Eswatini: Education International condemns the arrest and harassment of education union leaders
Education International (EI) expresses its unwavering solidarity with the Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT), its leadership and members, following the most recent attack against union leaders by the authorities in Eswatini. On 23 April, Eswatini police arrested Lot Vilakati, the General Secretary of SNAT, and other public union leaders as they were peacefully delivering a petition to the Prime Minister’s office.
The union officials’ demands are related to the government’s failure to honour its commitment to increase the salaries of teachers and public service workers. According to SNAT, Vilakati was severely beaten by the police and later dumped in a forest.
This anti-union attack represents a grave escalation of repression and an unacceptable assault on education union members.
Education International urges the authorities of Eswatini to immediately halt the persecution of SNAT leaders, guarantee their safety, and respect their fundamental human and trade union rights.
EI General Secretary, David Edwards, reaffirmed EI’s commitment to SNAT members: “We stand with the committed, brave, and vibrant organisation defending quality teaching and learning for the students and teachers of Eswatini in the face of repression, violence, and threats. Teachers everywhere have the right to be treated with fairness, to see their rights respected, and to teach their students with the necessary resources—free from fear and intimidation.”
“The use of intimidation and harassment to threaten union leaders and educators peacefully demanding better working conditions is utterly unacceptable,” said EI President Mugwena Maluleke. “Our solidarity with SNAT is not momentary, and this act of intimidation is not an isolated incident. For years, educators in Eswatini have faced harassment, threats, and repression simply for organising and defending public education. Education International stands with SNAT for the long struggle ahead—until teachers’ voices are respected, their leaders are safe, and fundamental rights are fully guaranteed.”
Steadfast solidarity
Over many years, the SNAT, its President, Mbongwa Dlamini, and General Secretary, Lot Vilakati, have been targeted by the authorities of Eswatini. Education International has shown steadfast solidarity with the leaders and members of the Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT) in response to the sustained anti-union harassment and persecution perpetrated by the Eswatini authorities. This support has included a high-level EI solidarity mission to Eswatini in 2023, as well as the adoption of an Executive Board Resolution on the situation in the country. Education International has also supported SNAT in bringing Eswatini’s serious violations of international labour standards to the attention of the International Labour Organization (ILO).
In June 2024, the International Labour Conference expressed “deep concern over the deteriorating state of public order and its negative impact on trade union rights in Eswatini, along with a culture of impunity for crimes against trade unionists.”
The International Labour Organisation (ILO) urged the Government to take effective, urgent, and time-bound measures to refrain from violent treatment, intimidation, or harassment (including judicial harassment) of leaders and members of trade unions in the education sector conducting lawful trade union activities, and to conduct independent investigations into the persecution of Mbongwa Dlamini, who has been unlawfully suspended from his teaching position since 2022. Furthermore, it called for ensuring that workers’ organisations, including the Trade Union Congress of Swaziland (TUCOSWA) and SNAT, have the autonomy and independence needed to fulfil their mandate and represent their members.
