Government counters SI campaign
Boitshepo Majube | Friday November 15, 2013 17:50
This emerged at yesterday's press conference by the Botswana Tourism Organisation, Chief Executive Officer Myra Sekgororoane who stated that the SI campaign has done damage to the industry. While only three tour operators have joined SI campaign, Sekgororoane said it was still worrisome, as 'any bad publicity is not good no matter how small it is.'
Sekgororoane explained that the government of Botswana wrote a letter to tour operators explaining its stand. 'Because we did not want to spend time counter arguing with SI we decided to explain to our tour operators what is really going on,' she said.
The said letter, dated October 4 2013, signed by Jeff Ramsay, Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Office of the President, explains the government position on the matter to tour operators, stating what it says are untruths and distortions against Botswana.
Ramsay said Botswana is an independent, sovereign and democratic country, adhering to democratic principles, good governance and the rule of law.
'Further to the above, any aggrieved party in our country has the right to approach our courts whenever he or she perceives that his or her rights have been violated,' Ramsay stated.
Ramsay said Basarwa, like other Batswana, have taken the government to the courts of law and won, citing the 2006 case in which the High Court ruled that the rights of 189 applicants had been violated in the course of their relocation outside of the CKGR. He writes that the Botswana government accepted the said judgment.
Ramsay stated that none of the CKGR's legally recognised residents are required to produce a permit to reside in the reserve. 'Permits are however provided at the entrance of the park for visitors, the nature of which is determined by their status,' the letter reads.
He said contrary to SI information, no community survives on subsistence hunting and gathering. 'People of Khoe heritage also live within every district of our country. They, like all citizens are part and parcel of local society and can thus be found in most vocations as well as localities,' it said.