WINDHOEK– The Minister of Foreign Affairs Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah on Sunday evening attended a crisis meeting in Pretoria, South Africa to discuss the recent events in the Kingdom of Lesotho following claims of a military coup d’état in that country.
Nandi-Ndaitwah confirmed the meeting on Sunday, which comprised of her and the foreign affairs counterparts from other SADC member states.
Lesotho Prime Minister Thomas Thabane has reportedly fled to South Africa after alleging the army ousted him in a coup but, interestingly, the army has denied ever staging a coup.
According to South African-based News24, Thabane called on SADC to send peacekeeping troops to Lesotho, warning that the situation is out of hand.
Though Nandi-Ndaitwah earlier confirmed having attended the emergency meeting, efforts to contact her to confirm the reports proved futile and she could not be reached on her mobile phone.
The meeting was convened by South Africa in its capacity as chair of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation.
Lesotho was due to take over the chairmanship of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation during the SADC summit that was held in Zimbabwe but SADC leaders decided to hand the chairmanship to South Africa because of the political instability in coup-prone Lesotho.
United Nations (UN) Secretary General Ban Ki-moon voiced concern about the alleged coup and called on all political parties to resolve their differences peacefully.
Ban called for respect for the constitutional order and democratic rule.
“We urge all parties to refrain from violence and work together towards a peaceful and lasting resolution of their differences,” Ban said.
Ban welcomed earlier efforts by the regional bloc known as the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Commonwealth and other partners of Lesotho to support the restoration of trust among members of the Coalition Government and urged all parties to continue to play an active role in the promotion of peace in Lesotho.
The UN secretary general reaffirmed the continued support of the United Nations for these efforts.
“I have been removed from control not by the people but by the armed forces, and that is illegal.
“I came into South Africa this morning and I will return as soon as my life is not in danger,” Thabane told BBC.
The fragile tripartite political marriage broke down when Prime Minister Thomas Thabane dissolved the country’s parliament after discovering that lawmakers were planning to pass a vote of no confidence in his leadership.
If it is confirmed a coup was staged, Lesotho will be axed from the African Union as well as SADC, as both bodies do not condone unconstitutional changes of government and have a standing policy that any member state which unconstitutionally changes its government will face the axe.