Eswatini (formerly Swaziland)

Eswatini’s human rights record continues to deteriorate after the waves of protests that rocked the country in 2021. Justice remains elusive for those killed and injured by security forces during those protests. There has not been justice for human rights lawyer and opposition activist Thulani Maseko who was shot and killed in 2023. Instead, the Eswatini government, under the absolute rule of King Mswati III, has continued to weaponize the judicial system by imprisoning pro-democracy activists and overturning 2016 High Court decision that declared several repressive provisions of the 1938 Suppression of Terrorism Act and 2008 Sedition and Subversive Activities Act invalid.