Zim detains wildlife officers

25 January, 2010

KASANE - Three Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DNWP) game scouts based in Kasane have been detained in Zimbabwe for trespassing and having fire arms.

Kazungula Police Station Commander, Assistant Superintendent Chakalisa Nkoni said that the three men were caught along Kazungula/ Lesoma road on Tuesday.

Ass. Sup. Nkoni explained that the men aged between 27 and 34 were on duty tracking down lions which had earlier killed two cows at Lesoma.

He said the three were driving a government vehicle and had with them two government firearms.

The men are reported to have got lost on their hunt and were caught by Zimbabwean police.

He noted the men were to appear in court in Victoria Falls on Thursday.

He explained that on their visit to Zimbabwe, the three seemed to be traumatised by the ordeal, adding that the Botswana Police could not do anything to help, but rather the DNWP and the Botswana Embassy in Zimbabwe have to see that the officers arrive back safe since the laws are different.

Ass. Sup. Nkoni noted that they understand the situation the men are in because it is difficult to differentiate the roads between the two countries as there is no tangible structure like a border line to separate them.

He advised that people should make a habit of being accompanied by someone who is familiar with the place to guide them, adding that it was the first time this incident occurred along the Kazungula/Lesoma/Zimbabwe border line.

The border line between Botswana and Zimbabwe is not visible as it is only marked by two parallel roads.

The absence of a border line was meant to avoid restriction of the movement of wildlife in the region.

This is not the first time government employees from Botswana are arrested in Zimbabwe as in 2006, a former Botswana Television reporter and cameraman Koketso Seofela were fined arrested and Z$5 000 (about P128) for breaking Zimbabwean Immigration laws by crossing into that country without permission.BOPA

Interesting to note that the wildlife officials were tracking down the lions obviously not to view but to shoot!!! Strange the way things work with lion closed in Botswana, as the wildlife guys and farmers probably kill hundreds annually as PAC. The lion quota for the country at a maximum was 31 when still open! Go figure

Southern Africa: Botswana Officers Still Detained in Zimbabwe
Bame Piet
26 January 2010


Three officers from the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP) are still detained in Zimbabwe after they crossed into the country by mistake last week.

The armed Botswana officers, travelling in a government vehicle, were tracking lions that had killed two cows in Lesoma village along the border between the two countries. The Botswana High Commissioner in Zimbabwe, Gladys Kokorwe said yesterday that the matter has been reported to her office and that the officers were supposed to appear in court for mention yesterday afternoon.

She was not sure whether they appeared in court because of poor communications between her office in Harare and the police station that detained the three in Victoria Falls.

Kokorwe said that she will send an officer to the town today to get more information.The two towns are over 800 kilometers apart and the officer will have to fly to Victoria Falls, as it would take more days by road, the High Commissioner said.


She stated that they plan to engage a defence lawyer to represent the officers.President Ian Khama is not aware of the detention as he just resumed duty yesterday after a long holiday, his spokesman Sipho Madisa said.

The detention of the three officers follows another incident mid last year when several Batswana women and children were detained in Zimbabwe for entering the country illegally.

The group was collecting thatching grass when they found themselves in a foreign land.The borderline between the two countries is difficult to identify because there is no fence or markings. In 2006, former Botswana Television reporter Beauty Mokoba and a cameraman were arrested in Zimbabwe on charges of illegally entering the country. The two were fined and released after a day in police custody.

Botswana-Zimbabwe diplomatic row over armed scouts imminent
http://en.afrik.com

Wednesday 27 January 2010
A diplomatic row could erupt between Zimbabwe and neighboring Botswana after
three armed officers from the Botswana Department of Wildlife and National
Parks (DWNP) were arrested for straying into Zimbabwe.

The three armed scouts were nabbed last week in Kazungula close to Victoria
Falls after they crossed into Zimbabwe by "mistake while tracking lions that
had killed two cows in Lesoma village along the border".

By this morning, they were still locked up at Victoria Falls police
stattion.

The Botswana High Commissioner in Harare, Gladys Kokorwe said her office has
been notified of the arrest and that she is working 'flat out to secure
their release".

A defence lawyer to represent the scouts was being sought this morning.

Zimbabwe officials say the three should appear in court as "there is a
possibility that they could have been carrying dangerous arms of war".

Bostwana President, Ian Khama, is a staunch critic of his Zimbabwe
counterpart and has openly called for Mugabe to resign.

