The lamentation of Basotho women

Mamphanya Mahao
Mamphanya Mahao

While the leaders of Southern African Development Community (SADC) met in Gaborone this week to discuss the political and security situation in Lesotho, there was also a group of women that wanted the heads of states to address their plight.

Mamphanya Mahao, the widow of the deceased former Lesotho Defence Force (LDF) commander, Maaparankoe Mahao, and Mamahali Mokhoro, the wife of the detained corporal Seboka Mokhoro, led this group. Although the heads of states that attended the SADC Double Troika Summit was only for invited guests, this did not stop these distressed women from travelling from Maseru to Gaborone to petition heads of states.

They submitted that petition titled “Plea to their Excellencies the leaders of SADC on the situation in Lesotho” to SADC executive director, Stergomena Lawrence Tax. They wanted Tax to convey to the heads of states the need to “address in earnest the plight our families and the country have been plunged into since May 2015”.

Editor's Comment
Human rights are sacred

It highlights the need to protect rights such as access to clean water, education, healthcare and freedom of expression.President Duma Boko, rightly honours past interventions from securing a dignified burial for Gaoberekwe Pitseng in the CKGR to promoting linguistic inclusion. Yet, they also expose a critical truth, that a nation cannot sustainably protect its people through ad hoc acts of compassion alone.It is time for both government and the...

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