Botswana donates P1m to Japan
Friday, May 20, 2011
Japanese ambassador Ryoichi Matsunyama received the cheque from Foreign Affairs Minister Phandu Skelemani, on Tuesday. The P1 million donation is expected to go towards efforts to rebuild the country since it was hit by an earthquake that also damaged its Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. In an interview yesterday, foreign affairs spokesperson Tshenolo Modise said the donation was made after Botswana made a pledge to give the money to Japan. Other countries across the world have pledged and also offered aid to the country since the disaster.
Botswana and Japan share long standing diplomatic relations in various sectors where the latter has assisted Botswana in technical aid, grants, loans and debt.
While it is widely acknowledged that Khama holds the title of Kgosi, the government’s failure to properly gazette his recognition has raised serious concerns about adherence to legal procedures and the credibility of traditional leadership. (See a story elsewhere in this newspaper.) Recent court documents by the Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Kgotla Autlwetse, shed light on the intricacies of Khama’s recognition process....