A man in Swaziland /
eSwatini has died in hospital nearly two months after allegedly being heavily
assaulted by police. It is the latest report among many of police assault in
the kingdom.
Sebenele ‘Bebe’ Mbuyisa,
aged 29, from Mhlatane, had reportedly been beaten by two officers.
The Times of Swaziland reported Mbuyisa’s
family said police had accused him of trying to steal copper. His cousin Lucky
Malinga told the newspaper, ‘They heavily assaulted him with kicks, fists and
the barrel of a rifle all over his body until he was unconscious.’
The Times added the
police then put Mbuyisa’s body in a van and dumped him at an open field about
30 kilometres away.
Hours later a passer-by
found him and other police took him to hospital.
There are many cases of
police assault in Swaziland. In January 2019 Mbabane magistrate Sindisile
Zwane spoke out about the increasing number of suspects who appeared in court
with bruises claiming they have been assaulted by police.
She said police should be able to question people
without beating them up.
She made her comments during a trial of Jules Tsabedze
who was charged with obstructing two police officers.
This was not the first time a magistrate in Swaziland
had made a public rebuke of police. In March 2018 Principal
Magistrate at Manzini David Khumalo told police they must not beat
suspects after a man appeared in court with injuries all over his body.
The Swazi
Observer reported at the time, ‘The Principal Magistrate warned that
accused persons are citizens of the country and they have rights too. He said
they have a right to assist police with investigations but they cannot be
forced to do that by being assaulted.’
Blessing Bakhe Maseko, aged 22, of Madonsa, informed
the court through his attorney that he was heavily assaulted with a sjambok
[whip] while inside police cells.
There have been many allegations of police assault in
recent times. In November 2018 it was reported a
man from Mangwaneni was left close to death after being allegedly
assaulted by two officers at a police station. He suffered severe internal
bleeding, heart seizures, the swelling of his kidneys and nerve damage on both
his arms and legs.
In September 2018 four
women were reportedly beaten with sjamboks and pipes and scalded
with boiling water at Siteki police station. Two of them needed hospital
treatment for burns and blisters. They were accused of stealing from shops.
In March 2017 a man accused of multiple murders told
Manzini Magistrates’ Court he was tortured by police for 11 days to force
him to confess. He said he was suffocated with a tube and assaulted all over
his body, resulting in many serious injuries. The alleged attack was said to
have taken place at Lobamba Police Station.
In January 2017 local media reported police
forced a 13-year-old boy to remove his trousers and flogged him
at Ngwenya police station with a sjambok, to make him confess to stealing a
mobile phone.
See also
‘Horror
tale of Swazi police torture’
http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2016/09/horror-tale-of-swazi-police-torture.html
Police ‘brutally assault’ workers
Police ‘brutally assault’ workers
More
police torture in Swaziland
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