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SUMMARY OF EVENTS IN LESOTHO Volume 2, Number 1 (First Quarter 1995) |
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Summary of events in Lesotho is a quarterly publication compiled and published by David Ambrose since 1993 at the National University of Lesotho, P. O. Roma 180, Lesotho. |
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Reinstallation
of
King
Moshoeshoe
II
Reinstallation of King Moshoeshoe II
The
Reinstallation
of
King
Moshoeshoe
II
took
place
in
Maseru
on
25
January
1995
before
invited
guests,
but,
it
was
said
by
many,
without
much
public
enthusiasm,
the
monarchy
having
tarnished
its
image
in
recent
events,
and
being
no
longer
perceived
as
serving
any
useful
purpose.
The
uncertainty
of
who
was
King
over
the
previous
five
years
had
led
to
the
King’s
portrait
being
omitted
both
from
postage
stamps
and
from
bank
notes.
Bank
notes
played
safe
by
replacing
the
portrait
of
King
Moshoeshoe
II
by
that
of
his
namesake,
the
nineteenth
century
founder
of
the
Lesotho
Kingdom,
King
Moshoeshoe
I.
Mosisili Appointed Deputy Prime MinisterLate in January, a Deputy Prime Minister to replace Selometsi Baholo was finally appointed. He was the Minister of Education, Professor Pakalitha Mosisili, who retained the Education portfolio. Of more signifance to some people was a Cabinet reshuffle a month later in which the Foreign Minister, Molapo Qhobela, was transferred to the Ministry of Public Works. The new Minister of Foreign Affairs was the former Minister of Information, Mpho Malie. Informed sources within Parliament said that Molapo Qhobela had been against foreign intervention to solve the intractable problems with the security forces, and Mpho Malie would favour a more realistic stance in the face of the present stalemate.
Another
appointment
made
at
about
the
same
time
as
the
Cabinet
reshuffle
was
that
of
Tom
Motsoahae
Thabane
who
became
Adviser
to
the
Prime
Minister.
This
occasioned
some
surprise
because
of
Tom
Thabane’s
association
with
previous
undemocratic
regimes.
He
had
been
Principal
Secretary
for
Health
in
the
Government
of
Leabua
Jonathan,
and
later
at
different
times
Secretary
to
the
Military
Council
and
Minister
of
Foreign
Affairs
and
Information
during
the
1986-93
Military
Regime.
Rebellion In National Security ServiceThe Government’s problems with the army and police by now were indeed well known, and had rendered it powerless to take firm action in many areas. As if this were not enough, problems now emerged with the National Security Service (NSS), which was the successor to what had once been the Police Special Branch, and in the days of Leabua’s Government had had the special role of spying on the BCP. Like army and police, its staff tended to be hard core supporters of the BNP, whose role under a BCP government was likely to be full of contradictions. Unlike the army, the cause of whose disturbances in 1994 were undocumented by statements from either of the feuding factions, rebellious junior members ‘Detectives of the National Security Service’, issued their version of events in the NSS in full (text to be found in The Mirror of 5 April 1995). The junior ranks claimed that they had undertaken covert investigations which implicated ‘in a serious manner three of our very senior officers in acts that culminated into harmful compromise of the National Security Intelligence establishment’. They apparently on their own initiative decided to dismiss Colonel Mohau Thaha, Lieutenant-Colonel Molikuoa Tumane and Major Tona Putsoane from the NSS, action reminiscent of the dismissal of four senior army officers by junior ranks in November 1993, and indeed action which was a prelude to later army disturbances. When the Director of the National Security Service, Major-General Leaooa Seoane, refused to allow the dismissals, the ‘Detectives’ stated that they had in turn investigated him, and found him to be ‘at the helm of a clique’ diverting NSS activities to furthering certain political concerns. It appears that Major-General Seoane then became determined to dismiss the rebellious ‘Detectives’, and they claimed to have intercepted a letter he had written to the Attorney-General, seeking advice on this matter. At this point the rebellious NSS staff decided to take pre-emptive action, and on 20 February 1995 barred him from occupying NSS offices. Seoane then went and occupied an office in the Ministry of Defence and on 3 March, twelve of the detectives were served with letters giving them four days in which to show why action should not be taken against them for acts of insubordination and indiscipline.
