The Communist Party of Swaziland calls for urgent solidarity with Comrade Maxwell Musa Myeni who was arbitrarily arrested yesterday, Sunday 26 August 2018, in Manzini, Swaziland by the royal Swaziland police. Today he was held at the Manzini Regional Police Headquarters. Workers braved the heavily armed royal police and protested outside the headquarters, demanding that the teacher who was defending his rights as a worker and a human being be released.

The political nature of the police attack against Maxwell Musa Myeni is proving more and more obvious. Taking him to a police station for questioning should have sufficed, but because this is clearly a political action against him and the workers of Swaziland, he was instead taken to the regional police headquarters for him to be grilled by the political leadership of the royal police before being charged with trumped up charges. We understand that he is now back at the notorious Sigodvweni Police Station in Matsapha and will appear tomorrow on Tuesday at 09h00 before a magistrate in Manzini.

Maxwell Musa Myeni, a teacher at Lavumisa, a leader of the Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT) was abducted yesterday by the notorious arm of the police force known as "Lukhozi", with six heavily armed members of this force bulldozing their way with two white vans into his house at Lavumisa. On Friday 24 August 2018 he had braved the madness of a gun wielding police officer who was intent on mowing down workers during a peaceful protest for a cost of living adjustment and for respect of the rights of the workers of Swaziland. A teacher, William Dlamini, was shot and wounded during the march.

The Royal Lukhozi arm of the police is the tinkhundla regime's brutal force, known for its torture of prisoners who often end up dead. Their greater focus is often on human rights activists, unionists, youth and student activists and members of political parties.

The crushing by the police of the peaceful march last week Friday 24 August 2018 happens at a time when the tinkhundla regime is running its sham elections which will elect a puppet parliament for the implementation of the unilateral decisions of Mswati III who rules Swaziland as an absolute monarch. The regime has banned all activities during the elections period in a bid to force the population to partake in the elections.

We acknowledge and appreciate the brave efforts of the people of Swaziland who have stood up in solidarity with Maxwell and the workers who were shot by the police on Friday, including those Swazis who have spread the message to all their media spaces.

We also acknowledge and appreciate the voice of the working class beyond the borders of Swaziland who have raised their voice against such brutality by the Mswati autocracy.

Let us all continue to work together to raise the freedom flag!

Down with the Mswati autocracy!

Down with the sham tinkhundla elections!

Issued by the Communist Party of Swaziland