Botswana flouted AU Commission–documents
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A 2001 case in which Botswana failed to comply with the African Union Commission’s resolutions taken to fully compensate a local citizen who was wrongfully deported has come back to haunt the country. The revelation, which surfaced this week comes at a crucial time and could potentially cost Minister of International Affairs and Cooperation Pelonomi Venson Moitoi the AU Chairpersonship.
Venson-Moitoi is vying for the position for the second time, and it appears the odds are stacked against her, especially after failing to win the post with an outright majority obligation earlier this year.
Weekend Post has established that the citizen, John Kealeboga Modise was first unlawfully deported from his own country Botswana in 1978 and additionally removed on four separate occasions thereafter – under unclear explanations.
The deportation was believed to be politically motivated as the citizen was a staunch opposition Botswana National Front (BNF) activist.
Documents seen by Weekend Post suggest that Modise, who after the case dragged for long later passed on in 2013, was made to live unprotected in a foreign country (South Africa) not of his own choosing.He also stayed briefly in a no-man’s island between Botswana and the South African border.
The deportation separated him from his family and by extension affected and traumatised his four minor children Tsholofelo Modise, Elisabeth Modise, Gladys Modise and Winston Modise.
The development culminated in Modise roping in esteemed human rights attorney Duma Boko and an international legal human rights organisation based in London, Interights, which made submission to the African Commission to consider his case for violations of his rights under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the charter) and seek compensation.
The African Heads of State and government thereafter met in Lusaka, Zambia in July 2001, and, found multiple violations of Modise’s rights by the Republic of Botswana and requested that government take steps to remedy the violations and that it should implement the decision of the Commission.
These resolutions included confirmation and documentation of the nationality status of Modise’s children, Gladys and Elisabeth, and the issuance of nationality documents to them. The children were also said to be ‘stateless’ as a consequence of the ‘deportation’ of their father.
In addition the Commission resolved that the family be provided with “compensation of loss arising from or incidental to the violations suffered by Modise”. He claimed compensation of 5 billion pula plus 10% annual interest from the date of the Commission findings to date for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages.
According to Modise’s lawyers at Interights, the objective in asking for compensation is not to quantify the unquantifiable. “Rather we aim hereby to propose a framework by which the state may acknowledge wrongdoing and provide a material basis to enable the victims, in this case Modise and family, to heal and, in some way, reconstruct and carry on with the remainder of their lives.”
This publication has gathered that other than granting him citizenship by descent, Botswana did not fully comply with the Commission’s decision. This is despite the principle of compensation for human rights violations being very well established in the comparative law of African countries as well as in international law.
“The Commission found the Republic of Botswana in violation of articles 3(2), 5, 12(1) and (2), 13(1) and (2), 14 and 18(1) of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the ‘charter’),” stated a lawyer at the Africa Programme at Interights, Judith Oder, in her communication to the Secretary of African commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights based at Gambia.
Weekend Post has established that the Commission specifically found that the denial of Modise’s right to citizenship while he rightfully deserved it was in violation of articles 3 (2), 5 and the deportation infringed his right to movement and his right to leave and return to his country contrary to article 12(1) and (2).
“The Commission also held that granting him citizenship by registration deprive him of the freedom to participate in the government of his country and constituted a denial of his right to equal access to the public services of his country contrary to article 13 (1) and (2),” the Order insisted.
It found out that, as a consequence of his deportation, the loss of his property and belongings resulted in heavy financial losses in violation of article 14 and the deportation deprived him of his family, and his family of his support in violation of article 18(1) of the African Charter.
It is understood that since the Commission’s finding, Modise and his representative have made attempts to engage with the government of Botswana to progress the implementation of the Commission’s decision.
“However these attempts have been futile. More recently, the attempt to follow up the implementation of the Commission’s decision.”
According to a family representative, who is also the late Modise’s daughter Winston Matshidiso Modise, after 20 years of all the sufferings, when they approached the Master of Court they were told that since they turned down their compensation of P100 000 from government, the case has since been closed.
“We are very disappointed by government’s clear flouting of AUC resolutions and we will determine the next course of action including meeting President Khama and seeing if we can reach an amicable solution,” the family representative/daughter, Winston Matshidiso Modise, told Weekend Post this week.