On
Monday
6
March,
members
of
the
NSS
took
Major-General
Seoane
hostage,
and
after
questioning
him,
also
‘arrested’
Colonel
Thaha.
Attempts
to
secure
their
release
were
made
by
political
party
leaders,
church
leaders,
and
non-governmental
organisations.
The
NSS
members
refused
to
meet
senior
representatives
of
the
Botswana,
South
African
and
Zimbabwean
governments
who
tried
to
intervene.
They
did
however
meet
with
the
Secretary-General
of
the
Commonwealth,
Chief
Emeka
Anyaoku.
Soon
after
this
meeting,
on
25
March,
Major-General
Seoane
and
Colonel
Thaha
were
released,
on
the
understanding
that
both
would
be
brought
before
Courts
of
Law
on
charges
which
the
detectives
said
they
had
investigated.
General
rumour
was
that
these
charges
were
quite
preposterous
(planned
assassination
of
the
King
etc)
and
so
unsubstantiated
that
the
Attorney-General
was
unlikely
to
proceed
further.
At
the
same
time
it
seemed
that
no
action
was
going
to
be
taken
against
the
rebellious
detectives,
so
that
the
NSS
joined
the
police
and
army
as
‘disciplined’
forces
in
name
only,
because
senior
officers
could
not
give
orders
which
would
automatically
be
obeyed
by
subordinate
ranks.
Lawyer Claims Reinstatement of the King UnconstitutionalThere were other developments in March. It became known that a Cape Town lawyer had submitted a legal opinion to Fine Maema, the Attorney-General, that Act No. 10 of 1994 reinstating the King was likely, if challenged, to be held to be unconstitutional, and that all legislation signed by King Moshoeshoe II since his reinstatement would be regarded as invalid.
A
Maseru
lawyer,
Thabang
Khauoe,
entered
the
limelight
when
he
did
indeed
bring
a
High
Court
action
to
have
Act
No.
10
of
1994
declared
null
and
void.
On
18
March,
Khauoe
had
a
meeting
in
Pretoria
with
President
Nelson
Mandela,
the
South
African
Director
of
Foreign
Affairs,
J.
J.
Basson,
and
the
First
Secretary
to
the
South
African
High
Commission
in
Lesotho,
R.
G.
Mahlo.
It
was
reported
that
President
Mandela
urged
Khauoe
to
drop
the
case.
National Security Service ‘Ninjas’ Act with Impunity
Shortly
after
his
return
to
Lesotho
on
20
March,
Khauoe
was
said
to
have
been
kidnapped
by
National
Security
Service
‘Ninjas’.
He
was
released
12
hours
later,
obviously
injured,
but
refused
to
talk
to
the
press
about
what
had
happened
to
him.
The
NSS
also
acted
on
29
March
against
Monyane
Moleleki,
the
former
Minister
of
National
Resources
who
a
week
earlier
had
returned
to
Lesotho
after
nearly
a
year
in
exile.
He
was
also
detained
by
‘Ninjas’
while
collecting
his
children
from
school,
accompanied
by
his
wife.
He
also
made
no
statement
to
the
press
after
his
release. Report of Commission of Inquiry into Army DisturbancesAgainst a background of theoretically disciplined forces taking the law into their own hands, Government must have been wondering what concrete steps it could take to implement the Report of the Commission of Inquiry into Army Disturbances. Although not formally published by Government, long excerpts were published in the newspaper Mopheme of 14 March 1995. The Report recommended the restructuring of the Defence Force and its employment in civil works for which technical and professional personnel should be recruited. The Constitution should be amended to make the Defence Commission responsible to Parliament. The Report contained many detailed recommendations, and also recommended the discharge of all found guilty of misconduct. To facilitate reconciliation and avoid further mutiny, ‘those guilty should be discharged with full terminal benefits’. Regarding the involvement of the Defence Force in disturbances, the report suggests where further enquiries might be made. In regard to the death of the Deputy Prime Minister, Mr. Selometsi Baholo it suggests that Members of ‘E’ Company could assist in explaining what happened. The Report also made recommendations on the resettlement and where appropriate incorporation into the army of former members of the Lesotho Liberation Army. It also recommend that a special committee of experts be set up to assess claims for damage to property, personal injury and loss of life arising from the army disturbances.
[updated
to
31
March
1995]
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