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Sunday, 07 March 2010 19:19 |
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We had a busy week starting on Friday when we joined our friends from the zimvigil at the protest outside the SA embassy when they confronted Zuma on his state visit to the UK, while our friends from Zimbabwe demanded free and fair elections we boldly raised our banner which states NO TO DICTATORSHIP IN SWAZILAND, check zimvigil web site for pictures and story and zbn news for the live coverage. But the real message to Zuma was in the spontaneous booing from more than 100 Zimbabweans and the chant of ‘Shame on you’ when he arrived. We were joined by some South Africans who shouted something like ‘Ag Ag Zuma is Kak’, whatever that means. On saturday it was another day for us at the Swaziland embassy, for a change this time we were confronted by a pompus westminster council employee who asked if we had permission to protest outside the embassy, we showed him our documentation from the city of westminster council and police which our coordinator Thobile Gwebu now carries all the time in a neat blue folder. our colourful banner once again was an attraction to the passing tourists, not because of the clours but the messsage. We had a lot of tourists from Spain this time and with my hastly learnt spanish i managed to say thank you and bye when they signed our pettions. Highlight of the Day To add on to our usual drumming and singing, our steward Fungayi Mabhunu brought along his Tenor Saxophone, which he played brilliantlly among the songs were When the saints go marching in, Amazing Grace and Nkosi sikelela Africa to name only a few. A lot of passing public stopped to listen to the sound of the proffessionally played sax and even the embassy staff could be seen watching from the windows. One passer by who signed our pettion questioned why Zuma did not say anything about Swaziland on his state visit to the UK and one of our suppoters said he would expose Mswati because he is expecting another wife knowing Zuma for his behaviour. Thanks once again to Godfrey Madzunga, Kelvin Kamupira, Josephine Zhuga, Nobushe and Thobile Gwebu for the tremendous support and singing accompanying the sax and drumming. |
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Monday, 01 March 2010 10:54 |
Come rain, snow, sleet or thunder we will be outside the Swazi embassy protesting about democracy and respect for human rights in Swaziland. It rained just as we were setting up but lucky we have a cloth banner and a few placards that are covered in plastic. As usual news from back home is horrific and depressing, to the locals who stopped by to ask about the situation back home and sign our petitions its shocking. Barnabas Dlamini, the illegally-appointed Prime Minister of Swaziland, is victimizing the senate leader who said he and the Swazi government are answerable to parliament. We told the passing public that these are the few stories that they hear, the more horrific ones are swept under the carpet by the propaganda swazi press who are a mouth pieces of Dictator regime by the King because he closes the paper if they report against him. We were happy to hear that the launch of the Swaziland democracy was a success and we were glad that the Swazi vigil UK received words of encouragement from their report. On Friday the 5th of march we will join our friends the zimvigil to protest our side the South African embassy. We will be there between 1130 am to 1230pm to meet Jacob Zuma on his visit here in the UK. Please check www.zimvigil.co.uk. We will present to Mr Zuma our demands for democracy and respect for human rights in Swaziland we will also encourage Mr Zuma to speak out on Swaziland as he seems to know what is happening in the Kingdom. We are also pleased to let our supports know that so far we have more than 2000 signatures on our petitions, which is very encouraging. Thanks once again to our stewards Godfrey Madzunga, Kelvin Kamupila, Thobile Gwebu, Francesca Toft and many more who stood by us in the rain. The Swazi embassy staff were also surprised to see us protesting in the rain. Once again one of our supporters reminded them that will be here until Swaziland is free. Our singing and drumming once again attracted a group of brownies who stopped by and their teachers signed our petitions, but most of these children were so sad to hear that children in Swaziland are suffering with hunger and starvation and most of them can not afford to go to school at all, while Dictator Mswatii III is squandering money on his so many wives. What a sham said one teacher who signed our petition. Hopefully the weather will be on our side next weekend. Just as we were writing this diary we received yet some more depressing news Swaziland police officers have been on the attack again, assaulting members of the public – one a form-four school pupil and the other, a pregnant woman. This is a daily routine for swazi police, the show of force to silence human rights defenders, for how long shall the world stand and watch SWAZI PEOPLE SUFFER at the hands of the Dictator Mswati III. |
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Monday, 22 February 2010 10:51 |
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It was a very warm day considering it is winter; people at the vigil were still fuming at what is going on back home. Mswati’s oppressive machinery was at the full throttle for the past month thwarting peaceful demonstrations, abducting and arresting student leaders. On a positive note the official launch of the Swaziland Democracy Campaign in Johannesburg kept our spirits so high with our coordinator Thobile Gwebu telling the crowd that IT IS THE LAST MILE TO DEMOCRACY IN SWAZILAND, she goes on to tell us that Swazis have suffered enough it is high time there is political freedom, democracy and respect for human rights in Swaziland. “Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, she chanted. The gathering and passing crowd clapped, whistled and chanted FREE SWAZILAND!!! One passerby who stopped to sign our petitions asked why the king had so many wives and we told her that he picks a virgin every year and the lady said ……it is not me then because I am not a virgin ! A lot of people were worried that the world is watching while Swaziland is dying, one supporter was very angry that the UN is not doing anything to stop the horrific abuses and oppression in Swaziland. We noticed that one of the embassy neighbors was moving out and we realized that now that we have exposed the obnoxious regime they did not want to be staying next to people who have no respect for human rights. It was good to see our friends from ACTSA who have been very supportive of the Swazi vigil since its launch and they are running a campaign on Swaziland crisis and are encouraging people to put pressure on the ambassador in the UK go to the link http://www.actsa.org/page-1223-Swaziland.html. Thanks once again to Mark Beacon and his team. The vigil ended at 1pm with the singing of NKOSI SIKELELA AFRICA! (GOD BLESS AFRICA!) Our coordinator Thobile Gwebu explained to the vigilantes that the singing of Swaziland land national anthem will undermine our cause as it is nothing but the praise of the Dictator Mswati III. A lot of people stopped by to take pictures of our colourful l banner that was hand made by our coordinator Thobile Gwebu which reads NO TO DICTATORSHIP IN SWAZILAND! |
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