Narrating the events, she emphasised that they felt insulted by government’s gesture to suggest to compensate them with a meagre P 100 000 after all they suffered the irreparable damage for the wrongful deportation.
If meeting with the president fails, she said, other options remain open including dragging the government to court if they see fit.
This publication has gathered that in response to Modise’s previous letters a Botswana government representative, Augustine Makgonatsotlhe the then Permanent Secretary to the president and now Ombudsman, stated that the allegation that Mr.Modise’s children are stateless “is without merit and that the offer to the family of P100 000 compensation made to Mr.Modise was done on a purely ex gratia basis and that offer has now lapsed”.
He then concluded by stating that “the recommendations of the African Union Commission are not binding on the government of Botswana and that the government is not obliged to accept and implement them.”
In his letter to President Lt. Gen. Dr. Seretse Khama Ian Khama on 28 November 2008, Mr Modise had contended that his children Elisabeth and Gladys were stateless. He felt that the state’s proposal of P100 000 was not done in good faith as his representatives who were in contact with the state were not informed of this development.
At the time Modise was summoned to the office of the then Attorney General Ian Kirby (now Judge of the Court of Appeal) where the offer was made. He then rejected the offer of P100 000 as being inadequate and not proportionate to the losses and violations he suffered.
This publication’s efforts to contact Senior Private Secretary to the President at the Office of the President Brigadier George Tlhalerwa, who was said to be handling the case, drew blanks as he was said to be outside the country on official business.
On his part, government spokesperson Jeff Ramsay confirmed knowledge of the case. He however was quick to point out that “last time I heard about the case was 10 years ago and Modise’s family was in talks with the government and I am not sure whether they reached a conclusion on the matter.”
Meanwhile, it is understood that currently six candidates have put forward their names for consideration for the commanding and influential position in which the elections are scheduled at the organization's next summit in January 2017.
Botswana, with signature rooftop diplomacy, still faces resistance from other African counterparts of her bold positions on various matters in the international sphere.
According to information from the UK based Interights “the government of Botswana’s disregard of the Commission’s decision, and its consequence failure to address the violations against Modise, conflict with Botswana’s obligations under international human rights law.”
The London based human rights NGO continues: “The government of Botswana ratified the African Charter without reservations. It is therefore obliged to adopt measures to give effect to the rights provided in the treaty and to appropriately address any violations that have occurred by providing victims of such violations with sufficient redress.”
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Local tennis team upbeat ahead of Billie Jean King cup
With almost two weeks until the 2023 Billie Jean King Cup, which will be staged in Kenya from June 12-17, 2023, the Botswana Tennis Association (BTA) ladies’ team coach, Ernest Seleke, is optimistic about reaching greater heights.
Billie Jean King Cup, or the BJK Cup, is a premier international team competition in women’s tennis, launched as the Federation Cup to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The BJK Cup is the world’s largest annual women’s international team sports competition in terms of the number of nations that compete.
The finals will feature 12 teams (Botswana, Burundi, Ghana, Kenya, Seychelles, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria, Tunisia, Mauritius, Zimbabwe, and the Democratic Republic of Congo) competing in the four round-robin groups of three. The four group winners will qualify for the semifinals, and the 2023 Billie Jean King Cup will be crowned after the completion of the knockout phase.
Closer to home, the BW Tennis team is comprised of Thato Madikwe, Leungo Monnayoo, Chelsea Chakanyuka, and Kelebogile Monnayoo. However, according to Seleke, they have not assembled the team yet as some of the players are still engaged.
“At the moment, we are depending on the players and their respective coaches in terms of training. However, I will meet up with Botswana-based players in the coming week, while the United States of America (USA) based player Madikwe will probably meet us in Kenya. Furthermore, Ekua Youri and Naledi Raguin, who are based in Spain and France respectively, will not be joining us as they will be writing their examinations,” said Seleke.
Seleke further highlighted the significance of this competition and how competitive it is. “It is a massive platform for our players to showcase their talent in tennis, and it is very competitive as countries target to get promoted to the world categories where they get to face big nations such as Spain, France, USA, and Italy. Though we are going to this tournament as underdogs because it is our second time participating, I’m confident that the girls will put in a good showing and emerge with results despite the odds,” highlighted Seleke.
