SURVEILLANCE AND PRIVACY OF ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS While there have been no reported cases of the state spying on citizens, Lesotho is at high risk of state surveillance, as the government can legally circumvent freedom of expression using a claw-back clause in the Constitution. In 2012, Lesotho enacted the Data Protection Act meant to regulate the collection of personal information in line with international standards. Most worrying is the National Security Services Act which empowers the minister to intercept communications, inconsistent with the standard of having a judge make such a decision. GENDER AND THE MEDIA History was made when Nthomeng Majara was elected as the first woman deputy prime minister in Lesotho in November 2022. In fact, last year’s election saw a marginal increase of 25 percent in the number of women, who managed to claim their space in parliament. There is renewed hope that with the presence of a woman in such an authoritative position could be put the issue of gender based violence high on the agenda. The issue of gender based violence, which was identified as the most important women’srights issue by almost two-thirds (64 percent) of citizens in a 2018 Afrobarometer survey, will now be on a priority list for the government to address.(6) The gender issue in the country is particularly evident in the media sector, as there are a large number of women entering journalism training institutions but very few of them occupy decision making positions, as these are dominated by men. This is further impeded by the lack of equal opportunities and sexual harassment policies in media outlets. This in some way translates to news coverage being adverse as women are largely covered as victims in news stories, while men continue being portrayed as people with authority and the heroes in communities. The negative portrayal of women is most prevalent on radio, with presenters often voicing shocking, misogynistic views. However there has been a marked improvement and women and their achievements are becoming newsworthy. References LESOTHO: CHANGE BRINGS HOPE (1) Lesotho’s election brought change: Six things needed to promote peace and democracy https://www.accord.org.za/analysis/lesothos-election-brought-change-sixthings-needed-to-promote-peace-and-democracy/ (2) Electoral Reform and Political Stability in Lesotho https://www.accord.org.za/ajcr-issues/electoral-reform-and-political-stability-in-lesotho/ (3) Lesotho bungles political reforms, risking fresh bout of instability after 2022 poll https://theconversation.com/lesotho-bungles-political-reforms-risking-fresh-bout-of-instability-after-2022-poll-191778 (4) World Press Index, Reporters without borders: Lesotho, https://rsf.org/en/analyse_regionale?617 Accessed on 19 February, 2023 (5) African Freedom of expression exchange https://africafex.org/country-highlights/lesotho-elections-working-environment-improves-for-journalists# accessed on 19 February, 2023 (6) African Media Barometer https://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/africa-media/15526.pdf 45