Hundreds Gather for Local, Swaziland Rally in Soweto

SW Radio Africa (London)

Alex Bell

20 April 2011

Hundreds of people gathered in Soweto, South Africa on Wednesday for a mass rally, to demand real democracy in the Southern African region.

The demonstration was organised by Zimbabwean civil society groups together with groups from Swaziland and South Africa, who called on leaders in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to put the will of the people before that of dictatorial regimes.

Public pressure is building on SADC leaders to ensure that there is real democracy for all people in Southern Africa, amid growing impatience with oppressive regimes in the region.

Last week, a three day protest against the King Mswati regime in Swaziland was suspended, after a heavy security clampdown, which saw tear gas and water cannons being used on the public. Hundreds of people were also arrested as the security forces tried to stamp out any sign of public unrest. Labour union leaders who led the protest action, eventually called the protests off to restrategise a way forward.

At the same time, the situation in Zimbabwe continues to deteriorate, and concern is growing that ZANU PF is readying itself for another bloody election. SADC has since pledged to form a roadmap towards a credible poll and called for an immediate end to violence and intimidation in the country. But those calls have gone unheeded by ZANU PF.

Gabriel Shumba, the Executive Director of the Zimbabwe Exiles Forum which was part of Wednesday’s Soweto rally, told SW Radio Africa that SADC needs to prove its commitments to democracy and respect for human rights. He said the demonstration served as a warning to SADC leaders “to heed the civil uprisings, seen in North Africa and the Middle East.”

“This kind of situation could also be seen in Southern Africa, if SADC does not urgently intervene in Zimbabwe,” Shumba said.

He explained that more than 400 people gathered for the rally, including groups like the Global Zimbabwe Forum, the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition, a host of Swazi groups, and even South Africa’s trade union federation, Cosatu.

“The weight of this rally was not actually in the numbers. We must focus on the multifaceted number of people that took part, because it sends a strong message to SADC,” Shumba said.

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