DIS in P2.9m torture lawsuit

TSHIRELETSO MOTLOGELWA
Staff Writer | Thursday July 11, 2013 00:00

 

Phillip Tlhage, who accuses the DIS agents of arresting him and harassment over his remarks regarding the infamous cheetah attack on President Ian Khama wants compensation for the treatment.  The letter of demand bearing the letterhead of Tlhage's lawyers Monthe Marumo & Co is said to have been delivered to the DIS and the Attorney General Chambers sometime this week.

In the letter Tlhage puts the AG, Isaac Kgosi (head of DIS), Commissioner of Police and two other operatives as defendants. Two weeks ago Mmegi reported that DIS agents arrested Tlhage on the afternoon of April 29, 2013.The letter states: 'Subsequent to his arrest (Tlhage) was taken to a facility under the control of the DIS where he was detained for nine hours. He was repeatedly threatened with physical violence and the officers of the DIS continuously told (Tlhale) that they have all personal information about him which they could use in any manner they deemed fit.

The letter furthers says that although Tlhage was not convicted of any offence, he was fingerprinted and had photos of him taken and  'made to feel like a criminal and repeatedly accused of being a threat to national security and the government of the day'.It is alleged members of DIS specifically Kgosi, and the two agents took turns 'interrogating, taunting, denigrating and threatening Tlhage with torture and violence; saying that if he did not tell them what he said about the President they had 'mechanisms' which could make him talk and they would not hesitate to use them on him if he did not talk'.

Tlhale argues that this treatment amounted to 'unlawful arrest, unlawful detention, torture and inhuman and degrading treatment and ... abuse of power' since he did not commit any crime but rather only made utterances about the President which were not 'unlawful'. He further maintains that the remarks he made 'are permissible and or protected as part of freedom of expression and or permissible in a democratic society such as Botswana'.He was later 'unlawfully' detained at the Sir Seretse Khama Airport Police Station for 30 hours.  Tlhage is demanding compensation from the police as well for their collaboration with the DIS.

Tlhage makes five claims totalling P2,950,000. He demands P450,000 for breach of his constitutionally protected rights, P750,000 and P500,000 for unlawful arrest by DIS, P750,000 for unlawful detention by police and P500,000 for what he calls 'delictual damages for breach of a statutory duty'.