Sunday nights are my time to catch up on unread newspapers. Curiously – today being the World Day Against the Death Penalty– last night’s papers were full of stories about the death penalty. There are several reasons for that. First, Botswana is one of the few remaining active users of the death penalty in Africa (in 2010 only Sudan, Somalia, Equatorial Guinea and Botswana carried out death sentences; in 2009 … Read more »Debating the Death Penalty
Joy, Opportunity and Challenge
Last week – at the height of the pre-Royal Wedding coverage – a friend sent me an article claiming that, for republicans swamped by stories of last week’s Royal Wedding, “the best advice is to flee to Botswana until sanity returns”. Well, I think they may have been disappointed. Last Friday’s wedding may not have achieved the saturation coverage of the US or other places, but there was … Read more »Joy, Opportunity and Challenge
Milestones
Milestones have been on my mind over the past week. And there’s been quite a few of them. First, last Wednesday, was International Women’s Day – and not just any anniversary, but the 100th since it was first marked. I will admit, I’m a proud feminist at heart who believes that women’s rights and progress do need to be actively promoted and defended. So it was a pleasure to get … Read more »Milestones
Justice and debate in Botswana
One of my recent blogs reminded me that whilst there are a range of human rights issues discussed here in Botswana, there is one issue which above all has generated international debate – namely the position of the San communities of the Central Kalahari Game Reserve (the San are also known as Bushmen or Barsawa although all three terms are considered pejorative by some). Yesterday five members of one San … Read more »Justice and debate in Botswana
Delivering Prosperity in Botswana
If you have reached this blog from the front of our High Commission’s website, you’ll have seen that our Minister for Africa, Henry Bellingham MP, recently gave a speech on Africa: ‘UK and Africa: Delivering Prosperity Together’. In that speech, our Minister talks about growing recognition of Africa’s economic potential and how the UK and Africa can jointly benefit. Thinking of Africa as a continent of opportunity, rather than one … Read more »Delivering Prosperity in Botswana
2010 International Human Rights Day in Botswana
Last week I talked about World AIDs Day in Botswana. Tomorrow is another important commemoration – international Human Rights Day. The theme is “Human Rights Defenders who Act to end Discrimination”. It’s an important issue even in a country with a good reputation on human rights such as Botswana. And – as is inevitably the case in a country with such a high incidence of HIV/AIDs infections – the relationship … Read more »2010 International Human Rights Day in Botswana
World AIDS Day in Botswana
Botswana has many positives to its name – from economic strength, democracy and stability through to good governance. But against all those achievements, nothing challenges this small country like the prevalence of HIV/AIDS. Since the late 1990s it’s become one of the world’s most HIV infected countries. ‘Hyper-endemic’ is the official term, I think. But the reality, for a country where over 17% of the population carry the HIV virus, … Read more »World AIDS Day in Botswana
Reflections on the royal visit
Well the Botswana royal rollercoaster has now come to a gentle halt with Princes William and Harry and their team transferring onto Lesotho and South Africa. I’m now back in Gaborone busy cranking out thank you notes to the many, many people who made the visit possible and reflecting on what was achieved. I and the team here have also had a chance to digest the significant international press coverage … Read more »Reflections on the royal visit
Prince Harry’s visit to Botswana
Well our Royal visit has started. In the final few days beforehand I had the sensation we had all climbed onto a roller coaster and were climbing to the top of the big dipper before it all slipped into high speed action. We made the most of those days, doing two reconnaissance visits to a local school that Prince Harry will visit and meeting up with the advance party to … Read more »Prince Harry’s visit to Botswana
Hard work and football
After a weekend savouring the energy of pre-World Cup Johannesburg with my family, we’ve had our noses down preparing for the Princes’ visit. We’ve got most of the key elements in place now, so it is down to the nitty-gritty – car plans, guest lists, and regular phone calls back and forwards between ourselves, the Prince’s Team, Tusk Trust and the Botswana Tourism Board and authorities to make sure we … Read more »Hard work and football