The violent abduction and torture of Newsday Editor and human rights defender Kananelo Boloetse has raised grave concerns over the safety of journalists in Lesotho and the growing risks faced by those demanding transparency and accountability.
Boloetse was allegedly abducted from his home in Katlehong, Maseru, at approximately 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, September 5, 2026, by three unidentified men who reportedly interrogated him about his journalism and human-rights work before violently assaulting him.
The assailants allegedly threatened to return and kill him if the media reported what had happened. He was later abandoned, gravely injured, in Thaba-Bosiu.
After regaining consciousness, Boloetse managed to limp towards a nearby road, where he was rescued by the driver of a passing Sprinter. It was only through the driver that he learned he had been left in Thaba-Bosiu.
Newsday Media Managing Director and Managing Editor Lerato Peggy Matheka said the attack appeared designed not only to harm Boloetse, but also to frighten the wider newsroom into silence.
“This was not a robbery. His phones and other valuables were left intact, while the questions and threats directed at him centred on his work as a journalist and human rights defender,” Matheka said.
“The message was clear: he was being punished for his work and warned that reporting the attack could cost him his life.”
Boloetse survived the ordeal but remains traumatised and fearful for his safety. His abduction from his own home has intensified concerns that the perpetrators knew his residence and may have monitored his movements before striking.
Matheka said the entire Newsday team was shaken by the attack, but the organisation’s most urgent concern was the direct and continuing threat against Boloetse.
“We are all afraid, but we fear most for Kananelo’s life. He was taken from the one place where every person should feel safe—his home. His attackers know where he lives, they have demonstrated that they can reach him, and they have threatened to return and kill him,” she said.
“This leaves us with no reasonable basis to believe that he will be safe by simply returning home and continuing with his life as before.”
Neighbours told Newsday that a suspicious silver Toyota Starlet bearing registration number **A 887 BBC** had repeatedly driven along Boloetse’s street and made several stops opposite his residence during the afternoon preceding his abduction.
Residents reportedly believed the vehicle’s movements suggested that Boloetse’s home and activities were being monitored. Some also raised suspicions about a possible connection between the vehicle and members of one of Lesotho’s security agencies.
Newsday stressed that these accounts remain allegations and witness suspicions that have not been independently established. The organisation called on the Lesotho Mounted Police Service to trace the vehicle and rigorously investigate its movements, ownership and possible connection to the abduction.
“We are not making a finding about who was behind this attack. That responsibility belongs to a competent and impartial investigation,” Matheka said.
“However, the information provided by neighbours is significant and cannot be ignored. The police must trace this vehicle, establish who was using it and determine whether Boloetse was placed under surveillance before he was abducted.”
The attack comes shortly after Newsday suffered a serious cyberattack that disrupted its website and email services following its investigative work. It also comes against the backdrop of Section 2’s efforts to seek clarity and accountability concerning education financing in Lesotho.
Matheka said the incidents had created a disturbing impression of escalating pressure against journalists and human rights defenders working on matters of public interest.
“When a newsroom’s digital platforms are attacked and, shortly afterwards, one of its editors is abducted, tortured and threatened with death over his work, we cannot dismiss these developments casually,” she said.
“They demand an urgent, transparent and credible investigation. Journalism cannot be practised under the shadow of abduction and death.”
Newsday has appealed to the Government of Lesotho to publicly condemn the attack and provide credible guarantees for the safety of Boloetse, his family and members of the newspaper’s team.
The organisation has also called on civil-society movements, media bodies, legal organisations and human-rights defenders to unite in condemning the attack and demanding accountability.
Matheka said Newsday did not have sufficient financial and security resources to guarantee Boloetse’s continued safety and was therefore appealing to the international community for urgent protection and relocation assistance.
“We are a small, independent media organisation. We do not have the resources to provide a secure residence, professional protection or long-term relocation for our editor,” she said.
“We are appealing to international human-rights and press-freedom organisations to help move Kananelo to a place of safety before those who attacked him can carry out their threat. He narrowly survived once; we cannot gamble with his life and assume he will survive a second attack.”
Matheka warned that failure to identify both the direct perpetrators and those who may have ordered the attack would deepen fear within Lesotho’s media and embolden those who use violence to escape public scrutiny.
“This is bigger than Newsday and bigger than Kananelo. It is an attack on every journalist, whistle-blower, activist and citizen who believes that those exercising power must be held accountable,” she said.
“If violence becomes the price of asking questions, then press freedom exists only on paper. Journalism is not a crime, seeking accountability is not a crime, and defending human rights is not a crime,” Matheka said.
Summary
- The violent abduction and torture of Newsday Editor and human rights defender Kananelo Boloetse has raised grave concerns over the safety of journalists in Lesotho and the growing risks faced by those demanding transparency and accountability.
- His phones and other valuables were left intact, while the questions and threats directed at him centred on his work as a journalist and human rights defender,” Matheka said.
- The organisation called on the Lesotho Mounted Police Service to trace the vehicle and rigorously investigate its movements, ownership and possible connection to the abduction.
Authored by our expert team of writers and editors, with thorough research.
