SWAZILAND: Security forces clash with students

Security forces and protesters have clashed in two towns during a week of planned protests demanding an end to Swaziland's absolute monarchy, writes Phathizwe-Chief Zulu for the Mail & Guardian.

About 1,000 university students started pelting security forces with stones, and they reacted by firing teargas and beating demonstrators in the capital Mbabane. In the eastern town of Sitheki, where a coalition of pro-democracy groups was staging a third consecutive day of protests against Africa's last absolute monarch King Mswati III, trade union leaders said police fired rubber bullets and teargas at unarmed and peaceful protesters.

Swaziland is in a financial crisis fuelled by corruption and declining customs revenue that has led to widespread shortages of medication. The government is freezing civil servant salaries and cutting other costs, including student allowances.
Full report on the Mail & Guardian site