KEY POINTS
- Zimbabwe’s ambassador seeks support from Botswana’s police to protect Zimbabweans facing violence threats.
- The tensions arise amid accusations of ZANU-PF interference in Botswana’s upcoming elections.
- The ambassador aims to ensure the safety and security of Zimbabweans living in Botswana.
Zimbabwe’s ambassador to Botswana has waded in to ensure the safety of Zimbabweans living in Botswana after threats of violence were made against them by the local police.
The decision came at the time heightened disagreements, particularly about Botswana’s elections to be held soon, with statements that Zimbabwe’s ruling party, ZANU-PF, allegedly meddles in the internal affairs of the country. These accusations have increased tension, and Zimbabweans living in Botswana may find themselves in a very precarious position.
Maintaining safety in the midst of political crisis
This is in a bid to ensure the safety of Zimbabwean citizens some of whom have been threatened due to election related issues and the ambassador has been actively engaging Botswana’s police on this.
This has made individuals and groups become suspicious of foreigners with and accusations of interference by the political parties from other countries have made the wishes of Zimbabweans in Botswana to vote for their preferred presidents a major concern.
New Zimbabwe reported that the ambassador’s talks with the Botswana police were aimed at finding ways of how Zimbabweans can live peacefully without being harassed or attacked by the police no matter the political situation.
We have to live united and protect the citizens of Zimbabwe residing in Botswana and they should not be targeted during any conflict as arising from elections.
ZANU-PF blamed for interfering with the poll.
The arguments owe their genesis to claims that Botswana’s political evolution is, in some way, tainted by the Zimbabwe’s ruling party, ZANU-PF, being accused of endorsing some political contenders and meddling with the vote tallying process.
Such allegations have brought condemnation from some citizens of Botswana especially all those who perceive the supposed interference from abroad as likely to compromise their electoral democracy.
Although ZANU-PF has not directly reacted to such allegations, the situation has created hostility to Zimbabwean nationals in Botswana exposing them to attacks.
However, Zimbabwe’s ambassador is trying to solve the problem peacefully, appealing to the authorities of Botswana to guarantee that Zimbabweans living in the country would not suffer from the consequences of political accusations.
The intervention by the ambassador can be conceived in a bid to discourage any further heightened conflict with a view of maintaining a healthy bilateral diplomacy between the two immediate countries.
A call for diplomatic resolution
This North Ottawa deal shows that through diplomacy, an ambassador can even involve the police of the destination country to protect its citizens.
Due to the SEZ management policy and the protection of the lives of Zimbabweans in Botswana, Zimbabwe’s embassy is planning to bring change in supporting the Zimbabweans citizens residing in Botswana without disrespecting the diplomatic relations between Zimbabwe and Botswana.
The idea in this approach is to minimize conflict and misunderstandings between communities and to note that people of Zimbabwe in Botswana are not involved in any political matters.
The case shows the difficulties of diplomatic missions in the management of safety of their nationals in the host countries especially during politically sensitive periods.
When the period of election is still on, Zimbabwe’s ambassador is still very much on the forefront demanding equal protection to the Zimbabwean citizens residing in Botswana, emphasizing on non-violence in the resolution of any dispute to avoid sharply affecting the region
