Four years after their arrest for peacefully advocating for political reform, two members of the Eswatini Parliament, Bacede Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube, have been declared “prisoners of conscience” by Amnesty International. Friday’s designation highlights mounting concern over the country’s intensifying repression of dissent and misuse of the justice system.

The two MPs were arrested on July 25, 2021, following their vocal support for legal reforms and constitutional change. They were convicted on charges of terrorism and sedition and sentenced by the High Court on July 31, 2024, to 85 and 58 years in prison, respectively.

“By designating Bacede Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube as prisoners of conscience, Amnesty International affirms that they should never have been arrested in the first place,” said Tigere Chagutah, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa. “Their continued arbitrary detention shows Eswatini’s deepening climate of repression and misuse of the justice system to punish those who dare criticize the government.” Amnesty International previously raised alarm over ongoing delays in the appeal hearing for Mabuza, warning that it threatens judicial independence and undermines the right to a fair trial.

The crackdown on Mabuza and Dube takes place in a wider context of political repression in Eswatini. In September 2024, Eswatini’s main opposition party, the People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO), alleged that its leader, Mlungisi Makhanya, was poisoned in an “attempted assassination” at his South African residence. While the Eswatini government denied any involvement, the incident drew global attention to the regime’s ongoing suppression of political opposition.

This followed the still-unsolved murder of prominent human rights lawyer Thulani Maseko in 2023, which fueled concerns over the state’s role in targeting activists. PUDEMO, though legally allowed to exist, remains banned from contesting elections under decades-old restrictions.

King Mswati III continues to hold unchecked power in Eswatini, appointing key officials and holding ultimate authority over all branches of government. Amnesty has warned that “the imprisonment of MPs simply for speaking out is a red line that must never be crossed. Authorities must quash their convictions and sentences, and immediately and unconditionally release them.”