VZCZCXRO6698
RR RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHJO RUEHRN
DE RUEHMR #0376/01 2950720
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 220720Z OCT 09
FM AMEMBASSY MASERU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4437
INFO RUCNSAD/SADC COLLECTIVE
RUEHMR/AMEMBASSY MASERU 4871

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 MASERU 000376 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR AF/S AND INR/AF 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL LT
SUBJECT: LESOTHO POLITICAL ROUNDUP 
 
REF: A) MASERU 324   B)  MASERU  279 
 
MASERU 00000376  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
¶1.  The following is a selection of issues generating interest 
and debate in Lesotho's current political scene.  Contents 
include: 
 
- Status of talks on the allocation of parliamentary seats 
- Alleged attacker in PM's assassination attempt dies 
- Public reaction to the controversial Land Bill 
- LCD succession in question 
- Public Meetings and Processions Bill draws heavy criticism 
- Preparations for local government elections 
- Seminar on relations between Lesotho and South Africa 
- Parliamentary business 
 
 
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Status of talks on the allocation of parliamentary seats 
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¶2.  The political dialogue mediated by the Christian Council of 
Lesotho (CCL), aimed at resolving the dispute over allocation of 
proportional representation seats in parliament following the 
2007 snap elections, is still at a deadlock (reftels).  The 
multi-party negotiations were postponed indefinitely on August 
19, as the opposition parties and the governing party had 
different views about the High Court Judgment on the 2007 
Marematlou Freedom Party (MFP) vs. Independent Electoral 
Commission (IEC) case.  Since then, the chief mediator, Bishop 
Phillip Mokuku of the Anglican Church, and his CCL and civil 
society colleagues have made extensive consultations with legal 
experts in the SADC region to interpret the implications of the 
afore-mentioned case. Well placed Embassy sources from civil 
society organizations involved in the mediation process 
indicated that the CCL mediation panel needs to overcome the 
hurdle of engaging legal experts in order to pave the way for 
talks to resume in earnest. 
 
¶3.  Meanwhile, the Executive Secretary of SADC Tomaz Salomao 
arrived in Lesotho on October 11 to review progress on the 
multi-party talks. He was supposed to be accompanying ministers 
of SADC Troika on Politics, Defense and Security Cooperation 
composed of Mozambique as chair, Swaziland and Zambia, but the 
ministerial visit was cancelled at the last minute. (Note: The 
Troika visit has been rescheduled for October 25-28. End note.) 
Opposition parties and the CCL mediation panel stated that they 
only knew of Salomao's visit on the morning of the day he 
arrived.  Salomao met with opposition parties on October 12, but 
his surprise visit did not impress opposition leaders, who said 
they did not see any reason for SADC's involvement after their 
initial envoy Ketumile Masire failed to break the impasse three 
months ago. According to the Lesotho Times, opposition parties 
criticized SADC for being quick to intervene in recent disputes 
in countries like Madagascar, Zimbabwe and the DRC but dragging 
its feet when it came to Lesotho.  The newspaper further 
reported a statement released by opposition parties warning, 
"Unless urgent action is taken, Lesotho is going to move in the 
direction of a failed state." 
 
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Alleged attacker in PM's assassination attempt dies 
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¶4.  Makotoko "Mashai" Lerotholi, a former military warrant 
officer who sought exile in South Africa following his alleged 
torture at the hands of the Lesotho Defense Force in the wake of 
the 2007 attacks on GOL ministers, is reported to have died in 
Pretoria on October 16.  He was implicated as one of the 
ringleaders in the April 22 assassination attempt on the Prime 
Minister and had recently attended several hearings in South 
Africa related to Lesotho's request for his extradition.  The 
cause of his death is unknown, but he was rumored to have been 
ill since before the assassination attempt. 
 
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Public reaction to the controversial Land Bill 
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¶5.  The Land Bill of 2009 has come under strong criticism from 
various sectors including opposition parties, private citizens 
and civil society organizations. The controversy surrounding 
this bill has featured prominently on several 
opposition-oriented radio stations and in the print media for 
the past few weeks. The GOL requested assistance with drafting 
the bill as part of the Land Reform Activity within the 
Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Compact. The Land Reform 
Activity was approved by MCC after a thorough due diligence 
process which included significant consultation with members of 
Lesotho's private sector.  Opposition parties and civil society 
organizations argue that this bill is not acceptable as it is 
designed to take away the rights of poor Basotho over their land 
and give it to foreigners for investment purposes. Ordinary 
Basotho have also expressed concern about the bill during 
 
MASERU 00000376  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
popular radio call-in programs, stating that MCC funds were 
given to Lesotho in order to exert pressure on GOL to pass the 
Land Bill so that big foreign businesses can buy land in Lesotho 
to the detriment of Basotho. Under the current Land Act of 1979 
commercial entities with up to 49 percent foreign ownership can 
secure a maximum 99 year lease for land. The proposed Land Bill 
would allow foreign majority owned commercial entities to secure 
such leases. Land ownership would continue be held in trust by 
the King of Lesotho. 
 