Kazungula Police Station Commander, Assistant Superintendent Chakalisa Nkoni
said that the three men were caught along Kazungula/Lesoma.

Ass. Sup. Nkoni explained that the men aged between 27 and 34 were on duty
tracking down lions which had earlier killed two cows at Lesoma.

"They where driving a Botswana government vehicle and had with them two
government firearms. The men are reported to have got lost on their hunt and
were caught by Zimbabwean police," he said.

He also said the scouts are due to appear in court in Victoria Falls on
Thursday and they appear to be "too traumatised by the ordeal".

The detention of the three officers follows another incident mid last year
when several Batswana women and children were detained in Zimbabwe for
entering the country illegally.

The group was collecting thatching grass when they found themselves in
Zimbabwe.

The borderline between the two countries is difficult to identify because
there is no fence or markings.

Botswana deports close to 3 000 illegal Zimbabwe immigrants per week.

it seems that people are "traumatised" by having to sit thru a red light these days. The US must be infecting the world with "Candy Ass Syndrome".

Rich

Rich,

I think you are just kidding.
But, if you are not, please let me know the next time you are flying in to Victoria Falls Airport. I will be happy to see if some of my friends in the ZRP can help you share in the experience. A few hours in the Victoria Falls Police Station will be enlightening.

Les

Botswana rangers appear in court

Court Reporter



THREE armed game rangers employed by the Botswana Ministry of Wildlife allegedly drove into Zimbabwe using an undesignated point of entry and were only arrested while driving back to their country, a Hwange resident regional magistrate has heard.
Mrs Dambudzo Malunga was told that after the three rangers had been intercepted at the Kazungula Border Post, they were found to be in possession of firearms and ammunition.
Kiabetswe Mhiko (35), of Matiba Village, Gaetsho Simane (32), of Gweta Village and Phetego Gaosengwe (27), of 1088 Platoo all in Kasane, Botswana pleaded not guilty to the charges when they appeared in court on Monday and were remanded in custody to Monday next week for trial.
They are facing a charge of border jumping, smuggling and possessing firearms and ammunition without a licence.
The Senior Public Prosecutor for the Western Division, Mrs Martha Cheda told the court that the trio is based in Kasane, Botswana.
On 19 January they drove into Zimbabwe using an undesignated point of entry.
This was discovered on the same day at Kazungula Border Post when the trio tried to cross back into their country and it was discovered that they did not have passports or permits.
It was further discovered that they had not gone through Immigration formalities as they drove straight to the exit gate wanting to go away unnoticed.

Zimbabwe is clamouring for international attention; Botswana should not be blackmailed
http://sundaystandard.info

by Sunday Standard Commentary
31.01.2010 8:27:10 P

The case of three Game Scouts who lost their way into Zimbabwe while on
patrol along the Lesoma Border will in the next few days stretch and prove a
serious test case for Botswana's diplomatic capabilities.

By snatching these scouts and charging them with criminal offences, Zimbabwe
is to the letter behaving like Iran which now and then likes to hog
international attention to itself by arresting Western citizens before
charging them with all the silly offences of violating the Islamic Republic's
sovereign integrity and espionage only to release them a few days later on
account of compassion.
It would seem like this is a new tactic that Zimbabwe is trying.

What the tactic normally does is that it deflects the public's attention
from the crimes of such countries like Zimbabwe and Iran.

Botswana should proceed with caution not to play into the hands of Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwe is today run by a Government that is nursing bruised egos.

It is a Government that is also doing everything to prove to the world just
how wronged it has been - from international sanctions to what President
Robert Mugabe likes to call re-colonisation and imperialism.
As we know Botswana Government has been at the forefront of international
condemnation of President Mugabe and his regime.

It was only a matter of time that Zimbabwe Government found something with
which to punish their Botswana counterparts for daring to speak out on the
political situation in that country.
There is nothing wrong with that.
Zimbabwe's sinister and underhand tactics only become a problem when in
trying to mete out that revenge, ordinary Batswana get caught in the
crossfire.

We have in the past made it clear that whatever Botswana does, we should be
careful not to harm ordinary Zimbabweans, in whose behalf the Zimbabwe
Government is not even operating.

While it is important for Botswana Government to appreciate the simple fact
that Zimbabwe is a failed state, it is perhaps more important to underscore
the fact that unlike, say the United Kingdom or the United States which can
shout directives from afar, Botswana and Zimbabwe are linked together by
much more than just a porous border.

The two countries' destinies are not mutually exclusive.

