Govt launches fresh bid to fix justice system

Moorosi Tsiane

THE government, with support from the European Union (EU), has launched a fresh bid to overhaul Lesotho’s troubled justice system by improving coordination among key institutions and creating a smoother transition of cases through the justice chain.

The initiative, driven through the newly established Justice Sector Coordination Forum (JSCF), brings together the Judiciary, police, prosecution, correctional services, anti-corruption authorities, Legal Aid, the Law Society, academia, civil society and development partners.

The Forum is expected to strengthen accountability, improve access to justice and address long-standing coordination challenges that have hampered the effective delivery of justice.

Launching the initiative at a stakeholder sensitisation meeting at the Manthabiseng Convention Centre yesterday, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, Makatleho Motsoasele, said the government recognised that an effective justice system was central to good governance, stability and national development.

“The government of Lesotho recognises that an effective justice system is fundamental in the rule of law, good governance, peace, stability and national development,” Ms Motsoasele said.

She said Basotho wanted a justice system that was accessible, fair, efficient and accountable, making justice sector reform a national priority.

The JSCF forms part of the government’s response to the National Strategic Development Plan II, which calls for stronger institutional coordination, improved access to justice, efficient use of resources and closer collaboration among institutions responsible for governance and justice delivery.

Ms Motsoasele said the government was already pursuing several reforms, including reviewing outdated legislation, strengthening the legislative drafting process, decentralising Legal Aid services and expanding High Court services to the southern region.

“Justice must not only be available in law, but it must also be accessible in practice,” she said.

She said the effectiveness of the justice system depended largely on how well institutions worked together.

“The effectiveness of the entire process depends on how well these institutions work together,” she said.

It is against this backdrop that the JSCF has been established as a mechanism for collective problem-solving and coordinated action, rather than another forum for discussions without tangible results.

Ms Motsoasele said the government was also strengthening institutions across the criminal justice chain, including the Lesotho Mounted Police Service (LMPS), Directorate on Corruption and Economic Offences (DCEO), Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and Lesotho Correctional Services.

She stressed that these institutions could not effectively fulfil their mandates in isolation.

“A criminal case may begin with the police, proceed to the prosecution, come before the courts, and where there is a conviction, involve the correctional system. The effectiveness of the entire process depends on how well these institutions work together,” she said.

It is precisely this gap that the JSCF is intended to address.

The forum brings together the Judiciary, DCEO, Ministry of Law and Justice through the offices of the Attorney General and DPP, Legal Aid, Lesotho Correctional Services and LMPS, alongside the National University of Lesotho (NUL), Law Society, Lesotho Council of NGOs and development partners.

Under the new structure, the Chief Justice will provide strategic leadership and oversight, while a Sector Management Group will be responsible for national coordination and management.

District Justice Sector Coordination Forums will also be established to extend coordination beyond Maseru and ensure that challenges affecting justice delivery at grassroots level are identified and addressed.

Ms Motsoasele, however, cautioned against allowing the JSCF to become another “talk shop”.

“The forum should therefore not become simply another meeting platform. It should be a mechanism for collective problem solving and coordinated action,” she said.

She said problems identified during meetings should be matched with clear responsibilities, deadlines and mechanisms for monitoring implementation.

“Let us move from coordination to action, but from action to results,” she said.

EU Ambassador to Lesotho, Mette Sunnergren, said the establishment of the JSCF came at a critical stage of the EU-supported justice sector reform programme, with just over a year remaining.

She urged institutions to accelerate implementation following the approval of an extension to the programme.

“Sustainable reform depends on strong ownership, close partner collaboration and effective coordination across institutions,” Ms Sunnergren said.

She said the creation of the Justice Training Institute at NUL was particularly important in ensuring that skills and expertise developed through the programme remained in Lesotho.

“If we are serious about building long-term capacity across the justice sector, we must anchor training within national institutions,” she said.

Ms Sunnergren urged that, where possible, the remaining training under the project should be conducted through NUL so that the knowledge and systems developed would continue benefiting the justice sector after the EU-funded intervention ends.

She also backed the JSCF as a vehicle for institutionalising reforms rather than allowing them to disappear when individual projects come to an end.

“They are not only platforms for discussion, they are instruments for building trust, improving coherence, strengthening accountability and ensuring that reforms are institutionalised rather than temporary,” she said.

The EU Ambassador identified a standardised case management system as one potential system-wide solution to Lesotho’s persistent case backlog.

She said such a system could also support the effective implementation of the Speedy Trial Act, while improving coordination and tracking of cases across institutions.

Ms Sunnergren said lessons from joint district sessions had already demonstrated the value of institutions working together and urged stakeholders to build on those approaches.

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