. No form of dissent is tolerated in this absolute monarchy, and the latest threats against trade union members are typical of one of the world’s most oppressive regimes.”
See also:
Equal Times: http://www.equaltimes.org/remembering-swaziland-s-prisoners#.VUIAgJPD-DA
