Monday, May 6, 2013

Community, Police Officers and the Lesotho Justice System


Part 2-Police Officers


The nearest police station is in Mohale’s Hoek which is about an hours drive from my house.  We have driven there three days in a row this week to visit the Lesotho Mounted Police.  On Monday when we first arrived to give our statements it was the second time I have ever been in the Police station.  There are so many ways that the experience was different than anything you would ever experience in North America that I will not even try to explain it.  I will say that I was thankful that every time I had to go there I was with a large group of friends and co-workers because understanding a legal system in a different country and a language you are still learning is very difficult and frustrating.  We arrived at the police station sometime mid afternoon and by time they came back to my house, to inspect the scene of the crime is was dark and raining.  It was getting late and it seemed like no one was in the best mood.  However, when I arrived at the police station the next morning I learnt that the police went to the suspects house latter on Monday evening.  I was greeted by the lovely surprise of seeing my computer again and other items that had been taken.  Not everything had been found so we went to the suspects house with the police.  The suspect willingly started pulling things out of his house that he had stolen. It was not just my things.  There were chairs and bins and books, enough things to fill the back of a pick up truck. These things had been taken from the project where I work, the school and my house before I lived there.  This was an issue that was far bigger than me. My case was just the straw that broke the camels back.  During the rest of that day and the day after there were a lot of form and long conversations with the police officers in charge of our case.  They helped me to recover almost everything that was taken.  The man who took my things had been troubling our community for along time. Although it has been a difficult week I am glad that this man will not be causing strife in our community anymore. I hope that the process that is started can bring healing to everyone over these issues, including the man who has been stealing.  However, my main topic for this blog was meant to be the police officers.  My attitude towards them is a place where I have been humbled this week.  When we first went to them on Monday they did not seem to be very helpful, they seemed slow and inefficient and not very understanding.  But as the week has gone along, as I have become a little calmer and less upset, I have seen how they are working as best as they can to help.  They have been trying to do everything they can for me, while still following the system that is in place in this country.  And today truly showed that they are working hard and they are helping. Today is Good Friday and they drove out here to get a further statement from me instead of making me come back into town.  They also took the time to ask if I was feeling safe in my house again.  I guess humility is a good lesson to be learning on Good Friday, I just never expected to be learning it this way. (Wait for part 3 to see the conclusion of the story)