Quizzed about their debut performance at the BJK Cup, he said, “I think our performance was fair considering the fact that we were newbies. We came third in our group after losing to North Macedonia and South Africa. We went on to beat Uganda, then Kenya in the playoffs. Unfortunately, we couldn’t play Burundi due to heavy rainfall and settled for the position 9/10,” he said.
For her part, team representative Leungo Monnayoo said they are working hard as they aim to do well at the tourney. “The preparations for the tourney have long begun because we practice each and every day. We want to do well, hence we need to be motivated. Furthermore, I believe in my team as we have set ourselves a big target of coming home with the trophy,” she said.
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Pep Stores donates sanitary towels to Popagano JSS
The Guidance and Counseling unit at Popagano Junior Secondary School received a donation of 790 sanitary towels from Pep stores on Thursday.
When presenting the donation, Mareledi Thebeng, the Dinokaneng Area Manager, highlighted their belief in giving back to the community, as their existence depends on the communities they serve. Thebeng pointed out that research indicates one in four girls miss school every day due to the lack of basic necessities like sanitary towels. Therefore, as a company, they strive to assist in alleviating this situation. She expressed hope that this donation would help ensure uninterrupted learning for girls.
Upon receiving the donation on behalf of the students, Charity Sambire, the President of the Student Representative Council, expressed her gratitude. Sambire specifically thanked Pep Store for their generous gift, speaking on behalf of the students, especially the girl child.
She conveyed their sincere appreciation for Pep Store’s compassion and quoted the adage, “Blessed is the hand that gives.” Sambire expressed the students’ hope for Pep Stores’ prosperity, enabling them to continue supporting the students. As a gesture of gratitude, the students pledged to excel academically.
During her speech, Motlalepula Madome, the Senior Teacher in Guidance and Counseling, highlighted that many students at the school come from disadvantaged backgrounds where parents struggle to provide basic necessities. Consequently, some students miss school when they experience menstruation due to this lack.
Madome emphasized the significance of the donation in preventing the girl child from missing lessons and its potential to improve the school’s overall results. She expressed the school’s gratitude and expressed a desire for continued support from Pep Stores.
Popagano Junior Secondary School, situated in the Okavango District, holds the second position academically in the North West region. Despite its location, the school has been dedicated to achieving excellence since 2017
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Botswana misses out critical PAP committee meeting
The Pan African Parliament (PAP) committee on gender, family, youth and people with disability in its sitting considered, adopted and recommended to the plenary session the preliminary report on the framework for the model law on gender equality.
According to the last week’s media release from PAP which is sitting with its various committees until June 2nd, the committee is following up the PAP initiative to draw up a model law on gender equality to enable national governments to harmonize, modernize and standardize their legislations to address local needs is set to be discussed in Plenary.
However, what is concerning is the fact that Botswana which is a member state missed the deliberations. Kgosi Mosadi Seboko who sat in the committee representing Botswana has since been ejected by parliament and this is a huge blow for a nation that is still battling equity and gender balance.
“Although PAP has no legislative powers it makes model laws for member states to adopt. PAP also develops protocols to be ratified by countries. The input of countries at Committee state is extremely critical. It now means the voice of Botswana is missing the discussions leading up to development of protocols or model laws,” said one of Botswana’s representative at PAP Dr. Kesitegile Gobotswang who is attending the current session.
While Botswana is missing, the committee meeting took place on the sidelines of the Sixth PAP second ordinary Session being held under the African Union Theme of the Year for 2023, “The Year of AfCFTA: Accelerating the Implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area” in Midrand, South Africa and will run up to 2 June 2023. Chairperson of the Committee, Hon Mariam Dao-Gabala expressed satisfaction with preliminary processes undertaken so far towards the formulation of the Model Law,” a release from the PAP website reads.
“The law should be suitable to all countries whatever the predominant culture or religion is. The aim is to give an opportunity to women to participate in the economic, political and social development of the continent. Women are not well positioned and face a lot of obstacles. We are introducing the idea of equity in the Law because we cannot talk about equality without equity,” said Hon Mariam Dao-Gabala in the press statement.
The release has stated that among issues to be covered by the Model Law is the migratory movements of women. The Committee proffered that this has to be addressed at the continental level to ensure that migrant women enjoy all their rights and live with dignity in their destination country. The members of the Gender Committee undertook consultations to consolidate the contributions of the various stakeholders that will be the logical framework format for the Model Law.