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| Bushman boys, Namibia
© Mark Håkansson/Survival |
A
report on human rights released earlier this year by the US government
says that the Botswana government 'forcibly resettled' the Bushmen from
their ancestral land.
The 'country report on human rights practices' says that at the end of
2003 'Basarwa remained in resettlement camps after the Government
forced them to abandon their ancestral communities within the CKGR...'
It goes on to say that 'in April 2002 the Government
forcibly resettled all Basarwa from the CKGR to the
government-created settlement areas of Kaudwane, New Xade and Xere,
where the facilities had to cope with a doubling of population without
an increase in resources. During the year, the Basarwa continued to
struggle with the lack of services and opportunities in the relocation
areas.'
Two Bushmen representatives are currently touring the US to publicise
the forced relocations, and will be meeting members of the US Congress
at the end of the month.
Survival's Director Stephen Corry said today, 'This
report is hugely significant because it confirms that no independent
observers, not even Botswana's closest allies, believe the government's
claims that the Bushmen relocated voluntarily.'
For more information,
please contact Miriam Ross at Survival International on: +44 20 7687
8734 or email mr@survival-international.org
See Related Material on the left for
further background information on the Bushmen.
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