In Africa’s year of elections, with democracy in retreat in
many parts of the continent, Lesotho is a pygmy beside giants like Nigeria and
other larger nations facing votes.
But many observers are watching the small mountain nation as
it heads to the polls Saturday, one of just a handful of African countries that
in the past has seen a peaceful democratic handover of power from one party to
another.
Lesotho's democratic credentials are in question after an
attempted coup in August forced Prime Minister Tom Thabane to flee the country.
Lesotho's important because, despite its problems last
August, it is often regarded as a democratic standard-bearer throughout Africa.
It's got a pretty big reputation to uphold.
- Jeff Smith, Africa specialist at the Robert F. Kennedy
Center for Justice and Human Rights
Saturday’s balloting is supposed to resolve the crisis, if
friction between political opponents and rival branches of the security forces
doesn’t derail the process.
Among the other countries facing elections this year are
Sudan, Ethiopia, Ivory Coast, Tanzania, Mali, Burkino Faso, Burundi, Chad,
Niger, Mauritania, Guinea, Central African Republic, Togo and Mauritius.
Jeff Smith, an Africa specialist at the Robert F. Kennedy
Center for Justice and Human Rights, said Lesotho's election is significant
because the nation of 2 million had been a leader in democracy, press freedom
and human rights in Africa, as other parts of the continent had seen a
backslide in democratic values.
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“Lesotho’s important because, despite its problems last
August, it is often regarded as a democratic standard-bearer throughout
Africa,” said Smith. “It’s got a pretty big reputation to uphold.”
He said Lesotho was one of the freer countries, as
democratic gains are peeled back in many parts of sub-Saharan Africa.
“We have what I’d describe as a democracy recession. There’s
a really worrying trend of leaders peacefully stealing elections,” said Smith,
citing subtle methods such as the manipulation of voter rolls by incumbent
parties to maintain a grip of power without using outright violence.
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The most dangerous sign as Lesotho heads to the polls is the
politicization of the security forces. In last year’s crisis, the police
supported Thabane while the army supported a rival.
In August, soldiers surrounded Thabane’s official residence
in Maseru, the capital, forcing him to flee to neighboring South Africa. Troops
also attacked three police stations, cut power to the city and shut down radio
stations.
Thabane returned in September and is running in Saturday's
election.
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Lesotho is the principal supplier of water to neighboring
South Africa's vital mining and industrial area. South African political
heavyweights, including President Jacob Zuma and his deputy, Cyril Ramaphosa,
intervened to try to restore stability by bringing forward the elections, which
had been due in 2017.
Ramaphosa recently extracted a pledge from Lesotho’s military
leaders that soldiers would remain in their barracks during the voting and not
interfere.
After the attempted takeover, coup leader and military
commander Lt. Gen. Tlali Kamoli fled to the mountains with 200 men and a large
supply of weapons and ammunition. But he was forced to leave the country in
November.
However, the entrenched divisions between the political
rivals and between the army and police are worrying, said Smith.
“I think it’s very dangerous and it’s one of these issues
that’s probably been beneath the surface,” he said.
The crisis began with a split last year within the coalition
government between Thabane’s All Basotho Convention party and Deputy Prime
Minister Mothetjoa Metsing's Lesotho Congress for Democracy. The prime minister
suspended parliament after Metsing’s party joined the opposition Democratic
Congress party in trying to engineer Thabane’s removal through a parliamentary
vote of no confidence.
The country’s economy is heavily reliant on a preferential
trade program, the African Growth and Opportunity Act, that exempts exports to
the U.S. from duty.
If Lesotho’s crisis isn’t resolved peacefully through
Saturday’s vote, the country risks losing that trade status, potentially
plunging the economy and the lives of its population into crisis, Smith warned.
“Given the precarious economic situation experiences by many
people, the average person can ill afford any further disruption to their
lives,” Smith said.
Under Lesotho’s election system, the party -- or coalition
of parties -- that command a parliamentary majority select a prime minister as
the nation's leader.
-http://www.latimes.com/
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