The leadership and members of the Congress of South African Trade Unions, together with members of the South African Mass Democratic Movement, are here today to support the oppressed people and the workers of Swaziland in their struggle for freedom, democracy and human rights.

We note with grave concern:

 The gross abuse of human rights that continue to be perpetrated by the government against its people, in particular workers, youth and political activists;

 The arbitrary arrests of political activists by the Royal Police and the Royal Army;

 The unilateral and dictatorial banning of political parties and their related organs in advancing the rights of the workers and the poor;

 The lack of a constitution or democratic governance and of any involvement of the people in Swaziland in the current constitutional review process dictated to by the King;

 The use of state institutions and resources to sustain the greedy interest of the Royal Family, using money worked for by the people of Swaziland, at the expense of other socio-economic priorities;

 The alarming and increasing exclusion of the people from the social and economic wealth of the country, with the majority of the people in your country subjected to abject poverty and rural under-development;

 The lack of access to education, basic healthcare, water, electricity and other basic services, which have now become an entitlement of the elite in Swaziland whilst the masses of the people do not enjoy access to all of these;

 The increasing and alarming rate of HIV/AIDS amongst the people of the country, with the King recently banning all activities related to awareness, education and mobilisation of people to fight the epidemic.

We therefore demand the following:

 1. The immediate and unconditional release of PUDEMO and SWAYOCO political activists from jail and the dropping of all charges;

 2. The immediate cessation of torture, abuse and the abominable conditions in jails;

 3. The immediate un-banning of all political parties, the unconditional return of all exiles and cessation of political hostilities;

 4. A broad forum comprising the political forces in Swaziland to look into the human rights abuses that have been perpetrated on instruction or consent by the Royal Family;

 5. That the country’s wealth be shared amongst the people, and be distributed top meet the people’s basic needs;

 6. That the current constitutional review process involves all political parties;

 7. That state resources be redirected from servicing the Royal Family and be used to serve the needs and interest of the people.

As members of COSATU and all other organs of the mass democratic movement present here, we will continue to raise our concerns on behalf of the abused and downtrodden Swaziland people in their fight against neo-colonial and semi-feudalist rule.