MBABANE: A Times of Eswatini senior journalist Umbutfo Sibusiso Shange who was carrying a camera watched helplessly as an armed Warder assaulted a pro-democracy activist at the High Court on Thursday.
The Swati NewsWeek, an online publication reported and quoted Crispa Nhleko, the victim who was assaulted by a Correctional Services officer in a trending video.
“I was assaulted while the Times journalist watched. He was wearing a brown jacket and carried a camera. The journalist never said anything to me even after the incident," said Nhleko when speaking to the Swati NewsWeek.
Eswatini media was captured by the State and journalists hardly reports about injustices perpetrated by Mswati’s security officers.
Questions were sent to Shange, the Times journalist, however, he had not responded at the time of compiling this report.
Reached for comments, Eugene Dube, the editor of the Swati NewsWeek said most journalists including Shange were members of the of King’s regiments(Umbutfo) hence they were unable to expose injustices by the State security agencies.The editor said the conduct of the journalist constitutes a serious journalism crime.
“As a journalist you are supposed to report any matter of public interest and expose injustice. If it wasn’t for the citizen who recorded the video, the public wouldn’t have known that the activist was assaulted at the High Court yet a journalist was there carrying a camera”, said the SwatiNewsWeek editor.
Times journalist Sibusiso Shange watched helplessly as Warder assault a citizen at the High Court