Mario Masuku, president of the People’s United Democratic Movement (Pudemo), the main opposition party in Swaziland, was on Thursday acquitted of sedition charges after nearly a year in jail.
Speaking from Mbabane, Masuku’s instructing attorney, Paul Shilubane, said: ”We are very happy. We knew from the outset that the Crown had no case. What [Masuku] had done was to critise the government, not the king. The law allows you to do that.”
Masuku was arrested in November 2000 for allegedly uttering the words ”Phansi ngembuso KaMswati [Down with his Majesty King Mswati’s reign]” at a bus depot in Mbabane and was charged in terms of the Sedition and Subversive Activities Act of 1938.
A long-time defender of democracy, Masuku had been living under stringent bail conditions — he had to report to his local police station daily, was prohibited from addressing public gatherings and had to inform the high court of any intention to leave the country — until October 2001 when he deliberately failed to report to the police and was rearrested and jailed.
During testimony last week Masuku told the high court he had had no intention of condemning the king’s reign, but that he disagrees with the Swaziland government. He said he uttered the words ”Phansi ngembuso KaMswati” in the sense that the present Swaziland government was misleading the king. He added that his public statements were to call for an end to the abuse by the government of Mswati’s position.
He maintained that he was exercising his rights as stipulated in Section 32 of the Act to criticise the government where it is necessary.
After the judgement on Thursday Mary Rainer, a member of Amnesty International’s Africa Programme, said the verdict was a vindication for Masuku and the Swazi judicial system.
”It is an excellent result. Amnesty International has been monitoring the case and trying to assist Masuku over the past two years. [He] and his family have suffered considerably [during this time], particularly as a result of his incarceration during the course of the trial,” she said.
”As an organisation we now appeal to the Swazi government to accept the result from the high court.”
Rainer said the government should allow space for a diversity of political views and freedom of expression, particularly at a time when the country was in the process of drafting a new Constitution.
”The rights of peaceful assembly, expression and association are protected under international and regional humans rights law and the Swazi government is obliged to uphold and protect these rights.
”We also appeal that the government works together with all of its citizens to resolve the enormous social and economic problems in the country,” Rainer said.