Africa-Press – Lesotho. Last Friday marked the completion of the week-long public hearings campaign on the Proposed Initiation School Bill, which was held around the country ending in Mokhotlong.
The dialogues have attracted a positive reaction from the members of the public, who embraced the efforts for inclusion of the “seemingly underrated culture of the Basotho” in the national policies.
The Southern African Development Community Parliamentary Forum (SADC-PF) had through the support of World Vision Lesotho, brought together the Members of Parliament (MPs), who are members of Natural Resources Portfolio Committee, and the public to scrutinize the bill before it can be finalized.
The bill has been drafted and presented by the Ministry of Tourism, Environment and Culture. The public hearings took place in Quthing, Mohale’s Hoek, Berea, Leribe, Butha-Buthe and Mokhotlong.
SADC-PF Lesotho Sexual and Reproductive Health Services and Rights (SRHR) Officer ‘Mammehela Matamane disclosed that the main objective of SRHR, HIV and AIDS Governance Project, is to strengthen the capacity of participating SADC national Parliaments to advocate for SRHR through improved legislation, increased budget allocation, strengthened oversight and visible representation.
Matamane informed that it is expected that the project will in the long term achieve universal access to integrated SRHR, HIV and AIDS, and related rights, including bringing forward social change, improved health, and respect for human rights that are enjoyed by all in the SADC region.
She highlighted that the reason of having a public hearing on the proposed Initiation School bill is because, it is very critical for Parliaments to consider the public comments on the proposed bill so that it is responsive to the peoples’ needs.
Among the issues raised by the community members around the country, they urged for the bill to be inclusive of different ethnic groups found in Quthing, like Maxhosa and Baphuthi.
They proposed for initiated pastors to take the word of God to the initiation school as a form of empowering initiates with Godly information. The community members further asked for initiation school charges paid by parents to be reduced and for initiation schools to stop initiating underage children.
They also asked for the teachers of initiation schools to be paid M6000 for coaching the initiates and to be equipped with first aid skills and kits. They asked for the Initiation Committee Offices to be there in all districts.
In his closing remarks, Member of the Natural Resources Committee Hon. Thabang Kholumo applauded Mokhotlong community for taking part in the Proposed Initiation Bill.
He informed that they worked harmoniously with Basotho around the country and highly praised their participation. Hon. Kholumo indicated that in this manner, Basotho have protected the dignity of Initiation School and culture at large.
Thabang Village Chief Khang Tšita applauded the Natural Resources Committee for consulting the nation on the Bill that affects them and their culture. Chief Tšita urged for the bill to be passed so that Initiation School is protected as in his words “Initiation School has lost its dignity. ”
The proposed bill on initiation prescribes the minimum age for the initiation of both males and females as 18 years to ensure that children do not drop out of formal schools and go for initiation thereby ensuring that children stay in schools and access quality education as stated in SDG 4.
The Bill ensures that a person gets initiated at an age whereby she or he is able to give consent to be initiated with a full understanding of the consequences of the decision. The Bill further provides for the protection of a child’s welfare and rights which might be harmed by certain cultural practices.
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