Communist Party of Swaziland

Swaziland's ruling autocracy must not celebrate its 50th anniversary, says Communist Party of Swaziland

Friday, 10 February 2023: The Communist Party of Swaziland (CPS) together with Swazis in the diaspora, on Friday delivered a petition at the Department of International Relations in Pretoria, South Africa. 

At the picket, the CPS called upon the South African government to not turn a blind eye as its own citizens are being used by the Mswati autocracy to assassinate democracy activists in Swaziland. 

CPS International Secretary, Pius Vilakati, during the picket emphasised that the mercenaries hired by the regime are South Africans. He thus called upon the South African Government to intervene on the matter and prosecute those murderers who are acting as part of Mswati's killing machinery. 

"The assassination of human rights lawyer Thulani Maseko and Muzi Mmema, among others, forms a long list of assassinated democracy activists by the tinkhundla regime. We know that for decades they have used their police and army to murder the people of Swaziland", said the CPS International Secretary, Pius Vilakati. 

"Therefore, let us set 12 April 2023," continued Vilakati, "as our first immediate moment for the regime to fall. Let us throw all our efforts to ensure that we end Mswati's war of oppression by intensifying the People's Liberation War!" 

Vilakati went on to call for unity amongst the people of Swaziland for the total overthrow of the ruling autocracy, which is Africa's last absolute monarchy. 

"Comrades, there is no greater tool than unity among the fighting forces of our country, otherwise we are doomed to more oppression", he said. 

"Mswati and his regime always strive to divide us, to get us fighting among each other, but we must do the opposite of all his wishes and band together to form the strongest, but principled, unity, grounded on a revolutionary programme to totally overthrow the oppressive regime". 

The CPS has called for all efforts to be undertaken to ensure that the regime does not reach its 50th anniversary on 12 April 2023. 

Political parties have remained banned in Swaziland since 12 April 1973 when absolute-monarchy rule was imposed with direct counsel from the former apartheid regime of South Africa. 

"Let us wage a relentless struggle inside and outside Swaziland, mobilise international solidarity, to ensure that by 12 April this year the regime no longer exists", continued the CPS International Secretary. 

The picket, led by the United Eswatini Diaspora, was also joined by members of the mass democratic movement of Swaziland and also supported by the Embassy of Western Sahara, the Black Panther Party from the United States of America, and the South African Solidarity Movement for Western Sahara (SASOMWESA).