Foreign affairs distances itself from Dalai Lama visit
Baboki Kayawe | Wednesday June 14, 2017 17:20
Appearing before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), foreign affairs permanent secretary, Gaeimelwe Goitsemang, said government supports the long standing “One China” Policy, and Botswana would not breach biletaral relations between the two by coordinating the Dalai Lama’s visit.
“We know he is coming here, but not as a guest of the government of Botswana. He has been privately invited as a conference guest that as government we got nothing to do with,” Goitsemang said.
The diplomat said as an ally to the Asian country, Botswana may not want to undermine relations “because we have a lot to do with China”. He conceded to the Committee that the Chinese government had approached them regarding the issue and have since explained their position.
Though the ministry has denied coordinating the visit, it has since surfaced that Daphne Kadiwa; chief of protocol in the Ministry is engaged in the visit. Member of Parliament (MP) for Selebi-Phikwe West, Dithapelo Koorapetse quizzed Goitsemang how come government officials like Kadiwa were in the protocol team if the ministry or government was not in anyway involved.
Goitsemang said any government official engaged did so in their personal and private capacity. Probed on whether government would issue the Tibetan leader a visa, Goitsemang said that lied entirely with the Ministry of Nationality, Immigration and Gender Affairs.
“They are the ones who know how they will go about it because it is their matter,” he said. However, Bonnington South MP Ndaba Gaolathe asked whether government has fully made its position to Beijing regarding the Dalai Lama’s visit, and also that as a country no one has to tell Botswana what to do, Goitsemang responded in the affirmative.
The conference, ‘Botho/Ubuntu: A Dialogue on Spirituality, Science and Humanity with the Dalai Lama’ brings African humanitarian and spiritual leaders, scholars and healers into conversation with His Holiness the Dalai Lama and international neuroscientists about the African worldview of Botho/Ubuntu.
Examining African values and healing practices in light of new scientific research on social connection and trauma, the Dialogue in Botswana explores the potential of Botho/Ubuntu as a framework for healing the legacy and trauma of wars and colonialism, and advancing social justice and women’s equality.
The “One China” policy has been a hot potato whenever the spiritual leader had to visit any country with bilateral ties with China. Neighbouring South Africa for instance has denied him entry three times in the past five years. According to the policy, Tibet is part of the People’s Republic of China yet Tibet maintains its sovereignty.