- Chairman says preliminary findings are that Namibians are not happy with Botswana and its army
- Report to be sent to Namibia’s National Council and National Assembly
- Botswana’s DPP to begin own inquest in Kasane Magistrates Court
TEFO PHEAGE
Botswana and its army will feature considerably in a report on hearings conducted by Namibia’s Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs, Security, Constitutional and Legal Affairs, into the security situation along the Chobe, Linyanti and Kwando rivers in Zambezi Region, the Chairman of the committee, John Likando, has said.
According to Likando, preliminary findings of his committee are that Namibians living along the frontier are not happy with the treatment they receive from Botswana and its army. “The hearings now concluded, the report will be sent to his country’s National Council and National Assembly to determine the way forward,” he added.
“Despite differences in locations and tribal affiliations, all communities engaged expressed major concerns about their safety, claiming continuous harassment by the Botswana Defence Force along the borderline,” Likando said. “(They) demand more protection despite the recent deployment of Namibian soldiers.”
The Namibian lawmaker noted that due to lack of employment opportunities in the areas, the communities rely on natural resources but this has become a source of conflict between the two countries. Other issues to be expected from the report are accusations of expansion into Namibian territory by Botswana.
According to Likando, the committee held 20 consultative meetings and also met the four traditional authorities of the affected communities, including, Mafwe, BaYei, BaSubiya and Mashi and held.
Meanwhile, the Botswana’s Directorate of Public Prosecutions has registered an inquest with the Kasane Magistrates Court. The inquest, which will begin on 15 November and run for 10 day – will probe the BDF shooting of three Namibians and a Zambian killed during a BDF patrol in November last year.
The DPP has submitted court statements of witnesses to be called and copies of an album of photographs compiled by investigators.