By Kgalalelo Gaebee, CIVICUS' Communications Officer and Paul Mulindwa, CIVICUS' Advocacy and Campaigns Regional Lead for Africa
Mduduzi Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube’s ongoing imprisonment is more than a national tragedy. It is a warning about a dangerous continent-wide trend of unchecked state repression.
This month marks four years since Eswatini’s pro-democracy activists and former members of parliament, Mduduzi Bacede Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube, were arrested — and one year since they were sentenced under the country’s notorious Suppression of Terrorism Act for calling for democratic reform.
During the June 2021 pro-democracy protests in Eswatini, Mabuza and Dube exercised their constitutional mandate by raising alarm over the unrest, calling for national dialogue and participating in the demonstrations.
Rather than heeding calls for dialogue put forward by a number of people, including civil society actors, elders and leaders across the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) region, King Mswati ultimately rejected dialogue in favour of brute force.
In response to their activism, the Eswatini authorities subjected Mabuza and Dube to irregular trials and harsh sentences, sending a chilling message to others in the pro-democracy movement. Four years later, they remain behind bars, a harsh reflection of how easily democratic ideals are betrayed when the world looks away.
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