Treason suspects free on bail

Fifteen political activists on trial for treason in Swaziland have been freed on bail, despite the objections of government prosecutors. Amid demands from international human rights groups that government investigate claims of police torture of defendants and witnesses, the state's case against the alleged petrol bombers suffered a setback when its South African advocates withdrew. "The interest of justice does favour the release of the applicants," said Acting Chief Justice Jacobus Annandale, releasing the 15 defendants on R5,000 (US $802) bail each at the High Court in the capital, Mbabane. Fifteen members of the political organisation, People's United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO), or its youth wing, Swaziland Youth Congress (SWAYOCO), face the death penalty if found guilty of a string of petrol bombings carried out in 2005 against government facilities. Two minor injuries resulted from the attacks. Reviewing the government's case at the bail application hearing, Annandale said it was long on opinion and short on facts. "The court needs to be told what other aspects of the case exist - this is in order to evaluate the opinion," Annandale observed. "The court does not know [if investigators or witnesses] saw the applicants in one of the [bombing] scenes - there are no fingerprints of the perpetrators." After hearing the defendants' lawyer, David Nat Unterhalter, present two defendants' claims of torture at the hands of their prison guards, Annandale ordered Prime Minister Themba Dlamini to institute an investigation and said the findings must be made public. On Wednesday last week, Acting Deputy Public Prosecutor Mumcy Dlamini denied that any of the suspects were tortured by police, but the following day defendant Sipho Hlope arrived in court bleeding from a cut below his eye, which he said had been inflicted by prison warders. Annandale ordered that Hlope be taken to the Mbabane government hospital for treatment. The wife of one defendant died of internal injuries after a police interrogation earlier this year. Amnesty International called on the government to investigate this and other reported incidents of alleged police torture. Prior to the bail application hearings, two South African advocates hired by the government to prosecute the defendants left the country without explanation. Justice Ministry officials would not comment on their departure. Court observers noted that the government's case against the alleged petrol bombers was based on the testimony of witnesses and the discovery of a PUDEMO pamphlet at one of the bombing sites. Some witnesses have also said they were subject to police torture during interrogation. Prosecutors have not presented any forensic evidence against the defendants, which has caused some commentators in the independent press to conclude that the government has rushed to prosecute.