Matlo Go Sha Mabapi

Monitor Editor | Monday September 26, 2016 11:36

The news has rubbed the neighbouring country the wrong way. When Botswana was looking for support for its candidate for the AU commission chairmanship, Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi, Botswana paid a visit to Zimbabwe where she was received with much kindness and Zimbabwe publicly declared its support for the Botswana candidate. 

As President Khama has seen  first hand the statistics, violent crimes in homes pepertrated by the economic refugees and our local prisons are full of  them. The costs of taking care of those refugees either in holding cells, prisons or deporting them, are no doubt huge. However, the pressures that the refugees have put on Botswana government in recent years are not enough justification for lambasting a fellow head of state on foreign soils. The repercussions of President Khama’s statement about a fellow head of state who has been democratically elected could soon show themselves in a few days time when friends of Zimbabwe, and possibly Zimbabwe itself, boycott Botswana’s 50th anniversary celebrations. We need  as many regional leaders as possible, including Rre Mugabe to join us for the BOT50 celebrations.

We thought President Khama, who has been the author of several near violent confrontations with Zimbabwe in recent years due to his public utterances against the Zimbabwe leader, will have by now learnt enough, that peace is fragile.

Non-confrontation has been the hallmark of Botswana diplomacy since Sir Seretse Khama days, a consistent culture that has been observed religiously over the decades by both the Masire and Mogae administrations. In fact there is a story that when he was in power, and had a delegation of the EU visiting here to beg him to publicly criticise Robert Mugabe, Botswana’s then president, Mogae, flatly refused their overtures until they gave up. 

That said, we hope for the sake of peace and tranquility between the two neighbouring, Zimbabwe would once again, let the latest provocation pass.