SWAZILAND MEDIA FREEDOM VIOLATIONS AND VICTORIES 26 July 2017 LEGISLATED Dr Futhi Dlamini instituted a US$200 000 defamation lawsuit against the Observer. He was awarded a reduced amount of US$20 000 by the High Court of Swaziland. 4-11 August 2017 THREATENED Martin Dlamini, owner and managing editor of Swaziland Shopping newspaper, confirmed death threats from Mbabane businessman Victor Gamedze who sent former Member of Parliament Robert Magongo to warn the managing editor against writing negative articles about the businessman. 4-11 August 2017 NOTEWORTHY DEVELOPMENT CALL TO REGULATE Martin Dlamini, the owner and managing editor of Swaziland Shopping newspaper, called for a statutory regulatory body to regulate the media in Swaziland. He felt that it would uproot corruption allegedly rife amongst the editors. This was despite the existence of a self-regulatory body known as Media Complaints Commission of Swaziland (MCCS) set up in 2011. 11 November 2017 SENTENCED The Weekend Observer lost a defamation lawsuit case brought to the High Court by South Africabased gospel artist, Sipho Makhabane, for a story published on the weekend of 20-21 January 2007. Judge Mumcy Dlamini awarded him US$30,000 as compensation but the newspaper appealed the judgment. 13 December 2017 CENSORED The Ministry of Information, Communications and Technology (ICT) issued Martin Dlamini, owner and managing editor of Swaziland Shopping, with a letter ordering him to discontinue the newspaper’s operations with immediate effect. 16 December 2017 CENSORED Bheki Gama, Acting Principal Secretary in the ICT Ministry, issued a stern warning to shops and vendors who were in breach of the Books and Newspapers Act No. 20 of 1963, to stop selling published copies of the banned Swaziland Shopping newspaper or face the consequences. 31 December 2017 THREATENED Martin Dlamini, the owner and managing editor of Swaziland Shopping newspaper fled the country to South Africa. He claimed that the police, who wanted him for questioning about his story of a businessman plotting to kill the king, were allegedly only up to killing him in the cells.