Phumaphi Commission

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The Phumaphi Commission [ pʰuˈmapʰi ] (English: Phumaphi Commission, official English name: SADC Commission of Inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death of Brigadier Maaparankoe Mahao, German for example: “SADC Commission to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of Brigadier Maaparankoe Mahao “) Was an investigative body founded in 2015 by the Southern African Development Community (SADC). It was under the direction of the Botswana judge Mpaphi Passevil Phumaphi and dealt with events in Lesotho . The focus was on the murder of the former military commander Maaparankoe Mahao .

prehistory

In 2015 the internal situation of Lesotho was tense. After the state crisis in Lesotho in 2014 , which culminated in a coup attempt by parts of the Lesotho Defense Force (LDF) under ex-commander Kennedy Tlali Kamoli , new elections were held on February 28, 2015 with the mediation of the SADC , in which the previous government under Tom Thabane was narrowly voted out. As a result, the Thabane government appointed commander of the LDF, Mahao, was replaced by his predecessor Kamoli, while Mahao was demoted to brigadier . In May 2015, several high-ranking opposition politicians and the military, including Thabane, fled to South Africa for fear of assassinations by the LDF .

In May 2015, around 50 high-ranking military officers, apparently close to Mahao, were arrested and in some cases tortured because of an allegedly imminent attempted coup (“mutiny”). Mahao was shot dead by soldiers on June 25, 2015 while trying to leave his property.

Objective, structure and course

The responsible SADC members of the Double Troika (the heads of state of Botswana, Mozambique , South Africa, Swaziland , Zimbabwe and Tanzania ) decided after the death of Mahao, officially at the request of the government of Lesotho, to set up the commission of inquiry to end the ongoing instability of Lesotho.

The commission was headed by Judge Mpaphi Phumaphi of the Botswana Supreme Court. Nine other people, including the military, police officers, security experts, lawyers and forensic experts, from other SADC members were involved, but not from Lesotho.

The commission met for the first time on July 20, 2015 in Maseru , the capital of Lesotho. The Lesotho government under Bethuel Pakalitha Mosisili demanded that the commission discuss other issues, such as the policies of the previous government; however, the SADC refused, so that the Lesotho government delayed the official publication of the terms of reference (for example: "working basis"). The question of the conference location also led to delays. It was not until August 31, 2015 that the first witnesses could be heard in Maseru. Several witnesses who fled to South Africa were interviewed in camera in Thaba Nchu , South Africa . The 70+ witnesses included members of the government, representatives of non-governmental organizations , the Christian Council of Lesotho, the Lesotho Defense Force, the Lesotho Mounted Police Service and opposition parties. At the same time, soldiers who were arrested for “mutiny” could not be questioned. Lt. Col. Tefo Hashatsi, implicated in the murder of Mahao, initiated a procedure during the session of the commission in Lesotho that was to declare its work null and void, as it was not allowed to hear witnesses abroad and the report was officially sent to the Lesotho government had to go, not to the responsible SADC representative.

The commission met until October 2015 and the final report was signed by the commissioners on November 5th. The official recipient of the report was the chairman of the Organ on Politics, Defense and Security, Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi . The Lesotho government initially refused to receive the report as Hashatsi's case has not yet been decided. On January 18, the SADC under the leadership of Botswana President Ian Khama threatened to expel Lesotho from the SADC, whereupon the Lesothian government accepted an official publication. Before that, however, some changes were made by the Lesotho government. The names of the soldiers who are believed to be responsible for Mahao's death have been removed.

Results

The report was made available to the public on February 16, 2016. The circumstances surrounding the murder of Mahao are to be resolved vigorously in court and the suspects are to be suspended. A mutiny by soldiers is not considered proven, rather it is to be assumed that the allegations are falsified. The appointment of Mahao as commander and the removal of Kamoli on August 30, 2014 are considered legal. The report calls for Kamoli's dismissal as commander, as he is responsible for the instability and flight of opposition members. The Lesotho Constitution is also believed to be responsible for some aspects of instability. Therefore, the SADC sets up the Lesotho Oversight Committee , which is supposed to initiate constitutional reform.

aftermath

The Lesotho Times weekly Lesotho Times posted a link to the report on its website following publication and published numerous articles on the aftermath of the report. The government also posted the report online. However, it did not meet the requirements for a long time. Kamoli remained in office for the time being, the soldiers known by name in the Mahao murder case are unmolested and 23 of the soldiers arrested for “mutiny” were still standing before the court martial.

