Description

This article was written by Mario Masuku, the president of the People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) in Swaziland, a political formation banned in the kingdom ruled by King Mwsati III, sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch.

Masuku was remanded in jail for 10 months on charges of terrorism and sedition.

When he eventually appeared in court, the Swaziland High Court judge threw out the case after five hours of a trial expected to last several days. The judge called the prosecution case ‘hopeless.’

Upon his release Masuku wrote an article for the Times Sunday (Swaziland) which was published on 11 October 2009.

Masuku tells how he was betrayed by informers and arrested on a charge of terrorism. He recounts the humiliation of his arrest and charging and writes about his time in jail and his daily routines.

The article was the second in a series of three articles by Masuku published by the Times Sunday, part of the only newspaper group in Swaziland’s free of direct government control.