¶6.  A member of Parliament from the main opposition party, the 
All Basotho Convention (ABC), has stated that opposition parties 
are united against this bill and they will propose a motion in 
parliament to withdraw the bill. If that fails, he stated that 
they will stage a walk-out in the National Assembly in protest. 
Some members of the public have suggested that the bill should 
be withdrawn and a referendum should take place on this 
important issue; several of Lesotho's newspapers have 
acknowledged that land reform is necessary, but that more 
consultation and compromise should take place to determine the 
appropriate way forward. The proposed bill was the product of 
two separate nation-wide commissions designed to study land 
issues and make recommendations for modernizing the land sector. 
These commissions took place in the early 1990s. 
 
 
¶7.  Comment: MCA-Lesotho has been active in educating opposition 
leaders and civil society groups about the provisions of the 
proposed law, which have been frequently misrepresented by civil 
society and opposition parties in the media.  In addition, the 
GOL has committed to increasing its own public outreach around 
the Land Bill once a parliamentary period restricting them from 
publicly commenting on the bill has passed, anticipated within 
the next two weeks. Both MCA-Lesotho and the GOL plan to 
underscore in future public outreach that the current Land Bill 
was the product of internal demands from Basotho to modernizing 
the land market.  End comment. 
 
 
--------------------------------- 
LCD succession in question 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶8.  Rumors have been circulating in the press that Prime 
Minister Pakalitha Mosisili, who has held office since 1998 and 
is 64 years old, is planning to retire.  The governing Lesotho 
Congress for Democracy (LCD) will hold a leadership conference 
later this month (date to be confirmed), and speculation is that 
Mosisili will use the occasion to announce his retirement plans. 
 These rumors have ignited a heated debate about who his 
successor as party leader will be. Two cabinet members, Minister 
of Natural Resources Monyane Moleleki and Minister of 
Communications Mothetjoa Metsing are rumored to be vying for 
Mosisili's position; the two have already begun attacking each 
other in public fora and in the press based on performance and 
the ability to lead the country. 
 
 
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Public Meetings and Processions Bill draws heavy criticism 
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¶9.  The proposed bill on Public Meetings and Processions, which 
was presented in parliament in the last week of September, has 
come under fire from various sectors of society, including 
opposition parties, labor unions, civil society organizations, 
and private citizens.  The bill stipulates that "any person who 
knowingly organizes or assists in organizing a public meeting or 
procession without permission shall be imprisoned for five years 
or pay a fine not exceeding M 10,000 (USD 1,300) or both." 
Current procedures require a police permit for any public 
procession; this new law would require authorization from the 
police (or local chief, in rural areas) for any public meeting 
or procession.  Opposition parties have already stated that this 
law is meant to gag them. Prominent local human rights lawyer 
Haee Phoofolo stated "this is the most draconian and diabolic 
piece of legislation" that he has ever seen in his life. 
 
 
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Preparations for local government elections 
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¶10.  The IEC has begun a voter education campaign which will 
take place throughout the country in preparation for local 
government elections. According to the IEC Technical Advisor, 
the local government elections are scheduled to take place in 
April 2010.  The writ of the elections is expected to be 
promulgated in January or February 2010. 
 
 
 
MASERU 00000376  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
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Seminar on relations between Lesotho and South Africa 
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¶11.  On October 1, a new political movement calling themselves 
People to People Charter Movement (PPCM) organized a seminar at 
the offices of a local NGO to discuss Lesotho's relations with 
South Africa.  Some participants' views that Lesotho should be 
incorporated into South Africa garnered significant attention in 
the media, but the bulk of the seminar was actually focused on 
calls for the GOL to negotiate better benefits for Lesotho 
nationals, such as free movement of labor like is practiced in 
EU countries. PPCM plans to hold more forums on this issue in 
the near future. 
 
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Parliamentary business 
---------------------------- 
 
¶12. Parliament will close for Christmas holidays at the end of 
November.  The Land Bill, the bill on Public Meetings and 
Processions, and the Education Bill of 2009, which has also come 
under fire, will keep both houses of Parliament busy over the 
next two months. The Education Bill, which will effectively make 
education compulsory from grade 1 up to grade 7, has been 
criticized for stipulating harsh penalties for parents who will 
fail to take their children to school and also for supporting 
corporal punishment in schools. Opposition parties and NGOs have 
publicly warned mass action to stop these controversial bills 
from being passed in both the National Assembly and the Senate. 
NOLAN