Ubumbano Voice Read More
By Bonginkosi Gama
Eswatini is in the midst of a political unrest after the government unleashed it’s forces who shot and killed dozens of civilian’s in June and July 2021. The unrest that later culminated in looting and torching of business properties has left over a million Swazis traumatized, over hundreds killed, thousands left injured and thousands more imprisoned for merely demanding democratic reforms.
The extent of the situation includes a heart-rending images of children brutalized and shot by the government forces. One of the children that was a victim of this human rights violation is a 11 year old boy Mangaliso Hlophe who was heavily affected by teargas that was shot inside their place of abode. He fainted upon being exposed and his fragile eyes were damaged and the nearest hospital being Mbabane government hospital couldn’t help with his situation such that to date he is still struggling to see. He is currently awaiting to do an operation of the eyes through being assisted by one of the local churches in the country.
The government prioritized the reconstruction of the damaged properties and ignored all the killed and injured citizens without rendering any assistance. The mother of Mangaliso when reached for comment said that his child education future livelihood have been affected including his self-esteem, he now wears reading glasses which are not as effective and has episodes both at school and home of the tragic day. The mother who is a single parent with no permanent employment but relies on selling boiled millie meal on the streets further said that ever since the ordeal her son now requires more care and attention, regular hospital visits, eye drops from pharmacies and more, all of which requires money that she doesn’t have.
A community member by the name of Sibusiso Dlamini when interviewed about the situation said that Swazis are trapped by systemic poverty and are real victims in their own country. He said that the people who were looting were carrying no weapons, infact they are the ones who became victims of war, victims of the people who were shooting at them in the name of protecting property. Unfortunately the situation is still fluid and unabated as the brutalizing still continues.
