In June, a report from the UN Development Program estimated that approximately 93,000 people had returned to Lesotho as a result of COVID-19. The implementation of strict measures in neighbouring South Africa, which impacted the livelihood of migrant workers, helped spur this influx. Since October, migrant workers holding a permit are allowed to travel outside […]
Last updated:
DETENTION STATISTICS
DETENTION CAPACITY
ALTERNATIVES TO DETENTION
ADDITIONAL ENFORCEMENT DATA
PRISON DATA
POPULATION DATA
LEGAL & REGULATORY FRAMEWORK
Does the Country Have Specific Laws that Provide for Migration-Related Detention?
Detention-Related Legislation
Do Migration Detainees Have Constitutional Guarantees?
Yes/No
Constitution and articles
Adopted in
Last amendend
No
(1) Every person shall be entitled to personal liberty, that is to say, he shall not be arrested or detained save as may be authorised by law in any of the following cases, that is to say -
(i) for the purpose of preventing the unlawful entry of that person into Lesotho, or for the purpose of effecting the expulsion, extradition or other lawful removal of that person from Lesotho or for the purpose of restricting that person while he is being conveyed through Lesotho in the course of his extradition or removal as a convicted prisoner from one country to another.
1993
1993
GROUNDS FOR DETENTION
Immigration-Status-Related Grounds
DETENTION INSTITUTIONS
PROCEDURAL STANDARDS & SAFEGUARDS
COSTS & OUTSOURCING
COVID-19 DATA
TRANSPARENCY
MONITORING
NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS MONITORING BODIES
NATIONAL PREVENTIVE MECHANISMS (OPTIONAL PROTOCOL TO UN CONVENTION AGAINST TORTURE)
NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS (NGOS)
GOVERNMENTAL MONITORING BODIES
INTERNATIONAL DETENTION MONITORING
INTERNATIONAL TREATIES & TREATY BODIES
International Treaties Ratified
Ratification Year
Observation Date
CTOCSP, Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime
2004
2017
CAT, Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
2001
2017
ICRMW, International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families
2005
2017
CTOCTP, Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children
2003
2017
ICPED, International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance
2013
2017
Ratio of relevant international treaties ratified
Ratio: 15/19
Relevant Recommendations or Observations Issued by Treaty Bodies
Recommendation Year
Observation Date
Committee on Migrant Workers
"§30. recalls that administrative detention should be used only as a last resort, and recommends that the state party consider alternatives to administrative detention. it recommends that the state party:
(a) include in its second periodic report detailed disaggregated information on the number of migrant workers detained for immigration offences and the place, average duration and conditions of their detention;
(b) ensure that migrant workers detained for violations of immigration law are not detained with persons accused or convicted of a crime;
(c) ensure that the minimum guarantees enshrined in the convention are assured with regard to criminal or administrative procedures against migrant workers and members of their families."
2016
2016
2017
> UN Special Procedures
> UN Universal Periodic Review
REGIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS MECHANISMS
Regional Legal Instruments
Year of Ratification (Treaty) / Transposed (Directive) / Adoption (Regulation)
Observation Date
APRW, Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol)
2004
2004
2017
HEALTH CARE PROVISION
HEALTH IMPACTS
COVID-19
Country Updates
In June, a report from the UN Development Program estimated that approximately 93,000 people had returned to Lesotho as a result of COVID-19. The implementation of strict measures in neighbouring South Africa, which impacted the livelihood of migrant workers, helped spur this influx. Since October, migrant workers holding a permit are allowed to travel outside the country, and several restrictions were lifted.
The prime minister had urged prison officials to “minimise congestion” in March. However, in September, the conditions in Maseru prison were denounced by two former prisoners. They described the overcrowding and the lack of sanitary measures.
The GDP was unable to confirm if any measures had been taken for asylum-seekers during the pandemic.
Government Agencies
Ministry of foreign affairs - https://foreignaffairs.gov.ls/
Ministry of Home Affairs - https://www.homeaffairs.gov.ls/
International Organisations
UNHCR - https://www.unhcr.org/where-we-work/countries/lesotho
IOM - https://www.iom.int/countries/lesotho
NGO & Research Institutions
Caritas - https://caritas.org.ls/
Amnesty Lesotho - https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/africa/southern-africa/lesotho/
Human Rights watch - https://www.hrw.org/africa/lesotho
