Commission calls for addressing of Zambezi security issue

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defense and Security has implored the Head of State to address the security issue in Zambezi through the Namibia Botswana Joint Commission to alleviate the fears of residents living along the borders.

The recommendation comes after the committee held consultative meetings with various stakeholders on the state of the region’s security in 2022.

The visit by the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defense and Security was prompted by the increase in incidents of the Botswana defense Force-BDF harassment and shootings of the communities living along the Chobe River that is said to have reached a critical stage, calling for an intervention to find a lasting solution paramount.

The report compiled by the standing committee suggested that the shooting of the three Namibian men and a Zambian national who were suspected to be poachers attracted a public outcry for government to address the situation to avoid further loss of life.

“Since independence, cases of such incidents have been experienced on many occasions despite Namibia and Botswana having signed a boundary treaty in 2018. The treaty is, however, being disputed by all four traditional authorities in the region, who claim to have been not consulted before the signing of the treaty,” states the report.

The report also confirms that community members along the borderline from Mahunga to Kasika are not happy with the current boundary treaty, claiming that they were not consulted and therefore call for fresh negotiations and the reversal of the current boundary lines, back to the Berlin Treaty of 1884 as was affirmed by the Berlin Conference of 1890.

The report concludes that incidents of harassments and intimidation being experienced by the communities living along the borderline are difficult to investigate without the cooperation of Botswana authorities.

(NAMPA)
AI/HP/EK
(NAMPA)