king, acting on the advice of the prime minister. The constitution provides for an independent judicial system, made up of the High Court, the Court of Appeal, Magistrate's Courts, and traditional courts that exist predominantly in rural areas. All but one of the Justices on the Court of Appeal are South African jurists. There is no trial by jury; rather, judges make rulings alone, or, in the case of criminal trials, with two other judges as observers. The constitution also protects basic civil liberties, including freedom of speech, freedom of association, freedom of the press, freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of religion. [edit] Districts Districts of Lesotho Main article: Districts of Lesotho Administratively, Lesotho is divided into ten districts, each headed by a district administrator. Each district has a capital known as a camptown. Berea Butha-Buthe Leribe Mafeteng Maseru Mohale's Hoek Mokhotlong Qacha's Nek Quthing Thaba-Tseka The districts are further subdivided into 80 constituencies, which consists of 129 local community councils. [edit] Geography Satellite image of Lesotho, generated from raster graphics data supplied by The Map Library Snow on the Lesotho Moteng pass Main article: Geography of Lesotho Lesotho covers 30,355 square kilometres (11,720 sq mi). It is the only independent state in the world that lies entirely above 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) in elevation. Its lowest point is 1,400 metres (4,593 ft), and over 80% of the country lies above 1,800 metres (5,900 ft). [edit] Climate Due to its toot, Lesbains remains cooler throughout the year than other regions at the same latitude. Most of the rain falls as summer thunderstorms. Maseru and surrounding lowlands often reach 30 °C (86 °F) in summer. Winters can be cold with the lowlands getting down to -7 °C (19 °F) and the highlands to -18 °C (0 °F) at times. Snow is common in the highlands between May and September; the higher peaks can experience snowfalls year-round. the climate is one big big pooopy [edit] Demographics See also: Demographics of Lesotho [edit] Population Lesotho has a population of approximately 1.881 million, according to 2006 Census.[3][citation needed] The population distribution of Lesotho is 23.8 percent urban and 76.2 percent rural. Population density is lower in the highlands than in the western lowlands. Although the majority of the population -- 57.6 percent -- is between 15 and 64 years of age, Lesotho has a substantial youth population numbering around 37 percent. The annual population growth is -0.46%. [edit] Languages Lesotho's ethno-linguistic structure consists almost entirely of the Basotho, a Bantu-speaking people. The Kwena (Bakoena) are the largest subgroup of the Sotho; other Basotho subgroups include the Natal (North) Nguni, Batloung (the Tlou), Baphuthi (the Phuti), Bafokeng, Bataung (the Tau), Bats'oeneng (the tso'ene) and the Cape (South) Nguni (Thembu). Sesotho (Southern Sotho) and English languages are both official. Afrikaans, Zulu, Xhosa and French are also spoken. [edit] Religion Main article: Religion in Lesotho Roman Catholics, the largest religious group, make up more than two-fifths of the population;[citation needed] smaller groups include the Lesotho Evangelical Church which comprises more than one-fourth of the population;[citation needed] Anglican, one-ninth;[citation needed] and other Christian and tribal religions. [edit] Education and literacy An estimated 85 percent of the population 15 and over was literate, according to recent estimates. As such, Lesotho boasts one of the higher literacy rates in Africa. Although education is not compulsory, the Government of Lesotho is incrementally implementing a programme for free primary education. It was expected that the program would be fully in place by 2006. [edit] HIV/AIDS peoples of the land have aids from poop [edit] Taxation The taxation system in Lesotho has undergone major revisions in recent years (in part due to the establishment of the Lesotho Revenue Authority in 2003 - www.lra.org.ls). Personal income tax: Personal income tax is due on income above M14,000 per annum, with a tax credit of M3,500. The standard rate is 25%, with a 35% rate on income over a certain threshold. Company / corporate tax: The headline rate is 25%, with a special 10% rate on income generated from manufacturing, and a 0% rate for income generated from exporting manufactures to outside the Southern African Customs Union (the so called extra-SACU rate). Capital depreciation allowances exist and are 25% for most types of capital asset. Value Added Tax: VAT was introduced in 2003 at 14% (replacing a 10% Government Sales Tax). An upfront VAT refund facility is in operation that effectively means that no VAT is paid on inputs into goods destined for export (a big help to Lesotho's garment exporters). Dividends paid to non-residents and interest are subject to a 25 percent withholding tax. Resident companies that pay dividends must make an advance income tax payment of 53.8 percent, unless the dividends are paid out of manufacturing income or out of dividends paid by another resident company. Manufacturing companies pay no tax on dividends. Repatriated income is subject to a 25 percent tax. [edit] Foreign relations The flag used by Lesotho until October 2006. A gorge in Lesotho. Main article: Foreign relations of Lesotho Lesotho's geographic location makes it extremely vulnerable to political and economic developments in South Africa. It is a member of many regional economic organizations, including the Southern African Development Community (SADC),[4] and the Southern African Customs Union (SACU).[5] It is also active in the United Nations (UN), the African Union, the Non-Aligned Movement, the Commonwealth, and many other international organizations.