I.
Country and Capital City
The name of the country I am researching is
Lesotho, which is also known as the Kingdom of Lesotho. It is present within
the South African border and is surrounded by the territory of another country.
Lesotho is nearly 29,000 km2 in size, and its population is up to two million.
The capital and one of the largest cities of this country is Maseru. Lesotho
has been divided into four physiographic regions: the foothills in the center
of the country, the Orange River Valley starting from the north-east to the
south-west, the lowlands in its west and the mountain region in its east.
Nearly 50 percent of this country consists of mountains, and an average elevation
of highlands is 2,430 meters.
II.
The Colonial History of your Country
Once known as Basutoland, Lesotho emerged as
a polity in 1822 under King Moshoeshoe I. From 1821 and 1823, Moshoeshoe I
remained at the Butha-Buthe Mountain along with his people (Gill, 2003). The
subsequent evolution of this country hinged on conflicts between Dutch and
British colonists. Soon these colonists left the Cape Colony, following a
seizure from the French-allied Dutch by Britain in 1795.
In 1869, the Boers and the British signed a
treaty at Aliwal North that made the boundaries of Lesotho clear. In 1869, the
British started transferring functions from then Moshoeshoe's capital to a
police camp in the northern side, Maseru. The administration of this country
was then transferred to the Cape Colony. In March 1870, Moshoeshoe passed away,
and this marked the end of a traditional era. Then the colonial era was
started. In the early years, Lesotho was treated by Britain in the same way as
they were treating other territories. The history of people living in Lesotho
goes back as many as 35,000 years.
The colonial rule made it impossible for
local politicians to perform their duties in a better way. The economy of the
country was impacted, with the standard of life going down day by day (2019).
In addition, the social and cultural institutions were shut down, and new
institutions were established that used to teach what the colonial rule wanted.
Not only this but also it was made difficult for people to perform their
religious or spiritual duties according to their own desires, as certain
restrictions were imposed on them.
The first major event was when Moshoeshoe II
agitated for greater powers. He was placed under house arrest by Chief
Jonathan. The second major event was when two different political parties were
formed in the 1950s, with internal self-government. These parties were called
the traditional Basutoland National Party and the left-wing Basutoland Congress
Party, and Chief Leabua Jonathan headed both of them. This country got
independence on October 4, 1966.
III.
Current Political Context
Tom" Thabane is the present leader of
Lesotho. Right after the independence, politics of Lesotho took place in the
framework of a parliamentary representative democratic constitutional monarchy.
The Prime Minister was called the head of the government, and a multi-party
system was introduced in the country. Executive power was exercised for long,
and legislative power was vested in the government as well as in the chambers
of Parliament: the National Assembly and the Senate. It was also clarified that
the Judiciary would act independently.
With time, the constitution was allowed to
form a separate judicial system, which consists of the Court of Appeal, the
High Court, several traditional courts and Magistrate's Courts (2015). There is
no trial by jury system. Instead, judges are allowed to make rulings all alone.
In case of a criminal trial, two judges can work as observers.
Currently, the constitution is responsible
for protecting civil liberties, such as the freedom of association, the freedom
of speech, the freedom of peaceful assembly, the freedom of religion, and the
freedom of the press. The main political parties are Alliance of Congress
Parties, All Basotho Convention, Basotho Congress Party, Basotho National
Party, Communist Party of Lesotho, Harang Basotho Party, Lesotho Congress for
Democracy, Lesotho Workers' Party, Movement for Economic Change and Senate
Democratic Union.
After staying out of power for three years,
Pakalitha Mosisili came back to the office as PM (Prime Minister) in the
general election held in February 2015. He started working as a leader of the
Democratic Congress and defeated Tom Thabane of the All Basotho Convention. The
elections were officially held 3 June 2017. The reactions of media, election
observers, the populace and contending parties were mixed, as some believed
that Tom Thabane would be the winner and some did not. There is no set date of
when would be the next elections.
The political system of this country consists
of different components, and the media is allowed to reveal what’s happening
inside and outside the country. This means media has been given full freedom,
and no restrictions are imposed by any of the politicians or political parties.
Since 1966, when the United States of America
established a diplomatic relationship with Lesotho, the two countries have been
forefronts in almost all international issues and have maintained a good
relationship.
References
Gill, S. J. (2003).
Lesotho. Oxford Art Online.
doi:10.1093/gao/9781884446054.article.t050603
Lesotho. (2019). The
Statesman’s Yearbook Companion, 723-724.
doi:10.1057/978-1-349-95839-9_1412
Lesotho: Child Grants in
Lesotho - Poverty relief that works. (2015). doi:10.18356/9eef24ff-en
