Statement by His Excellency Mr. Festus G. Mogae, PH, MP. President of the Republic of Botswana to the Parliament of the Kingdom of Lesotho. Wednesday 14th April 2004

Honourable Speaker of the National Assembly, Ms. Ntlhoi Motsamai,

The Right Honourable Prime Minister, Mr. Pakalitha Mosisili,

Honourable President of the Senate, Chief Sempe Lejaha,

Honourable Leader of the House, Mr. Lesao Lehohla,

Honourable Members of the Senate and of the National Assembly.

It is indeed a great honour for me to have been invited to address you here today. My presence before this august Parliament is a testament to the special bonds that have long existed between Batswana and Basotho.

Although our two nations are divided by geography, our peoples are, nonetheless, united by both a shared culture and a history of common experience. We can thus never be foreigners to one another.

We are instead like two siblings who have simply come to live in separate villages. In this context I stand before you bearing the fraternal greetings of your brothers and sisters of our own Houses of Parliament - the National Assembly of Botswana and the the House of Chiefs.

It is also a special pleasure for me to be here today because I know that this House - like the Botswana Parliament of which I, as President, am both a member and a humble servant- embodies the deep seeded democratic aspirations of a proud and progressive people.

Within this Assembly, one finds a positive reflection of political plurality, which is nonetheless united by your common commitment to a national vision. This is a quality that should at all times be upheld for the English say:

"A ship[ that has weathered many a storm may nonetheless sink through mutiny among its mates."

Today, I am pleased to observe that this constitutional monarchy is sailing forward on an even keel. As I look upon the Senators here gathered, I am further reminded that the traditional leaders of both our nations, as well as our more recently emerged partisan politicians, have always derived their ultimate mandate from the will of the people. Vox populi vox dei.

This common democratic heritage is further reflected in the existence within both our societies of deeply embedded institutions of public consultation, such as the Kgotla and the pitso.

The functioning of these fora have long been regulated by shared cultural norms that placed a high value on tolerance of diversity, as well as a desire to achieve genuine consensus. Thus no view was considered to be so foolish as to be unworthy of a fair hearing. Likewise no individual was considered to be above constructive criticism and respectful advice. In the end, it has been our nature to seek compromise above confrontation.

Our common democratic roots are further reflected in a number of shared expressions- such as "Kgosi ke Kgosi ka batho" ("morena ke morena ka batho.")

These sayings reveal something fundamental about our societies' true identity. They give voice to the fact that we are indigenous, not emerging, democracies. If we have occasionally given in to less tolerant instincts in our public affairs, it is because we have strayed from the paths of our ancestors. They, our forefathers, clearly understood that without peace and social harmony there can never be prosperity. Without an airing of views there can be no common wisdom.

Madam Speaker, Basotho and Batswana are bound together by a common history of struggle, as well as affinities in language and culture.

Indeed, one can go further and say that our peoples have grown out of common roots. This is reflected in our early legends and genealogies, which are filled with common ancestors. our genealogies tell us, for example, that Kgosi Kgari Sechele III, who is accompanying me on this State Visit, shares common ancestors with His Majesty King Letsie II.

From the ancient Mokwena ruler Malope-a-Masilo, are said to be descended the children of Monaheng (Monageng), Mohlomi, Mokoteli (Mokotedi) and Mokhachane, the father of the great Moshoeshoe.

The same Malope-a-Masilo is also said to have been the forefather of many of our own royal progenitors in Botswana, such as Ngwato, Ngwaketse, and Kgabo of Kwena. last year Batswana fondly recalled these ancestral ties when His Majesty the King honoured us with a visit.

In more modern times our people have further endured  man common experiences. During the nineteenth century your monarch Moshoeshoe I assisted many of our own rulers, such as Sechele and Sekgoma, in arming their people to better resist Boer aggression.

Again in the twentieth century our leaders came together on many occasions to prevent the transfer of the High Commission Territories, as our two nations together with Swaziland were then collectively known, into white ruled South Africa.

This particular struggle is said to have begun in May 1908 with the forwarding of petitions against our two territories incorporation into the then proposed Union of South Africa by your own King Letsie II and two of our own monarchs, Bathoen I and Sebele I. Thereafter these three noble patriots collaborated with others in the sending of a joint delegation to London to lobby against such a transfer.

Our two peoples have also shared many additional experiences such as migrant labour in the mines of South Africa. During the colonial era, many Basotho, including your patriot Josiel Lefela, served in Botswana as policemen.

In his subsequent role as a pioneering nationalist, Lefela proposed to our own Tshekedi Khama that our peoples come together to form a "League of Protectorates" to lobby further against incorporation into white South Africa. While this interesting initiative was blocked it is a further reminder that the political cooperation that exists between us has deep roots.

In the past many Batswana, including my wife, were also beneficiaries of Lesotho based educational institutions. During the first decade of independence the University of Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland (UBLS) was headquartered in Roma, Lesotho.

The Batswana who went to UBLS for their studies at that time now form a generation of leadership in both the public and private sectors of Botswana. For some, schooling in Roma led not only to the development of lifelong personal friendships, but also to family ties through marriage.

Digging further, let us also not forget that Batswana and Basotho saw service together during the two World wars. Batswana were thus present to witness the terrible sinking of the troop ships S.S.Mendi (in 1919) and the S.S.Eripura in 1943). Together these two tragedies claimed the lives of over a thousand Basotho. Neither should we forget the additional collective sacrifice that was made by our courageous sons of the soil in those two conflicts.

