[ad_1]
A government crackdown on pro-democracy protests in Eswatini, Africa’s last absolute monarchy, has killed dozens after soldiers fired live wheels at protesters, according to activists with banned opposition parties.
King Mswati III has deployed the army in recent days, as the 1.5m coastless kingdom has been ravaged by its largest and most violent demonstrations in years.
Wandile Dludlu, secretary general of the People’s Democratic Movement, estimated that since then 40 people had been killed and more than 400 wounded by gunfire, rubber bullets and beatings.
An official count was not yet possible, but “all hospitals are full, neighborhoods are overcrowded,” after soldiers used “not just live rounds, but military bullets” against protesters, Dludlu said.
Neighboring South Africa on Thursday called on “security forces” for “total restraint” and said it was concerned about the loss of life and the destruction of property.
There has long been discontent in Eswatini over Mswati’s government, which has ruled since 1986 with absolute control over parliament under an electoral system that bans political parties.
The protests erupted last month after the mysterious death of Thabani Nkomonye, a 25-year-old law student, and an alleged police cover-up.
The government must allow “the opening of the political playing field” by banning parties and replacing a 2015 constitution that is “as good as a love letter to the king,” Dludlu said.
As unrest escalated last week, the government banned citizen petitions from its local MPs, closing one of the few outlets of the autocratic system for dissent. Themba Masuku, the acting prime minister, has told people to email their complaints.
The government said in a statement on Thursday that it had not yet received official reports of deaths. He warned that he “would continue to tolerate looting, arson, violence and all other forms of crime.”
There have been reports of looting of shops and businesses in Mbabane, the capital of Eswatini, and indications that local Internet access is being reduced.
The Eswatini government has denied that King Mswati III has fled amid protests © Themba Hadebe / AP
Thokozani Kenneth Kunene, general secretary of the Communist Party of Eswatini, also estimated the death toll at about 40. The government “doesn’t care how many are killed,” he added.
Masuku denied that martial law had been declared, but said the government “should convene the army to protect critical national infrastructure” and enforce rules to limit coronavirus infections.
This week the government imposed a nationwide curfew from 6pm onwards, apparently as part of pandemic restrictions.
Next to the curfew “there were a large number of soldiers and police in a joint operation in the streets. . . by all definitions, this is martial law, ”Dludlu said.
“It is now openly clear that brutality and violence have been sustaining the system,” Kunene added.
Although his government has denied reports of the king’s escape, Mswati has not been seen in public for days. “He doesn’t want to appear involved in the violence,” Kunene said. “But the traits are his language, his words.”
[ad_2]
Source link
