The Establishment Of The Protectorate (Part 25) � �Brethren, Love One Another�

We concluded last week by noting that the departure of the British Colonial Secretary Chamberlain, on a prolonged Spanish holiday immediately after his 11th of September 1985 meeting with Bathoen, Khama and Sebele, provided the dikgosi with an opportunity to take their case directly to the British public.

While Sebele proved to be effective in his role as the designated lead speaker, Khama nonetheless continued to attract the greatest public attention. The Phuti’s profile was further enhanced during the visit by the popular periodical Daily Graphic’s decision to publish a series of extracts from Hepburn’s “Twenty Years in Khama’s Country”.

For much of the trip, Bathoen had to content himself with being in the position of third among equals. A notable exception to this status occurred when the Oceana Corporation (who were shareholders in the “Kanya [sic] Concession”) invited London’s finest to a lavish banquet in Bathoen’s honour on the evening of Friday the 20th of September 1895.

Editor's Comment
Closure as pain lingers

March 28 will go down as a day that Batswana will never forget because of the accident that occurred near Mmamatlakala in Limpopo, South Africa. The tragedy affected not only the grieving families but the nation at large. Batswana throughout the process stood behind the grieving families and the governments of Botswana and South Africa need much more than a pat on the back.Last Saturday was a day when family members said their last goodbyes to...

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