Vincent Ncongwane, General Secretary of the Trade Union Congress of Swaziland, was arrested and put under house arrest for attempting to stage an illegal protest on 5 September 2013. TUCOSWA fully complied with Swazi laws by announcing a protest march for the Global Week of Action on 15 August 2013 to both police and the Commissioner of Labour. The Commissioner of Labour claimed not to have received the notice and argued that TUCOSWA may not organise any protests because it is not a registered trade union federation.
Jay Naidoo, Alec Muchadehama, Paul Verryn who were invited as international experts to act as panellists during the Global Inquiry Panel Swaziland as well as Paliani Chinguwo from the Southern African Trade Union Coordination Council (SATUCC) were questioned at the police station upon arrival in Manzini on 5 September 2013.
On 4 and 5 September police followed staff from the ITUC, COSATU, FES/DGB and Industriall around the clock. A few hours before the Global Inquiry Panel Swaziland was scheduled to begin, police and military entered the venue and blocked the meeting room. Senior police officers stated they had verbal instructions to prevent the inquiry but were not able to produce a court order.