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| Buhsman children, South Africa
© Mark Håkansson/Survival |
Botswana's President Mogae has said that he decided to deport
Australian Professor Ken Good as a 'threat to national security' over
his links with Survival International.
President Mogae described the international concern over the
Professor's deportation as a 'big hullabaloo over the deportation of a
single, solitary white man'.
The President has falsely alleged that Good and Survival's Director
Stephen Corry have 'written numerous documents in which they described
Botswana's diamonds as blood diamonds.'
Professor Good, who had worked at Botswana University for fifteen years
before his deportation, had both his computers stolen in separate
incidents within ten days of each other.
The Botswana newspaper Mmegi reported this week that Mr Mogae ended a
recent press conference by 'volunteering information on a question
nobody had asked, [and] denying that his operatives might have broken
into Good's house and stolen his computer.'
In a statement today Professor Good said, 'I have never described
Botswana's diamonds as 'blood diamonds', nor have I ever 'teamed up'
with Survival International to sabotage Botswana's 'diamonds for
development' campaign. I have certainly exchanged correspondence with
Survival, as I have with a huge number of academics, journalists, and
other NGOs. The only way Mr Mogae would know of my email correspondence
is if the government had seen the contents of my computers.'
For more information contact Miriam Ross on (+44) (0)20 7687 8734 or mr@survival-international.org
