Effect given to the recommendations of the committee and the Governing Body - Report No 400, October 2022

Case No 2949 (Eswatini) - Complaint date: 23-MAY-12 - Follow-up

Effect given to the recommendations of the committee and the Governing Body

1. 37. The Committee last examined this case at its March 2019 meeting [see 388th Report, paras 18–23]. On that occasion, the Committee took note of a communication of September 2018 of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) which denounced the increasing violent interferences by the security forces in peaceful trade union activities. The Committee, while noting new measures by the Government to improve the handling of trade union gatherings in public places, expressed deep concern over the serious allegations of intimidation against trade union leaders and violent attacks of security forces against peaceful trade union gatherings. It urged the Government to initiate an independent investigation with a view to determine the justification for the action of the police denounced by the complainant and responsibilities.
2. 38. In a communication dated 30 November 2020, the Government informs of the appointment, through Legal Notice No.183 of 2019, of the Members of the “Investigation Committee in Terms of the Recommendations of the International Labour Organization Committee of Freedom of Association” with the mandate, inter alia, to investigate on the alleged acts of violence, arrests and disruption of protest actions, this is in line with the previous recommendations of the Committee. The Government further indicates that the Investigation Committee, composed of experts in labour law led by a senior judicial officer, was initially given six weeks to complete its tasks. However, the investigations were much more complex than expected and were further severely impeded by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the successive lockdowns and restrictions in travel and meetings. The Investigation Committee was given an extended period until March 2021 to submit a report. The Committee requests the Government to provide without delay information on the findings of the Investigation Committee, as well as any measures taken by the Government as a follow-up.
3. 39. Furthermore, the Committee previously requested the Government to provide the court ruling in the case of Messrs Mbongwa Earnest Dlamini and Mcolisi Ngcamphalala, members of the Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT), who were arrested in February 2016 with criminal charges preferred against them for perpetrating criminal and malicious acts in contravention of the 1963 Public Order Act during a protest action. In this regard, the Committee recalled that the 1963 Public Order Act had been repealed and replaced in 2017, partially due to its non-conformity with freedom of association, and expressed its expectation that the judiciary would bear in mind both the fact that the Act is no longer in force and the Committee’s previous recommendations in this case when examining the charges against Messrs Mbongwa Earnest Dlamini and Mcolisi Ngcamphalala. In the absence of information, the Committee requests, once again, the Government to provide a copy of the court judgment when rendered and to indicate any follow-up action given to it.