Moroke Sekoboto
NINETEEN-year-old abduction victim, Reitumetsi Phiri, remains deeply traumatised following the harrowing events of 24 August 2023.
According to her mother, Boneswa Phiri, Reitumetsi is currently undergoing rehabilitation to recover from the psychological and emotional toll of her ordeal.
Ms Phiri made these remarks while addressing the media after one of the alleged abductors, ’Mamolefe Macheli, appeared at the Maseru Magistrates’ Court this week.
The 36-year-old Macheli, from Quthing, faces charges of attempted murder and human trafficking. Magistrate Nkhethoa Molapo, who presided over the case, revealed that Macheli, along with two accomplices, Retšelisitsoe Macheli and one Nethanduwe, allegedly abducted and drugged Reitumetsi before attempting to traffic her across the Teele Bridge in Quthing.
Macheli was apprehended at the bridge in August last year but was formally charged only this week. The delay in pressing charges remains unexplained. She was released on a M2000 bail deposit and M10 000 surety. Her accomplices, Nethanduwe and Retšelisitsoe, remain at large and are believed to be hiding in Cape Town, South Africa.
Reitumetsi fell victim to a trafficking scheme after making a post on Facebook in search of part-time work as a house cleaner or laundress to support her family. The alleged traffickers, using a fake account, promised her a cleaning job in Maseru-Southwest (Masowe) for M900.
She arranged to meet one of the traffickers at Sea Point in Maseru and informed a family friend of her plans. However, her phone soon became unreachable, and the Facebook account she had communicated with was deleted. Her family frantically appealed for help on social media, eventually learning that she had been drugged, abducted, and taken to the Teele Bridge. There, her captors tried to smuggle her into South Africa, possibly to hand her over to a human trafficking ring.
Fortunately, Reitumetsi was rescued on 24 August 2023 at the Teele Border Post.
Speaking after the court proceedings, Ms. Phiri described the devastating impact of the ordeal on her daughter.
“My daughter is still traumatised by what she went through. She was drugged with pills and injected with medication typically used during childbirth,” Ms Phiri said.
“She now lives in a rehabilitation centre for her safety and emotional wellbeing.”
Lesotho’s high unemployment rate has left many citizens desperate for any means of survival. This economic vulnerability has made Basotho prime targets for traffickers, who exploit social media to lure victims with promises of lucrative job offers.
A United Nations report on human trafficking highlights that one-third of trafficking victims are children, who often endure unimaginable abuse, including forced labour, sexual exploitation, and criminal coercion. The report also warns that rising inequalities and globalization have enabled sophisticated trafficking networks, creating new forms of modern slavery.
Similarly, a June 2024 United States report on human trafficking underscores the vulnerability of Basotho women and children. Many are trafficked into South Africa, where they are forced into domestic servitude or sex work under deplorable conditions.
