MBABANE - The High Court of Eswatini has ordered the immediate release of passports belonging to 68 foreign nationals currently awaiting deportation at Sidwashini Correctional Services.
The foreign nationals were arrested during police raids at illegal online gambling centres around the capital city. The applicants, nationals of the People's Republic of China, Taiwan and Indonesia, cited the national commissioner of police, the minister for Home Affairs and the commissioner general of His Majesty's Correctional Services as respondents.
On Thursday, Judge Zonke Magagula ordered the national commissioner of police to immediately release and deliver the passports to their legal representative, Linda Dlamini and Associates, for transmission to the Ministry of Home Affairs to facilitate the necessary exit procedures.
The minister for Home Affairs was directed, upon receipt of the passports, to take all necessary steps to facilitate the voluntary departure of Li Hai and the other individuals, including signing the required liberation warrants.
The court declared that any attempt to further detain Li Hai without initiating formal legal processes, such as preferring fresh criminal charges or commencing extradition proceedings under the Extradition Act, constitutes a violation of fundamental rights.
Court papers state that the foreign nationals were arrested in March 2026 and charged at the Mbabane Magistrates Court for contravening the Immigration Act. They pleaded guilty after consulting their legal representatives and were convicted and fined E500 on each of two counts, with an alternative of six months’ imprisonment per count in default of payment.
The fines were paid in full, after which the court ordered that the individuals remain in the custody of Correctional Services pending deportation under Section 8 of the Immigration Act. The applicants argued that this deportation order was the sole legal basis for their continued detention.
According to the founding affidavit deposed by Li Hai on behalf of the group, the applicants expressed willingness to comply voluntarily with the deportation order. Their legal representatives, Linda Dlamini and Associates, wrote to the minister for Home Affairs on June 22, 2026, confirming that flight arrangements had been secured from Maputo International Airport in Mozambique and requesting permission for escorted departure.
The attorneys further stated that the detainees were prepared to cover all associated costs, including transport and allowances for escorting officers, to avoid burdening the State.
While 17 of the original 85 convicted foreign nationals were deported after their passports were released, liberation warrants signed, and escort arrangements made, the remaining 68 were left pending after police withheld their travel documents.
On June 29, 2026, attempts by the applicants’ legal representatives to collect passports for five detainees with confirmed flight bookings were unsuccessful, as police declined to release the documents without providing reasons.
The applicants contended that the continued retention of their passports unlawfully prolonged their detention and violated constitutional rights, including liberty, fair hearing and legal representation.
Judge Zonke Magagula has ordered the immediate release of passports belonging to foreign nationals who have been detained pending deportation processes.