Indeed it is the wish of every citizen that the strike should end, and we hope that the union representatives and those representing government and currently negotiating will reach a win-win agreement. Now when all has been said and done, it is proper that credit should be given where it is due. In this regard, we note the largely professional behaviour by the Botswana Police Service. Indeed here and there, the media, reported isolated incidents about some police officers overreaching themselves, in instances where minors were tear-gassed or shot with rubber bullets or detained during a night of interrogation. Indeed the police would not readily admit to this.
Notwithstanding we believe these few isolated incidents, are a learning curve, not only for the police but also for our fairly young democracy. Especially over the last decade, to be precise, since 1995, the Police Service has embarked on a deliberate effort to transform itself into a "Service" that is suited to a democratic political dispensation such as ours. And we have seen the dividends of those efforts especially during the nearly two-month-long strike. We have seen a largely more tolerant police. Even the Special Support Group (SSG), which have for years been known for its harsh treatment of rioters and suspects showed great restraint even in situations that, elsewhere would have caused some trigger-happy officer to shoot. We say this especially as we are aware that some of the officers indeed had live rounds. Take the Molepolole incident for example. The police found themselves cornered but took the punishment meted out to them by the angry student mob. In all the confusion, and with the police officers' lives at certain risk any officer could have been persuaded to use live rounds. But the police decided otherwise. At the end of it all, the children and the police had a few bruises. There were no deaths. Equally in Gaborone and other areas, some of the workers who were on strike went on the rampage destroying government and private property. Again the police came in and brought order without causing any serious injury or death to the civilians. The officers were largely courteous, but firm. The strikers ridiculed them in their songs. They spoke harshly to the officers, often within a few feet of the men and women of the law.