Our common history of sacrifice, of course, extends into more recent times. In 1966, our two nations achieved independence within a week of each other as vulnerable outposts of majority rule located in the shadow of apartheid.

In the decades that followed our states were forced to strike a delicate balance to preserve their sovereign dignity, while giving such limited support as we could to the freedom struggles our other brothers and sisters were waging in the region.

Here again we should not forget the price that was paid by our own people, alongside those who found refuge among us, when the death squads of apartheid violated our borders. I am aware that in many respects the circumstances facing Basotho during those trying times were arguably even more challenging than those that confronted my own country.

No honest appraisal of the difficulties that have faced this Kingdom over the past four decades can ignore this geo-political reality ! The physical relationship between South Africa and Lesotho - bad and good !

Let us also appreciate that, in the face of the many challenges that have confronted this Kingdom in modern times, which were in no small measure due to external forces beyond its control, Basotho maintained their unity, their independence and, above all else, their guiding sense of their own unique identity. These are qualities that all Batswana appreciate and admire.

Today, all Basotho can take further pride in the recent progress that has been made possible by a return to the traditional values of tolerance and compromise, of which I have spoken. We observe that you are now moving forward together as a free people with renewed hope and determination.

While recognising the significant social and economic challenges that still face you, we also note the significant progress your society has made in recent years in attracting private foreign investment. This has resulted in a growth of local employment as well as revenue.

Madam Speaker, given our common history, it is no wonder that today our peoples continue to interact on the basis of our strong bonds of friendship and association. We are currently cooperating in the fields of agriculture, meat inspection, waste management, defence, health, trade and water management, to mention but a few.

We have also collaborated in the recent establishment of the Lesotho anti-Corruption Agency. It is my belief that this Agency will contribute towards ensuring that Lesotho is a model of transparency, good governance and  sound economics.

Corruption is an enemy of the economic success of any country, because it distorts prices of goods and services. In addition, it results in people paying for services they are entitled to receive free of charge. We are therefore happy, that we have been able to collaborate in this field because combating corruption is a continuous process, which should entail inter-state cooperation.

Some of the instances of cooperation I have cited has allowed our two countries to share available facilities instead of duplicating efforts. This is certainly cost effective. It is also very much in the spirit of SADC and the African Union.

Batswana and Basotho have always been willing to render support to one another in the hour of need. it was in this context that Botswana responded positively to the request by Lesotho for assistance in finding solutions to political situations it faced in the recent past.

We are grateful that our modest efforts have contributed to the restoration and consolidation of peace, democracy and the rule of law, which are essential ingredients for the creation of a climate conducive to socio-economic development.

It is particularly gratifying that our contribution towards the strengthening of such institutions as your police service and royal defence force have borne fruit.

Honourable Members of Parliament, Honourable Members of the Senate, all of Southern Africa is currently confronted with a host of challenges. These include poverty, unemployment, the vulnerability of our economies to drought, our common desire for fairer access to global markets and of course, the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

With respect to the latter, I am reminded that my last visit to Maseru was in July of 2003 when your Government hosted the Extraordinary SADC Summit on meeting the HIV/AIDS challenge. Out of that gathering came a common call for all of us to intensify our fight against the pandemic.

The war against HIV/AIDS can be won, but only if we once more fight side by side as allies at the regional, as well as national, levels to reduce the rates of infection and mitigate the effects of the virus.

Madam Speaker, Honourable Members, given the small size of our domestic economies, it is imperative that we also work together as members of the newly restructured Southern African Customs Union (SACU) to ensure better access to external markets. The promotion of export-led economic growth and the encouragement of competitiveness among all of the Southern African countries will undoubtedly prove to be of mutual benefit.

Madam Speaker, Honourable Members, today under the able leadership and guidance of Prime Minister Mosisili, Lesotho stands a  a beacon of what can be done and should be done to bring about peace and democracy in Africa. Le se kgantswane sa rona Basotho. Re ipelafatsa ka lona !

Your country may be small in terms of its size and population, but your people have always had big ideas as well as big hearts. This is why our entire region elected Lesotho to the Chair of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security, and to represent us, together with Mozambique and South Africa, in the newly established Peace and Security Council of the African Union. In carrying out this mandate, Mr. Prime Minister, you may be assured of our continued full support and cooperation.

It is also noteworthy that this body, along with the other legislatures of our continent, is now being called upon to shoulder even greater responsibility through its participation in the Pan African Parliament. This will undoubtedly contribute further to our unity of purpose. In this respect, I am confident that the Honourable Members from this House will be worthy heirs to such heroes as Moshoeshoe and Lefela.

Last year, during their Majesties' visit to Botswana, we agreed to intensify economic and technical cooperation between our countries.

Given what we have in common, it is only natural that our cooperation should    be strengthened and extended. We see many opportunities for further cooperation in the social sectors. We can also do more in the area of agriculture, which is important for the livelihood of the majority of our people.

Our Governments must also provide an enabling environment where the people of our countries can continue to come together in order to learn about and celebrate each other's cultures, traditions and customs.

Madam Speaker, Let me conclude my remarks by thanking you all for the warm welcome Basotho have extended to my delegation and I on our arrival today. We are all very much looking forward to the remainder of our  visit in your lovely Kingdom. I am confident that our short stay will enable us to build upon our ties. We remain very much like a family. in this respect, it has been said, that families are the nucleus of all civilisation. Let us therefore work to ensure that our special relationship becomes a catalyst for even greater unity in our region and on our continent.

With these few remarks, Madam Speaker, Honourable Members of the National Assembly and Honourable Members of the Senate, I thank you for the privilege of talking to you this afternoon.

15 April 2004