There simply is no way Botswana can be detached from Zimbabwe.

In short, there is simply no way Botswana can be safe and prosperous while
next door to the east, Zimbabwe is going down the gutter.

Even as Zimbabwe Government behaves irrationally as it did this week by
arresting the game scouts, Botswana should be careful to remember that
Zimbabwe is not a properly functioning state. Thus we should be patient with
them, and at all cost avoid temptations to humiliate them. If anything as a
country we should be at the forefront of efforts to uplift and help them
restore themselves to the dignity into which they once lived.

In our dealings with the Zimbabwe Government, we should remember that they
are a failed state, which has egos that have to be caressed and nursed.
This may sound simplistic, but it is not. Actually it is in the long term
interest of Botswana.

Just for the record we are in no way saying Botswana should condone or
countenance the inhuman treatment the Zimbabwe authorities are meting on
their people.

We are in no way saying Botswana should coddle Zimbabwe for the abuses and
excesses the Zimbabwean Government is doing.

But rather we are saying Botswana should be humble enough as to accept its
natural position or better still geographic proximity to Zimbabwe. We should
accept our natural responsibility to assume efforts to help Zimbabwe.

Back to the matter of the three Game Scouts: Zimbabwean authorities are
clearly grandstanding on this matter.
They also are equally clamouring for public attention.

After a long spell of feeling humiliated by Botswana, they now feel they
have gotten Botswana where it will hurt most.

We may not agree with them.
But the truth of the matter is that on this one they have law on their side.
In that respect Botswana counterparts should be careful not to play into
their hands by giving them what they want.

If Zimbabwe does not want to give diplomacy a chance, Botswana should not
grovel.

They should leave the law to take its course.

In short there should be no horse-trading which can only give Zimbabwe
government a kind of legitimacy it clamours for, but does not deserve.
Begging Zimbabwe and pleading with them only gives legitimacy to a rogue
state that destroyed millions of lives of its citizens.

Unless circumstances drastically change, what Botswana should only be
concerned with is the welfare and health of the said Game Scouts. Beyond
that, grovelling to Zimbabwe is akin to what the western countries often do
every time their citizens are kidnapped by Iran.

Zimbabwe/Botswana Tensions Rise
05/02/2010 13:10:00


Gaborone, February 05, 2010 - The Government of Botswana on Thursday recalled its intelligence and defence attaches seconded to Zimbabwe, as tensions continue to boil between the two countries over the arrest and continued detention of the officers from Botswana’s Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP).

The three DWNP officers were arrested on January 19 after they strayed into Zimbabwe while tracking lions that had been wrecking havoc in Lesona, a village near the border between the two countries. The officers, who were armed and were travelling in a Botswana government vehicle, are said to have failed to notice the borderline, which is marked by a small dust road, and were arrested on their way back to the Botswana side of the border. Since then, they have been detained at Hwange police station.

Repeated attempts by the Botswana government at various levels to resolve the matter have fallen on deaf ears. The officers appeared in court on February 1, but were further detained to next Monday, despite repeated attempts by the Botswana government to find an amicable diplomatic solution.

In a statement, the Botswana Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed “deep disappointment over the detention of the three wildlife officers in Zimbabwe despite attempts at finding an amicable diplomatic solution”.

“Efforts by Botswana have included phone calls by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Hon. Phandu Skelemani and the Botswana Police Commissioner, Mr. Thebeyame Tsimako to their counterparts in Zimbabwe to resolve this issue,” reads the statement.

“These phone calls remain unreturned, giving the impression that the Government of Zimbabwe does not want to discuss this issue with Botswana.”

The country’s ambassador to Zimbabwe, Gladys Kokorwe has also held numerous meetings with officers from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Director of Protocol and the Legal Affairs department, but all these have not brought about anything. Botswana has also twice summoned Zimbabwe’s ambassador in that country, but in vain. Kokorwe held another meeting with government representatives on Friday, but details were not immediately available.

Even interventions at the highest level have failed. At the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa early this week, Botswana Vice President Mompati Merafhe tried unsuccessfully to discuss the issue with President Robert Mugabe and Foreign Affairs Minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi.

“In view of the stance taken by the Government of the Republic of Zimbabwe to rebuff all attempts by the Government of Botswana to find diplomatic and amicable solution to the problem, Botswana has taken a decision to recall its Defence and Intelligence Attachés from Zimbabwe by the end of February 2010,” adds the statement.

