Criminal Court

Second, the ICC can prosecute crimes against humanity, which are serious violations committed as part of a large- scale attack against any civilian population.

The 15 forms of crimes against humanity listed in the Rome Statute include offences such as murder, rape, imprisonment, enforced disappearances, enslavement – particularly of women and children, sexual slavery, torture, apartheid and deportation.

The other crime is aggression, which is the use of armed force by a State against the sovereignty, integrity or independence of another State.

69 SIGN STATEMENT

According to a statement signed by 69 organisations across the globe, the UN, African Union, SADC and individual governments should demand that the Government of Eswatini should allow a thorough, independent investigation of “who authorised violence against protesters, including shoot to kill orders.”

They said these international blocs should call on the Eswatini Government to respect human rights and support a peaceful transition to a democratic form of government.

They said reports coming out of Eswatini indicated to them that, since late June, the army and police forces had killed dozens of unarmed civilians and injured around 1 000 people, including by shooting indiscriminately and wounding protesters.

“The government has reportedly imprisoned hundreds of people, many of them young people, and shut down internet access across the country for several weeks, which Amnesty International calls “a brazen violation of the rights to freedom of expression and information,” said the statement sent to UN, AU and other international blocs.

They stated that they were deeply concerned about the eruption of what they described as “State violence in Eswatini.”

The statement was issued on July

21, 2021.

The organisations included AbibiNsroma Foundation, Africa Coal Network, Africa Institute for Energy Governance, African Climate Reality Project, Andy Gheorghiu Consulting, Aotearoa New Zealand Human Rights Foundation, Centre for International Environmental Law,

Centre for Applied Legal Studies, University of Witwatersrand.

Centre for Citizens Conserving ( CECIC), CIVICUS.

Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre ( CISLAC), Clean Energy Action.

Others are Climate Action Network International, Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa ( CAPPA), DITSHWANELO - The Botswana Centre for Human Rights, Earth Ethics, Inc, Earthlife Africa Earthworks.

They said the country should, in the meantime, do the following:–

⚫ The immediate cessation of the killing of civilians and the return of the army to the barracks;

⚫ The immediate restoration of civic services such as the rapid issuing of death certificates for those killed in the past days;

⚫ Mandatory independent pathologists to conduct postmortems on the deceased;

⚫ Urgent humanitarian support to the affected families; workers and citizens who need basic necessities such as food, sanitary towels, baby food, etc;

⚫ The provision of direct financial support to resuscitate affected small and medium enterprises;

⚫ The full and permanent restoration of internet and communication services and peoples’ right to freedom of expression; and

⚫ The urgent availability of vaccines to all emaSwati and the end of unnecessary lockdowns;

These organisations stood in solidarity with the people of Eswatini in condemning the government’s violent repression of mass protests demanding democracy and economic justice.

“We support the UN Human Rights Commissioner’s call urging the authorities to fully adhere to human rights principles and reminding them that peaceful protests are protected under international human rights law,” reads the statement.

They further pointed out that reports indicated that security forces had sought to intimidate human rights defenders and activists with unlawful surveillance, imposed a curfew, and restricted public gatherings and petition deliveries to the government.

“This political crisis caused by State- sponsored violence risks creating a humanitarian crisis, as hospitals struggle to treat the influx of people injured by security forces, food and fuel supplies become limited, and people’s movement and ability to conduct basic commerce is restricted,” this is contained in the document.

LONG- TERM RESOLUTION

They lent their support to the demands of civil society organisations, political organisations, and people’s movements within Eswatini calling for a long- term resolution to the current political crisis through an inclusive political dialogue.

They called for total unbanning of political parties, a transitional authority, new democratic Constitution, and a multiparty democratic dispensation.

“As the Government of Eswatini, Africa’s only remaining absolute monarchy; violates the human rights of residents, suppresses freedom of speech and assembly, and jails young people for demanding a brighter future, the international community cannot remain silent,” they said.

As a result, they called on their partners in international civil society, regional governmental bodies, and diplomats to join them in amplifying the demands of the Eswatini people and seeking the protection of people’s human rights.