On June 28, 2016, the Double Troika met with the Lesotho government in Gaborone to reinforce the report's demands. By August 2016, Lesotho should present a report on the extent to which the demands have been implemented. At the same time, a plan was drawn up according to which the opposition politicians should return safely to Lesotho from their exile by the end of August 2016. The European Union, the African Union and the USA also urged Lesotho to implement the report's demands.

The general secretary of the small ruling party Lesotho People's Congress , Bokang Ramatšella, described the US ambassador Matthew Harrington as a "terrorist" on July 7, 2016 on the radio station Tšenelo FM and indirectly called for violence against Harrington after Harrington wanted to implement the demands the Commission.

On July 11, 2016, the editor-in-chief of the Lesotho Times , Lloyd Mutungamiri, was shot and critically injured by strangers. Ramatšella had previously threatened the newspaper's editor, Basildon Peta, with death.

At the SADC summit in Mbabane at the end of August 2016 , Lesotho was not put under pressure despite non-compliance with the demands. The opposition politicians who had fled also continued to live in exile.

On November 8, 2016, the government announced that Kamoli would resign on December 1 of that year, in accordance with the Commission's instructions. Kamoli was retired on that date. The opposition politicians returned to Lesotho and won the 2017 election . The subsequently formed government under Tom Thabane dissolved the court martial against the 23 alleged mutineers in August 2017. Two of the officers who were instrumental in Mahao's death shot and killed Kamoli's successor Motšomotšo on September 5, 2017 before they were shot themselves. Eight other suspects were arrested on December 1, 2017. Previously, Kamoli had also been arrested for murder in connection with the 2014 coup attempt.

In July 2019, under pressure from SADC, the larger parties agreed on the formation of the National Legislative Reform Authority , which is to work out proposals for fundamental reforms within a timeframe.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Call for 23 soldiers detained on mutiny charges to be released. bdlive.co.za, February 12, 2016, accessed July 30, 2016
  2. ↑ Report of the Phumaphi Commission, p. 15 (PDF), accessed on July 30, 2016
  3. ↑ Report of the Phumaphi Commission, p. 6 (English; PDF), accessed on July 30, 2016
  4. ↑ Report of the Phumaphi Commission, p. 14 (PDF), accessed on July 30, 2016
  5. ↑ Report of the Phumaphi Commission, p. 8 (PDF), accessed on July 30, 2016
  6. ↑ Report of the Phumaphi Commission, p. 9 (English; PDF), accessed on July 30, 2016
  7. ↑ Report at gov.ls (English; PDF), accessed on July 30, 2016
  8. ↑ Communiqué of the meeting (PDF), accessed on July 30, 2016
  9. ^ AU expresses concern over political developments in the kingdom of Lesotho. au.int of May 16, 2016 (English), accessed on July 30, 2016
  10. ^ SADC angers opposition. lestimes.com, April 1, 2016, accessed July 30, 2016
  11. ↑ Senior Lesotho politician denies death threat against 'terrorist' US ambassador. Daily Maverick, July 20, 2016, accessed July 30, 2016
  12. ↑ Editor under goes surgery. sundayexpress.co.ls, July 17, 2016, accessed July 30, 2016
  13. ^ Lieutenant Kamoli retires. ( Memento from November 8, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) gov.ls from November 8, 2016 (English)
  14. ^ Lesotho army commander retires. ( Memento from December 3, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) sabc.co.za from December 1, 2016 (English)
  15. ↑ Lesotho: Thabane disbands 'mutiny' court-martial. allafrica.com, August 25, 2017, accessed September 2, 2017
  16. ↑ Lesotho tilting towards gun culture. southernafrican.news of September 11, 2017, accessed on September 11, 2017
  17. ^ Soldiers arrested for Mahao's murder. Lesotho Times, December 2, 2017, accessed December 4, 2017
  18. ↑ Peter Fabricius: Will Ramaphosa's reform time table save Thabane's skin? issafrica.org of July 12, 2019, accessed on July 12, 2019