The IPA is preparing for new general elections by mid-2000. Legislative elections in May 1998 were determined to be generally free and fair, but the LCD's 60 percent vote translated into an almost total exclusion of opposition representation from the National Assembly. The appearance of irregularities and the virtual elimination of opposition voices from government fueled protests against the results. The Senate, the upper house of the bicameral legislature, includes royal appointees and Lesotho's 22 principal traditional chiefs, who still wield considerable authority in rural areas. Any elected government's exercise of its constitutional authority remains limited by the autonomy of the military, the royal family, and traditional clan structures.
Courts are nominally independent, but higher courts are especially subject to outside influence.
The 1984 Internal Security Act, which provides for up to 42 days of detention without charges in political cases, is among a number of laws that contradict the constitution. Freedoms of assembly, expression, and religion are generally respected. Arbitrary detention and mistreatment of civilians by security forces reportedly continue. Several nongovernmental organizations, including the Lesotho Human Rights Alert Group, operate openly. Journalists have suffered occasional harassment and attacks.