GCC rejects law on gathering

The councillors lamented that there was little consultation, and the idea was just imposed on them.Councillor Rupert Hambira of the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) expressed concern over the "ambitious nature" of the by- law. During a council meeting on Thursday he said the law could disrupt big events like Olympics and Southern African Development Community (SADC) Heads of State meetings coming to Botswana.  He noted that the process of organising events would be cumbersome for the council considering the procedure that had to be taken.

Hambira said the law is also contradictory in the sense that it compels one to request and submit indemnity forms for hosting of events like music festivals. He said that indemnity forms stipulate that attendees come at their own risk while at the other end the by-law states that it is the responsibility of those hosting the events to take care of the attendants.