SA offers a cow and an apology to Lesotho King
The South African Minister of International Relations handed over - what she described as a beautiful cow - to demonstrate SA's regret following an incident at the border between the two neighbours.
Minister Lindiwe Sisulu visited the mountain kingdom of Lesotho yesterday to offer her personal apology about the manner in which the King of Lesotho, His Majesty King Letsie III was treated at the Maseru Bridge border post.
The department says in a statement, the Minister received a briefing from her counterpart, Minister Lesego Makgothi, about the "unfortunate and regrettable incident at the border in which His Majesty the King was affected."
Minister Sisulu told King Letsie III during their meeting that the South African government was working on increasing capacity at the border post.
Authorities have also been discussing a permanent solution geared at managing the travel movements of the King, as well as eminent persons travelling between South Africa and Lesotho.
"We have come here to convey our apology to His Majesty the King, the Lesotho Prime Minister and to the entire Basotho nation for the inconvenience caused and also to explain to the King what we intend and are committed to do. We are happy that our apology has been accepted", said Sisulu.
She added various government structures form part of the discussion to solve the problems at the border post.
"Minister of Home Affairs, Hon Gigaba will not be alone in solving these challenges. We are all including the Free State Government fully committed to urgently attend to matters of migration between the two countries. The Basotho did not discriminate against us during our struggle for freedom, we are effectively one people."
In handing over the cow, Sisulu said it formed part of the tradition to pledge responsibility.
"It is a beautiful cow to show that we really mean what we came to say."