Focus On The Lesotho Defence Force (LDF)

Correspondent | Monday May 30, 2016 15:29

It reached its pinnacle after the change of government, with the fatal shooting of Lt-Gen Maaparankoe Mahao in June 2015 by fellow members of the LDF under claims that he had resisted arrest for his alleged involvement in a mutiny plot within the army.  The tragedy was preceded by the arrest of some officers and members of the LDF on allegations of planning a mutiny.  The period leading to regime change, and immediately after it, was one characterised by insecurity in the country, marked by opposition leaders, their followers and some members of the LDF fleeing the country by for fear of being assassinated by the LDF.  The glaring blaze approach of the government of the day in Lesotho, in arresting these acts and bringing about a sense of normalcy, as well as its blatant disregard for the work of the SADC Commission of Inquiry led by Judge Phumaphi, and resistance to implement its sweeping recommendations, which would clearly shake the LDF command, clearly point to the fact that the current Lesotho government and the LDF are in cahoots on this situation. This should not surprise given that at the time of the stand-off between then prime-minister and the army command, the two leading parties in the current coalition government had come out openly to countenance and embolden the unprecedented defiance of the LDF.

Since Lesotho attained independence in October 1966, the only time that relations between government and army were relatively stable was during the period 1965-70. After this period, to date, the LDF has been dogged by manipulation and politicisation, lack of professionalism and reported acts of human rights abuses. As I have written in the past, this has been all, ‘’as a result of the politicians’ penchant to use the military for their own narrow political purposes that propels the military, in specific its senior hierarchy, to openly support a given political party or parties as it is happening at the moment. This has unfortunately tipped the circumstances in the political arena from being within the capability of our politicians to solve, to one requiring external intervention and inviting our peaceful nation the opprobrium of the international community and uncomfortable spotlight of the world media.”

Several attempts at reforming the military in Lesotho have been made, starting in 1994. These have included the establishment of the Ministry of Defence in 1994, the promulgation of the 1996 LDF Act, together with its ancillary regulations. This was with a view to outline issues of management and administration, including reporting relationships, in order to foster regulation and control of the army by the government.  Furthermore, the international organisations like the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the Red Cross, previously contributed by providing technical assistance through programmes intended to promote respect for constitutionalism, human rights and submission to civilian authority. Other countries have also helped in contributing to professionalise the LDF through provision of programmes in their military and professional schools of training, in order to instill genuine professionalism within the LDF. These countries include South-Africa, Botswana, Zambia, India, Great Britain, the USA, Zimbabwe and China. Commissions of enquiry have over the years also been formed and came up with recommendations of reforms towards depoliticising and professionalising the LDF.  The latest one, the Phumaphi Commission of 2015, also recommended, among others, “….some of the political and security problems peculiar to Lesotho emanate from the Lesotho Constitution. The deficiencies and overlaps in the constitution and mandates of security institutions need to be looked into urgently with a comprehensive strategy to reform them.” Despite all the historical attempts surmised above, Lesotho continues to be clouded by periodic political instability, due in part, to the political involvement of the LDF.  A new-look approach to reforms in the LDF, including all security sector-wide reforms, will be critical for the country’s transformation, development and post-conflict peace-building. A central prerequisite for the successful reforms process will be a principled acceptance of democratic politics, informed by the will to reform on the part of various relevant partners in Lesotho – government, the opposition, civil society, and indeed the nation at large. Just like in many parts of the world where this process has been undertaken, donor assistance will be needed. SADC and other development partners have long declared their readiness to assist Lesotho in this regard once requested to do so. Taking into account past reform efforts and whether or not they have been successful, this new-look approach will be essential.

The time for these reforms will also be an opportunity to take other salient factors into considerations. These include Lesotho’s economy, its geo-political setting, and the thorny issue of whether or not Lesotho needs an army.  It would also be wise to draw from experiences of other countries which have successfully undertaken comparable reforms. The post-independence instability in Lesotho no doubt needs to bring into focus the need to review the entire edifice of governance in the country, taking into account issues of security, human rights, rule of law and democracy. The need to reform the security sector is urgent given the destructive involvement of the army in the political space. 

*Thato Mohasoa is a former Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Defence and National Security – Government of the Kingdom of Lesotho, under Prime-Minister Tom Thabane.  He writes in his personal capacity.