The impact of the language barrier on Lesotho democracy

Abstract

Regular multi-party elections are crucial in a democratic system, where an engaged and participatory citizenry is a hallmark of a thriving democracy. The current study aimed to investigate the impact of using mainly Sesotho as well as English during the 2022 Lesotho general elections on the participation of minority language speakers who do not fully understand both languages. To carry out this aim, a qualitative method was employed. Interviews were conducted with residents of Quthing and IEC officials, and a stratified random sample of 60 participants was selected from Basotho, Baphuthi, and Xhozas living in Quthing, as well as IEC officials. Stratified random sampling allowed for the representation of all ethnic groups in Quthing and IEC officials. Convenient sampling was also employed to select participants from the subgroups formed in stratified sampling as it provided readily available sources of data. To determine the effect of using mainly Sesotho as well as English on the participation of minority language speakers in the 2022 national elections, this study utilized the Critical theory along with the Sociological, Psychosocial, and Rational Choice models of voting behavior.

The majority of the data was analyzed thematically. The results revealed that the use of mainly Sesotho as the main language during the 2022 national elections hindered the participation of minority language speakers who did not fully understand Sesotho. It became evident that some individuals who spoke minority languages were hesitant to bring language assistants with them to the voting booths because they were afraid that their choice would not remain confidential. Others chose not to vote altogether, and one of the reasons for this was that they avoided activities that required them to communicate in Sesotho, as they disliked using this language. Additionally, some minority language speakers cast their votes with little knowledge about the elections because the use of Sesotho made information about the elections difficult to access. Incompetence in Sesotho also resulted in some people failing to persuade other members of their party to elect them to certain leadership positions within the party. Furthermore, the language barrier hindered minority language speakers from effectively communicating their needs to politicians who manage the resources of the country, which resulted in the needs of these communities remaining unaddressed.

The study suggests that the government of Lesotho should revise its election laws to include all indigenous minority languages spoken in the country. Additionally, the government should invest in creating linguistically accessible materials to ensure everyone can participate equally in elections. It is also recommended that the government should increase the representation of minority language speakers in parliament to encourage their engagement in the electoral process. Finally, Basotho should be encouraged to learn minority languages available in the country to improve inclusivity and eliminate the exclusion of individuals who speak minority languages in all national contexts.