Gasebalwe Seretse
4 April 2008
Gaborone — In 2001, Thanyane Moatshe, of Mmathubudukwane and a World War II veteran, died but was not given a burial befitting a war hero.
This greatly touched his great-grandson Bathusi Moatshe, now 27-years-old, who had always admired his ancestor's gallantry in the war. The younger Moatshe was raise by the late war veteran, whom he describes as a 'strict disciplinarian who liked order'.
"Both my mother and my grandmother were migrant workers in South Africa; so growing up in an extended family was not easy but he always made sure that he treated me well," Moatshe says of his great-grandfather. It is evident that Moatshe admired his great-grandfather as he speaks about him with fondness. He remembers how the old man would relate the stories of the war to him and this drew the two closer to each other. Although the efforts of Batswana soldiers have become nothing but a fading memory, the young man is determined to make sure that he salvages what memory is left.
Among the few things that Moatshe has managed to secure is the late Moatshe's Certificate of Service and his war medals. According to Thanyane Moatshe's Certificate of Service, he joined the war in 1941 and served in the Middle East and Italy until the war ended in 1945. The war veteran earned himself a number of medals including 1939-1945 Star, Africa Star, 8th Army Clasp, Italy Star, Defence Medal and War Medal (1939-45). "When my grandfather died in 2001, there were no signs that he was a war hero and this hurt me so much. To add insult to injury, his war efforts were only mentioned in passing at his funeral," says Moatshe sadly.
However, all was not lost as this greatly inspired him to try and register an association that seeks to recognise the efforts of World War II veterans and make the lives of those who are still surviving better in the twilight of their years. At some point, Moatshe also wanted to honour the memory of his late great-grandfather by joining the Botswana Defence Force (BDF) but that dream was dashed when he failed to make it.
"My fondness for the old man made me want to be a soldier but things did not go my way," he says. Since he could not make it in the army, he has decided to call himself the 'African Pioneer Junior Corp' to honour the memory of his late great-grandfather. Interestingly, two of Moatshe's ancestors, Thanyane Moatshe and Leepile Powane (recently featured in Mmegi), both served in the war. Both were part of over 10,000 Batswana African Pioneers Corps that took part in World War II. According to some sources, there were over 847 Batswana casualties in the war. Presently there are around 600 surviving World War II veterans in the country and Moatshe fears that they might all die without being given the recognition they deserve.
"Second World War veterans are an endangered species and we should do whatever we can in our power to recognise them before they all die out. I wish to appeal to government and private companies to help in this endeavour," says Moatshe.
Moatshe says that some of the objectives of the envisaged movement include documenting the profiles of surviving war veterans and collecting war memorabilia for posterity.
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