View on Africa: ultimatums and ulterior motives in Lesotho

Lesotho's Mosisili risks incurring the wrath of SADC again with the release of the Phumaphi report.

In January, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) double troika on defence and security threatened to suspend Lesotho should it reject its commission of inquiry report into disruptions of peace and stability in the country.

SADC’s deadline for Lesotho to release the Phumaphi report by 1 February has passed.

Will Prime Minister Phakalitha Mosisili’s government release the report to the public when Parliament opens on 8 February? If so, which version will be released? Which recommendations will Lesotho accept and implement and what is really at stake? 

This week’s View on Africa will be presented by Dimpho Motsamai, a researcher at ISS Pretoria and Tšoeu Petlane, Director of the Transformation Resource Centre in Maseru. They will analyse current developments from both SADC and Lesotho’s points of view.

About View on Africa

Do you want to know what's happening in Africa, where it's happening and what it means for the continent's many actors?

Join the new ISS View on Africa weekly briefing every Wednesday from 11h00 - 12h00 CAT. ISS researchers from Dakar, Nairobi, Addis Ababa and Pretoria provide expert analysis of major events and trends in Africa. Introductory remarks are followed by discussions among participants.

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