Shaken but safe

Been receiving a number of phone calls and emails from concerned friends and family (thanks, guys, love you!) so I just wanted to give a quick update that while I’m terribly saddened and a bit shaken over the violent death of a Peace Corp volunteer in Maseru, I am safe and unharmed. I didn’t know Tom personally but we had mutual friends and I had considered stopping by the party he was leaving when he was shot.

There have been a few other very serious incidents recently — a friend of mine who is volunteering with the UN was mugged at knifepoint just around the corner from my house and a teacher at the American International School was shot and killed over the weekend. And in March, another PCV was attacked and sexually assaulted in Maseru. But, despite these stories and any alarmist media reports you might hear, Maseru is not a terribly unsafe place. Of course, heightened caution and vigilance should always be exercised but I’ve lived here for almost two years now and the worse thing to have happened to me was an attempted mugging of my cell phone … and that barely counts, since the attacker definitely suffered more of a beating at my hand than I did at his. And I got my phone back. So these attacks are awful and regrettable and too common but Maseru is still a generally safe place if you know the places and times to avoid.

Anyway, I am one of the undeserving fortunate few who live in a house whose every door and window has burglar bars, has an alarm and a panic button connected to a security company, surrounded by a wall topped with intimidating metal spikes and a locked gate, and a security guard who does rounds every night from 6pm to 6am. I hardly ever walk around town, preferring to drive instead, always with my car doors locked, and I don’t stop at red lights at night. Ever. These factors alone put me at significantly less risk than the Peace Corps volunteers, whose only security requirement is a front door that locks and who don’t make enough money to have a car or take taxis, so they usually walk to places.

But thanks to all of you who checked in with me. Worry not. Right now, my larger concern is with Tom, his family, and the other 90-something Peace Corps volunteers in Lesotho. May consolation, comfort and security find them wherever they are.

 

Gunfight at the Basotho Corral, Part II

Things have quieted down, although it seems there may have been a few skirmishes at foreign-owned businesses.

Government of Lesotho finally released at statement this evening, saying the Prime Minister and his family are safe. A curfew has officially been imposed; it began at 6pm and lasts until 6am (April 23). Three of the mercenaries have been killed, one is injured and another is in custody. Still no word on who these guys were, who hired them, and the extent of what exactly they were hired to do.

Interestingly, I didn’t receive notice from my employer about the curfew until after it was started … and her email said “There are serious repercussions for violating the curfew, including being shot at, so do not violate the curfew.” That bold was there in the email too. I was going to ignore the curfew but enough people got mad at me for even entertaining the idea, so I thought maybe it would be best to follow the rules. Just this once.

Back when details were rather squishy earlier today, I asked some locals what would actually happen if the prime minister or the president or someone super important actually was killed, whether the country would erupt instantly in a riot, whether the reaction would be localized, or whether people would just carry on. Most said that people would just carry on, especially since there hasn’t been a lot of unrest or animosity brewing. I hope they’re right; it would mean that this current unpleasant business will blow over quickly.

As for now, time to hit the sack. I’m sensing a cold/flu coming on and need to fight it off. Really REALLY hoping it’s not malaria that I might have picked up in Zimbabwe. That would just suck.

 

Shootings in Maseru!

Now, don’t get freaked out because shootings aren’t normal occurances in Maseru. But we did have two shootings in the past week.

The first was a “domestic” dispute at our one and only public bar on Friday — an angry man left Good Times Cafe, returned, and shot his wife in the leg and in the stomach. At least, that’s been the word on the street. I was at a house party that night and two girls who helped the victim into a car came to the party and gave us the news.

The second shooting happened early this morning — it seems a group of hired mercenaries dressed as soldiers attacked the Prime Minister’s house and a nearby military base. Rumors say that they were attempting a coup. According to the US Embassy, two vehicles breached the front perimeter gate to the PM’s residence and the PM’s military guards opened fire. The cars fled the scene and apparently headed towards the military base. They left the base and hijacked a taxi bus — I heard the military vehicle they were driving broke down. Regardless, the Lesotho Defense Force dispatched a military gun helicopter after the hijacked bus, chased it down, and exchanged fire with the runaways. Two of the three guys were killed and the third was taken into custody. Supposedly everything was calm by 8am.

But there were radio reports that more shootings happened during the day. It is unclear whether the occurances were directly related to the events at the Prime Minister’s house. The Lesotho Government has yet to issue any official statement.  I’ve also been informed that a 6pm curfew has been imposed in Maseru and that there are road closures and multiple police checkpoints on the roads heading out of the city.

It’s been very difficult to obtain any reliable information since the US Embassy sent out a security incidence report earlier today. I don’t have a television and, even if I did, there’s only one Lesotho news station. Besides, most of the news will be coming from South Africa, who is holding its national election today. The timing does seem fishy to me, but I have no news commentators to elaborate on any possible connection. We just lost one of the two national radio stations (which mostly broadcast in Sesotho) and none of the newspapers are dailies. Even the online news outlets are limited — if you want to keep tabs, try Afrol News. That’s about all we got. I never fully realized what a privilege it is in the U.S. to have teams and teams of people dedicated to providing information to citizens 24 hours a day!

I’m safe at home and have canceled my dinner plans. Which means that I will either be scanning the Internet for updates all night or watching the rest of Prison Break Season 1. I’ll be tweeting news as I get it, so come follow me if you’re interested.

Be safe, friends, wherever in the world you may be …