South African attack on Lesotho in 1982

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Location Lesothos (green) in South Africa (orange)
Maseru, South Africa in the background

The South African attack on Lesotho 1982 (English code name Operation Blanket ) was a commando operation of a unit of the South African Defense Force (SADF) against South African exiles on December 9, 1982 in Maseru , the capital of Lesotho . 42 people were killed. Of all the raids in South Africa on neighboring cities between 1981 and 1985, this was the most casualty. The event is also known as a massacre .

history

prehistory

In 1960, the South African apartheid government declared the activities of the African National Congress (ANC) and other opposition groups to be illegal. As a result, numerous supporters of the ANC left the country. The government of Lesotho, a country geographically enclosed by South Africa, under Prime Minister Leabua Jonathan offered asylum to many of them in the late 1970s and early 1980s. In August 1980, Jonathan and the South African Prime Minister Pieter Willem Botha met at the Peka Bridge border crossing , where Botha obtained the expulsion of some refugees from Lesotho. In return, the Lesotho Liberation Army (LLA) suspended its anti-Jonathan government activities for the time being. In 1981 there was an attack by South African special forces on exiled South Africans in Matola, Mozambique, with twelve dead.

At the time of the attack on Maseru, over 11,500 South Africans were living in Lesotho.

procedure

The raid was planned by officers from the South African Police and the SADF and carried out by members of the Special Forces , in particular the 5th Special Forces Regiment in Phalaborwa . It took place around 1:00 a.m. on the morning of December 9, 1982 and lasted about two hours. Other details indicate a period from 0:30 a.m. to 5:30 a.m. The goals were five settlement areas in Maserus, including a district that lies directly across the border . Five helicopters dropped soldiers who attacked several houses with firearms, grenades and explosives - twelve according to one source.

30 South Africans and 12 Lesother were killed. According to other sources, 8 of the 42 victims were Lesotho citizens, as well as South African refugees, ANC members and South African visitors. Some of those killed, including several children, were Lesotho citizens who had recently taken over homes from South African refugees. The dead included Zola Nqini, Jackson Tayo and Phakamile Mpongos, former inmates on Robben Island . Limpho Hani, the wife of Chris Hani , was not found by the soldiers, but her car was identified and blown up. There was no resistance from the Lesotho Paramilitary Force . Resistance came only from a South African couple who fired shots and escaped. The neighbors, a woman and two children, were shot standing by the window. According to eyewitness accounts, some victims were wrapped in blankets and set on fire. Four soldiers were injured in the action.

At the end of the operation, more than 60 soldiers stood on a hill outside the city and waited for their evacuation. The commander of the South African Security Police warned his Lesothian counterparts by telephone that obstructing the evacuation would lead to drastic countermeasures.

Reactions and aftermath

The South African Commander in Chief Constand Viljoen justified the action by saying that terrorists were killed who should have entered Lesotho shortly before and planned attacks in the homelands Transkei and Ciskei . The Lesotho government firmly denied this. Foreign Secretary Charles Dube Molapo called the attack an "insidious, cowardly and barbaric act" ( dastardly, cowardly and barbaric act ). The defense spokesman for the South African opposition Progressive Federal Party, Philip Myburgh, justified the attack on the grounds that Lesotho had received enough warnings, while Desmond Tutu , chairman of the South African Council of Churches , rejected the action as unfounded.

The UN Security Council condemned the attack December 15, 1982 with Resolution 527 unanimously, demanding financial compensation Lesotho by South Africa. The UN General Assembly had previously condemned South Africa for the attack. South Africa's actions have been criticized around the world, including by the US Reagan administration. On December 23, 27 South African victims were buried in a joint ceremony in Maseru. Present were among others the ANC President Oliver Tambo , who had traveled on the plane of Mozambican President Samora Machel , and Edem Kodjo , the Secretary General of the Organization for African Unity . December 9th has been declared a statutory day of remembrance in Lesotho.

Jonathan refused to expel any more refugees despite South African pressure and traveled to the People's Republic of China and Warsaw Pact states in May 1983 . Lesotho established diplomatic relations with China, the Soviet Union and North Korea, among others . South Africa refused to pay damages. Later in 1983, South Africa blocked the border crossings of Lesotho until refugees were flown to countries further afield with the help of the United Nations . South Africa threatened again to arm the Lesotho Liberation Army. In 1984 South Africa and Lesotho signed a non-aggression pact at the urging of South Africa; other refugees had to leave Lesotho. In December 1985 there was another attack by South African special forces on Lesotho with several dead. On January 1, 1986, South Africa blocked the border crossings again, preventing supplies to Lesotho. On January 20, with the approval of South Africa , the Lesotho military overthrew the Jonathan government. January 20th was declared a public holiday instead of December 9th.

In 1992, the South African eyewitness Phyllis Naidoo published a book about the events under the title Le rona re batho ( Sesotho ; German for example: "We too are people").

After the end of apartheid, South Africa financed the construction of apartments for some survivors.

At the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission , which met from 1996 and dealt with crimes of the apartheid period, there were - in contrast to some other attacks on neighboring countries - no offenders petitions for amnesty .

Representatives of the two states as well as of the ANC and the Basotho National Party , of which Leabua Jonathan was a member, meet regularly for commemorations.

Other events

The governments of South Africa and Lesotho negotiated in 1983 about the implementation of the present plans for the Highlands Water Project in the Maluti Mountains, with which the previous Oxbow scheme should be exceeded many times over. The expansion included the construction of dams and tunnels, as well as a pumping system to draw water from the Orange River towards the Vaal Triangle industrial area. In return, South Africa wants to make cash payments. Lesotho also linked the construction of hydropower plants with the aim of reducing dependence on the electricity sector from South Africa. Both negotiating partners had commissioned their own feasibility studies. In December 1983, the Maqalika Dam in Maseru was put into operation and recognized as an important step towards reducing the economic dependence on South Africa. Its construction was financed with funds from the Lesotho government and the African Development Bank .

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Rapelang Radebe: Lesotho, South Africa to commemorate Maseru massacre. sabcnews.com dated December 7, 2019, accessed January 10, 2020
  2. ^ A b c Scott Rosenberg, Richard W. Weisfelder, Michelle Frisbie-Fulton: Historical Dictionary of Lesotho. Scarecrow Press, Lanham, Maryland / Oxford 2004, ISBN 978-0-8108-4871-9 , pp. 378-381.
  3. ↑ a b c d e f g Sebinane Lekoekoe: Memorializing a barbarous act of aggression: the first Maseru raid (1982). archivalplatform.org, accessed on January 9, 2020
  4. ↑ Episode 82, Section 3 of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. sabctrc.org.za (English; video, in particular 6; 10 to 8; 10), accessed on January 10, 2020
  5. ↑ a b c d e Lesotho says the victims of the raid were refugees. New York Times, December 10, 1982, accessed January 9, 2020
  6. ^ SAIRR : Survey of Race Relations in South Africa 1982 . Johannesburg 1983, p. 195
  7. ↑ a b Keesing’s Record of World Events: South African raid on Maseru, Continuing guerrilla activities, Cabinet changes. web.stanford.edu , accessed January 10, 2020
  8. ^ Resolution 527 (1982) undocs.org, accessed January 9, 2020
  9. ↑ TRC: Final Report, Vol.6 Section 3 justice.gov.za (English; PDF; p. 196)
  10. ^ ANC and Basotho National Party commemorate 1982 massacre. SABC Digital News from December 10, 2019 (English; video)
  11. ^ SAIRR : Survey of Race Relations in South Africa 1983 . Johannesburg 1984, p. 592
  12. ↑ JISC: bibliographic evidence .