The mountain kingdom of Lesotho is now currently in the spotlight as a result of political intrigue, over the past weekend the Prime Minister of the country Tom Thabane has left to South Africa. The reports surfacing are that the Prime Minister has fled the country as a result of an attempted coup attempt that has to with the issue of control of the military. The Prime Minister has since deflated the tension by going on South African radio to explain that he is only in the country to visit his daughter. Lesotho is a truly unique country as it dates its historical formation to the rule of Chief Moshoeshoe in the 1800s. The country is landlocked within South Africa and has a mountainous terrain. The country has been independent since 1966 and has always faced political uncertainty dues to its heavily dependent relationship with South Africa. In the context of the current political crisis is it time to rethink Lesotho as a state within South Africa and not and Independent country?

Lesotho since its independence in 1966 has always had a weird kind of political good fortune, in fact this has been the case since the 1800s. The country is in many respects the result of colonialism and the fight for land and territory that defined the period of the Boer and British treks across Southern Africa. The Kingdom due to the mountainous nature of the terrain was largely protected from the impact of both Afrikaner and English settlement. Thus the country was able to gain independence quite early in Southern Africa in 1966 compared to the political liberation in both Zimbabwe, Namibia and South Africa. The country being the only independent country in colonial Southern Africa and in the midst of apartheid South Africa.

The country has always been placed in a difficult situation between its dependence on South Africa during apartheid and its support for the Liberation movement. Many freedom fighters in South Africa were in exile in Lesotho and many went to school in the country as well. The fact that Lesotho housed ANC and PAC exiles meant that the country’s territory was always encroached by apartheid forces and having to tread a fine line politically with the apartheid government in Pretoria. Lesotho was also had to face intervention in 1998 to quell riots that occurred after disputed parliamentary elections that same year.

For this writer the reasons for constant political turmoil in the country is that is seeking to build a modern economy under colonial borders. Lesotho as an independent kingdom was a result of fighting colonialism, it was not built for a modern economy. Thus the country has a weak economy and most of the markets for any products or services are from South Africa. Lesotho is in many respects another province in South Africa sharing many social and cultural norms just functioning as an independent nation.

The question to answer is whether Lesotho should relinquish its sovereignty and become citizens of South Africa?  This is not an issue that can be easily solved, the current infrastructure cannot be simply dissolved at a stroke of the button. But the country’s social, cultural and economic reliance on South Africa have led to Lesotho acting like a province rather than a country. Lesotho’s independence is strange ad it is both historically interesting, the question of whether it needs to be independent or accede to South Africa is something that will have to be the decision of local people.