Water for tourists in the Kalahari, but not for Bushmen
Tourist lodges requiring huge amounts of water are to be built on the land of the Kalahari Bushmen – but the Bushmen are not allowed to pump water from their single borehole.
Tourist lodges requiring huge amounts of water are to be built on the land of the Kalahari Bushmen – but the Bushmen are not allowed to pump water from their single borehole.
Several water boreholes have been sunk in preparation for a diamond mine in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, Botswana, but the Bushmen who live there are forbidden from taking any water at all from their own borehole.
The UN Human Rights Committee has criticised Botswana’s government over its treatment of the Bushmen. The committee urged Botswana to ensure that ‘all persons who were relocated are granted the right to return to the CKGR.'
Alexander McCall Smith, author of The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, has spoken out for the first time in support of the Kalahari Bushmen of Botswana.
Survival launches a new letter-writing campaign today asking the new President of Botswana, Lt Gen Ian Khama, to allow the Bushmen of the central Kalahari to access water on their land.
The United States Department of State has this month produced a report on human rights in Botswana. The report criticises the Botswana government’s ‘narrow interpretation’ of the High Court ruling on the Bushmen.
Supporters of Survival International in France will hold a peaceful demonstration in support of the Kalahari Bushmen on Friday, to coincide with an official visit from Botswana’s president, Festus Mogae.
The UN Human Rights Committee will meet this week to examine Botswana’s human rights record.