The Sword and the Crown: military rule in the Kingdom of Lesotho: 1986-1988

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Periodical article

Title:	The Sword and the Crown: military rule in the Kingdom of Lesotho: 1986-1988
Author:	Machobane, L.B.B.J.
Year:	1998
Periodical:	Lesotho Law Journal: A Journal of Law and Development
Volume:	11
Issue:	2
Pages:	381-400
Language:	English
Geographic term:	Lesotho
Subjects:	politics military regimes 1980-1989
Abstract:	The 1986 military coup d'etat in the Kingdom of Lesotho and the resultant regime were in the main a joint venture between the paramilitary and the monarchy, accompanied by the chieftaincy and commoner monarchists. None of these groups aimed to coopt or use the one more than the other; their motivations essentially differed. An analysis of the first three years of the military regime sheds light on the uneasy alliance between the monarchy and the military in governance. The author discusses the continuing resistance of the Basotho National Party (BNP) to the new government, general political party opposition to military rule, the King's vision of democracy and his foreign policy towards South Africa, the return of the Basutoland Congress Party (BCP) from exile and the papal visit in September 1988, which sharpened religious conflict in the country. From the complications following the papal visit, it was clear that the alliance between the monarchy and the military had failed to provide a viable alternative to constitutional government. Note, ref.