NGOs question Constitutional Review Report submission process

The Universal Periodic Review ( UPR) NGO Working Group has expressed its concern about the laid down processes of handling the Constitutional Review Report from the Commission. It argues that this plan raises questions of accountability and transparency. According to the group, there is currently no provision for the Report to be made public.

“The public will have access only to the Bill after it has been published. The criteria to be used to determine the contents of the Bill are not known by the public. We urge the government of Botswana to ensure that the Constitutional review process is inclusive and fair. We believe that the Presidential Commission of Inquiry Committee should report to an inclusive, Select Committee of Parliament and not exclusively to the President, in order to ensure transparency and accountability to the people. We believe the public should have access to the full Report before the Bill is drafted. This will also enable Members of Parliament to consult their constituents,” the Working Group said in a communique this week. It has been revealed that on 7th March 2022, the public was informed about the plan to be implemented upon conclusion of the consultative process by the Presidential Commission of Inquiry Committee. The plans are that; the Commission will submit a Report with recommendations to the President for consideration; the Government will consider the Report and its recommendations; the recommendations will be submitted to the Office of the Attorney General to draft the Bill; the Bill will be published to solicit further input from members of the public and to allow Members of Parliament to consult their constituents on the content of the Bill; the Bill will then be tabled before Parliament; the Bill will then be referred to Ntlo ya Dikgosi; if it is necessary to amend entrenched provisions of the Constitution, it will then be necessary to conduct a referendum. “We, the UPR NGO Working Group remain deeply concerned about the nature of the process followed by the Presidential Commission of Inquiry into the review of the Constitution Committee. On 18 December 2021, the Terms of Reference and list of Committee members of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry into the review of the Constitution were published. On 27 January 2022, the UPR NGO Working Group published a petition urging the government of Botswana to ensure that the Constitutional Review process is inclusive, participatory, transparent and fair. As a follow- up measure, the UPR NGO Working Group attended the Kgotla and Interest groups meetings at different villages to monitor the process of consultation, participation, inclusion and information- sharing. The UPR NGO Working Group compiled a report of the first two consultations held at Gabane and Tlokweng on 2 February 2022 and 4 February 2022, respectively. We summarised the comments from community members and interest groups.

These included both the challenges faced and recommendations made.”

According to the working group, some of the issues raised by residents from both villages include: lack of knowledge about the Constitution; poor understanding of the language used in the Constitution and the need for its translation into Setswana; direct election of the President; abolition of the death penalty; land rights and the position of the Dikgosi; protection of the rights of the elderly; protection of persons with disabilities; place of civil society in the constitutional review process; independence of the Independent Electoral Commission, Office of the Ombudsman and Local Councils; legalisation of dual citizenship; inclusion of socio- economic and cultural rights in the Constitution; protection of ex- convicts; legalisation and protection of sex workers; equality of all tribes; freedom of the media; and legal recognition of co- habitation. The working group pointed out that as they had anticipated, it is clear from the contributions made at the meetings, that most Batswana lack knowledge about the Constitution of Botswana. “Often comments were made about provisions of various laws but not about the Constitution. There is indeed a clear need for public education about the contents of the Constitution. It will facilitate informed participation for people to know what needs to be changed and included in the reviewed Constitution, while taking into consideration their way of life and human rights. As we had anticipated, the limited time- frame for contributions compromises the application of the human rights principles of inclusion and participation,” they argued. The UPR NGO working group consists of some of the leading non governmental organisations in Botswana and those appearing in the letterhead are: The umbrella body Botswana Council of NGOs- BOCONGO, The Centre for Human Rights- Ditshwanelo, Letloa trust, Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals of Botswana- LEGABIBO, Media Instute of Southern Africa- MISA Botswana, and Rainbow Identity.