About

Thulani Maseko is a Swazi human rights lawyer. Bheki Makhubu is a prominent journalist and the editor of the Nation magazine.  These two men were arrested, detained, convicted of contempt of court, and sentenced to two years in prison, for exercising their fundamental human rights to freedom of expression in writing and publishing articles criticizing the judiciary in Swaziland. The trial of Mr. Maseko and Mr. Makhubu violated their human rights to a free and fair trial by an impartial judiciary. Moreover, the imprisonment of Mr. Maseko and Mr. Makhubu is a violation of their rights to liberty and freedom from arbitrary arrest and detention.

This website has been set up as part of an international coalition and ongoing advocacy to support human rights in Swaziland, in particular independence of the judiciary and freedom of expression.  Core supporters include the Center for Human Rights & Humanitarian Law at American University Washington College of Law and the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights.