China threatens to sanction Botswana

Botswana has been sternly warned not to “harm such a true friend and reliable development partner in China by challenging the core interests of China and the dignity of the 1.3 billion Chinese people”. Ambassador Lin Songtian made these veiled threats during Botswana Friendship Delegation visit to China last week. Lin is the secretary general of the Chinese Follow-up Committee on Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).

He has also been appointed Chinese Ambassador to South Africa. Talking about the Dalai Lama, Lin said instead of being a purely religious figure, the 14th Dalai Lama has been a head of a well-organised political group whose goal is to seek ‘Tibetan independence’. “The Dalai group has set up a ‘government in exile’ outside China and relies on financial support provided by anti-China forces in the West.