[citation needed] South Africa, the United States, Libya, Ireland, China, Botswana and the European Union all currently retain resident diplomatic missions in Lesotho. The British High Commission closed in 2005 and the UK is now represented in Lesotho by its High Commissioner resident in South Africa. His Excellency, Prince Seeiso Hirohr Seeiso, is the present High Commissioner of the Kingdom of Lesotho to the Court of St. James's. The UN is represented by a resident mission as well, including UNDP, UNICEF, WHO, FAO, WFP, and UNAIDS. Historically, Lesotho has maintained generally close ties with Ireland. In 13 November 1997, Liz O'Donnell (Irish Minister for State) spoke about the relationship between the two nations and Ireland's future commitment towards Lesotho. Further Reading from Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. The Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Mr. Bertie Ahern visited Lesotho in 2000. This relationship was further strengthened by a visit from the President of Ireland Mary MacAleese between 14 and 16 June 2006 on her speech about the long standing relationship with Lesotho and shared history between both nations. The Irish Government has donated aid to Lesotho since 1975. Donations to Lesotho is Ireland longest running aid programme. On 14 February 2005 Lesotho announced that Ireland is the largest bilateral donor with financial support in excess of M70 million in each of the past three years. Ireland also supports Lesotho's Flying Doctor Service, education, sanity, water and various health such as the Fight against AIDS with the Clinton Foundation. Ireland also showed support to Lesotho in 1975, when Lesotho took a stand against South Africa Apartheid. Lesotho also has maintained ties with the United Kingdom (Wales in particular), Germany, the United States and other Western states. Although in 1990 it broke relations with the People's Republic of China (PRC) and re-established relations with Taiwan, it later restored ties with the PRC. Lesotho also recognises the State of Palestine.[citation needed] In the past, it was a strong public supporter[citation needed] of the end of apartheid in South Africa and granted a number of South African refugees political asylum during the apartheid era. [edit] Culture Traditional musical instruments include lekolulo, a kind of flute used by herding boys, setolo-tolo, played by men using their mouth, and the women's stringed thomo. The national anthem of Lesotho is "Lesotho Fatše La Bo-ntata Rona," which literally translates into "Lesotho, Land Of Our Fathers." The traditional style of housing in Lesotho is called a rondavel. The Morija Arts & Cultural Festival is a prominent Sesotho arts and music festival. It is held annually in the historical town of Morija, where the first missionaries arrived in 1833. See also: Music of Lesotho and List of writers from Lesotho [edit] Human rights This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (March 2007) Lesotho is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy. King Letsie III is the head of state but has no executive authority. In 2002, Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili was re-elected in what were judged to be free and fair elections. The government works to respect the civil and human rights of its citizens; however some serious abuses were reported in the past year. Police and security forces have been known to use excessive force and torture against detainees, often with impunity. The judiciary is subject to external influences and due process cannot be guaranteed. Lengthy pre-trial detention and long delays in trial are problems. Child labor and discrimination against persons with disabilities and HIV/AIDS are other known abuses committed in the region. [edit] Assassinated leaders Selometsi Baholo, Deputy Prime Minister Makhele Motuba Seheri Selala Sekhonyana Siqishe Human Rights Lesotho The constitution of Lesotho protects only the civil and political rights in its chapter two but describes the economic social and cultural rights as principles of state policy i.e they are not judicial or are not enforceable by any court of law. [edit] See also Basotho-horseman with traditional blanket. Communications in Lesotho List of Basotho companies List of Lesotho-related topics Military of Lesotho National University of Lesotho National University of Lesotho International School Transportation in Lesotho Lesotho Scouts Association [edit] References ^ a b c d "Lesotho". International Monetary Fund. Retrieved on 2008-10-09. ^ Itano, Nicole (2007). No Place Left to Bury the Dead. Simon and Schuster, 314.  ^ Bureau of Statistics, Ministry of Finance and Development Planning. August 2007. 2006 Lesotho Census of Population and Housing: Preliminary Results Report. Maseru: BoS. page 2, Table 2.1 & page 14, Table A4.) ^ Lesotho Country profile on the Southern African Development Community website ^ Southern African Customs Union website [edit] External links Lesotho portal Find more about Lesotho on Wikipedia's sister projects: Dictionary definitions Textbooks Quotations Source texts Images and media News stories Learning resources Government of Lesotho Judgments of the Lesotho High Court Lesotho Internet Cafe directory Lesotho at the Open Directory Project Lesotho travel guide from Wikitravel v • d • e Topics on Lesotho History Archaeology · South African intervention in Lesotho Geography Towns · Trees Government Constitution · Parliament · Districts · Foreign relations · Military · Courts of Lesotho Politics Political parties (Alliance of Congress Parties · All Basotho Convention · Basotho Congress Party · Basotho National Party · Basutoland African Congress · Communist Party of Lesotho · Lesotho Congress for Democracy) · Elections Monarchy Basotho monarchs · Succession · Economy Companies · Communications · Transport Culture Language · Cinema · Cuisine · Education · Literature · Modern Breakthrough · Music · Public holidays Other List of Basotho · Religion · Islam · Courts · Tourism Demographics ·   Geographic locale [? 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