SW Radio Africa (London)
Violet Gonda
21 August 2008
The Herald newspaper has come under fire from the Botswana government for publishing what they say is "misleading content" about their position on Zimbabwe. On Thursday the Herald published a report entitled "MDC-T leader lied to us about Zimbabwe situation".
The paper went on to write: "Leaders from Zambia, Botswana and Tanzania expressed "embarrassment" at having "blindly supported Tsvangirai" during the 28th SADC Heads of State Summit in Sandton, Johannesburg, after South Africa's President Thabo Mbeki, who is facilitating talks between Zimbabwe's political parties, gave them a full briefing on what was taking place."
But the Office of the President of Botswana said it is concerned about the misleading article. Botswana said its position, with respect to the political situation in Zimbabwe, has not altered.
Dr. Jeff Ramsay, Coordinator of the Botswana Government Communication Information System, said the article also deceptively attributed certain sentiments to his Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
The state mouthpiece claimed Foreign Minister, Phandu Skelemani, said his analysis of the situation was that Morgan Tsvangirai had misled them on Zimbabwe's political processes, alleging that the Batswana official said this after he read a report from Thabo Mbeki, to the Organ on Defence, Politics and Security.
The Herald wrote: "He (Skelemani) said they had been misinformed and were of the opinion that Tsvangirai should accept the agreement that President Mbeki had facilitated as it was quite reasonable. His exact words were, 'What more does Tsvangirai expect?' But we cannot order him to accept the agreement, all we can do is try and persuade him to see sense'."
Clifford Maribe, the spokesperson in the Foreign Office of Botswana, told Newsreel that the statement and allegations by the Herald are false and a "figment of the editor's imagination."
He said the SADC session on Zimbabwe was a closed door event and the Minister gave no interviews to journalists. "So we see this as simply a clear and deliberate attempt to misinform the public and cast aspersions on the principled position that Botswana took with respect to the political situation in Zimbabwe."
Relations between the regime and Botswana are at an all time low after Botswana criticized Zimbabwe's recent sham Presidential election. President Ian Khama boycotted the recent SADC summit and sent his minister instead, because he does not recognise Mugabe as the legitimate President.
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