“The Government of the Republic of Botswana expects the Government of the Republic of Zimbabwe to reciprocate by recalling its Defence and Central Intelligence Organisation Attachés from Botswana by the same date. The position of the Government of Botswana is that these two posts should be frozen and never to be filled.”

There are growing suspicions in Botswana that the Zimbabwean government may use the arrest of the game scouts to prove its repeated claims that Botswana is sponsoring acts of insurgency in the country.

quote:

Ass. Sup. Nkoni noted that they understand the situation the men are in because it is difficult to differentiate the roads between the two countries as there is no tangible structure like a border line to separate them.

that is if you dont consider the 90 foot wide cleared and graded border line !!!!

quote:

Originally posted by ivan carter:

quote:

Ass. Sup. Nkoni noted that they understand the situation the men are in because it is difficult to differentiate the roads between the two countries as there is no tangible structure like a border line to separate them.

that is if you dont consider the 90 foot wide cleared and graded border line !!!!

Zimbabwe and Botswana to meet on ranger dispute


(AFP) - 7 hours ago

HARARE - Zimbabwe and Botswana officials are to meet this week to resolve a
diplomatic stand-off over the detention of three Botswanan game rangers who
strayed across the border, state media reported on Sunday.

Botswana has threatened to recall its defence and intelligence envoys from
Zimbabwe by end February over what it called Harare's "rebuff" of efforts to
resolve the spat since the rangers were arrested tracking animals last
month.

Zimbabwe's Home Affairs Minister Giles Mutsekwa told The Sunday Mail
newspaper that a meeting will take place this week.

"Government is aware of the matter and we will be meeting with our Tswana
counterparts to discuss the arrest of the rangers in the coming week," he
was quoted as saying.

"Botswana is our neighbour and the issue of the rangers should not terminate
our relations," he added.

"These are our neighbours and they should understand that the matter is
before the courts. Government's intervention was, therefore, limited."

The three wildlife officers were arrested and detained after mistakenly
entering Zimbabwe while tracking animals.

Botswana said several efforts to resolve the matter, including an attempt by
Vice President Mompati Merafhe to meet President Robert Mugabe at a recent
African Union meeting, had failed.

"In view of the stance taken by the government of the republic of Zimbabwe
to rebuff all attempts... Botswana has taken a decision to recall its
defence and intelligence attaches by the end of February 2010," it said last
week.

Zimbabwe was expected to reciprocate and recall its attaches by the same
date, it said.

"The position of the government of Botswana is that these two posts should
be frozen and never be filled," it said.

Relations between Zimbabwe and Botswana have cooled since President Ian
Khama, the only leader in southern Africa openly critical of President
Robert Mugabe, came to power.

Interesting the language used to frame the issue from the two different countries. In Zim they were carrying rifles and ammunition and chasing Lion. In Botswana they merely lost their way.

Rich

Bilateral Zimbabwe-Botswana Talks Set on Detention of Gaborone Rangers
http://www1.voanews.com

The three Botswanan rangers were fined US$100 apiece in a court appearance
in Zimbabwe on Monday after being found guilty of unlawful entry into the
country, but were acquitted on arms charges

Patience Rusere | Washington 08 February 2010

A spokesman for the government of Botswana said Monday that Gaborone would
hold bilateral security talks with Zimbabwe on February 22 to iron out a
dispute over the arrest of three Botswanan game ranges within Zimbabwe.

The three were fined US$100 apiece in a court appearance Monday after being
found guilty of unlawful entry into Zimbabwe, but were acquitted on charges
of smuggling guns into the country and illegally possessing firearms.

The wildlife officials were picked up three weeks ago after inadvertently
straying into Zimbabwe as they tracked lions that had killed some cattle in
Lesoma village on the Botswana-Zimbabwe border.

Botswana recalled two attachés from its Harare embassy late last week over
the incident and said it was demanding that Zimbabwe's corresponding
security and military attachés Gaborone to leave by the end of the month.

Botswana government press secretary Jeff Ramsay told Studio Seven reporter
Patience Rusere he had not heard of the court he says their release would be
quote helpful in mending relations with Harare.

Our Gaborone correspondent Martin Ngwenya said the incident has increased
tension between Botswana nationals and Zimbabweans there

I am probably misreading the tenor of the posts; however, I can imagine the uproar if three armed Mexican, or, Canadian rangers were caught inside the US under similar circumstances

Too bad these poor saps didn't have drink fund money on them. A few quid and they would have been on their way. At least that's how it works at the airports