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| Bushman woman, CKGR, Botswana 2004
© Stephen Corry/Survival |
President Mogae of Botswana told a protester in the UK this week that the
Gana and Gwi 'Bushmen' who have been forced off their land in the Central
Kalahari Game Reserve will not be allowed to go home. He declared, 'the
Central Kalahari Game Reserve is for animals, not people.'
President Mogae was met by a peaceful protest outside University College,
Oxford, where he was having lunch during his visit to the UK. When asked by a
student if the Bushmen would be allowed to go back to their homes in the
Reserve, he replied, 'No, no, no, they won't'. Video of the
encounter has been passed to Survival. To view this film, click here.
This statement by President Mogae appears to pre-judge the ongoing court case
bring brought by the Bushmen to be allowed to go home. It also contradicts
numerous assurances by Ministers that the Bushmen are free to return to the
Reserve, and have not been forced out against their will.
A representative of the college students handed President Mogae a letter
which declares, 'The eviction of tribal peoples from their land, and
their forced assimilation into an alien society is intolerable… Those Bushmen
who wish to return to their land should be allowed to do so.'
For more information contact Miriam Ross (+44) (0)20 7687 8734 or email mr@survival-international.org
