The state and police in Eswatini and sometimes the military have managed to mantain silence in the country even as the discontent against absolute rule grows by each passing day .
The gruesome death of Thabani Nkomonye in the passed week and the outrage that has ensured has been a clear indication that the discontent may finally be spilling over. In the coming week from the 17th May a series of marches and protests ,from UNESWA Students to the Swaziland United Democratic Front (SUDF,) are planned around the Manzini region targeting the police stations in Manzini City and Matsapha.
The #JusticeforThabani hashtag is amongst the top trending topics on social network on Friday and Saturday 15th May.
The death or the killing of Thabani leaves a lot of questions however there is very little uncertainty that the police either through gross negligence or or directly had a hand in the death of Thabani. The online publication the Swaziland News has already reported that the police murdered Thabani. What leaves a lot of unanswered questions is how his body was left in the veld when his vehicle was towed away and kept at Matsapha police station. The Eswatini News(Times on Saturday) on Saturday 15th May reported that his body had a broken skull and his vehicle has bullet holes.
All suspicious findings that only needs trained eyes to reveal the whole truth. Things such as whether the bullet hole or bullets if they are found are from a police firearm can quickly assist the family find the answers.
On a positive note, the pressure on social media has already prompted the government to act. The Acting Prime Minister and the Minister of Justice have separately released statements to try and allay fears and to inform the country that they are working on a independent enquiry into the death of Thabani.
Even with the foregoing positives it is worth noting that the police in Eswatini are record holders for the almost non existent system of accounting required from them every time they are caught up in incidences where someone dies in their hands. The cases are too many to mention but recent cases like that of Antonio Zavale, A mentally challenged man near Ka Hlatsi in Shiselweni and ofcourse the tragic killing of Sipho Jele in 2010 are all a constant reminder how brutal the police can be in Eswatini with no requirement for public accounting.
In many cases even when enquiries were set up their findings just covered up the real truth and provided shield for the government to present itself to have done doing something.
As the Thabani matter unfolds there is a need to be vigilant that the state does not engage in its usual coverups divergence of attention strategies.
Kuthula nelutsandvo akwandze!!
Fundizwi Sikhondze
The SLI Coordinator.
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