Photo: James Hall/IRIN

Rural pupils fetch water for school.

Teachers in Swaziland managed to deliver their petition to the government this afternoon (13 June 2102), despite being blocked by riot police.

Police stopped about 3,000 members of the Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT) marching across Mbabane city centre this morning.

They had wanted to deliver a petition for a 4.5 percent salary increase, but were stopped from doing so.

Eventually they delivered a petition to the Minister of Public Service, Magwebetane Mamba.

The teachers had wanted to march through the city centre but were stopped and eventually allowed to go on an alternative route, far away from the city centre.

The Centre for Human Rights, Swaziland, reports, 'The march was characterised by threats of violence from security agents. Two workers were unlawfully detained by riot police, and this seemed to anger workers who retaliated by throwing stones at the police vehicles into which the two were taken. They were promptly released and the march continued.'