LM Report 2003

Botswana

Botswana signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 3 December 1997, ratified on 1 March 2000, and the treaty entered into force on 1 September 2000. Botswana submitted an initial Article 7 transparency report on 28 September 2001, but it has not submitted any subsequent Article 7 updates, due annually on 30 April. No implementation legislation has been drafted, although instructions were given to the Attorney General’s Chambers to prepare legislation, and assistance in incorporating the provisions of the treaty into domestic law have been sought from the Zimbabwe office of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).^[1] The Botswana military is taught the law of armed conflict, including a general overview of relevant conventions and protocols applicable to the conduct of military operations.^[2]

Botswana has never attended an annual meeting of States Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty, but a representative was present at the January 2002 intersessional Standing Committee meetings. Botswana voted in favor of UN General Assembly Resolution 57/74 on 22 November 2002, calling for the universalization and implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty.

Botswana reports that it has never produced or exported antipersonnel landmines.^[3] Botswana Defense Force (BDF) officials state that the military has never laid any landmines in Botswana or in any other country.^[4] The BDF acknowledges that it retains a small number of antipersonnel mines for training purposes, including seven inert antipersonnel directional mines and three antivehicle mines, but no details have been provided as required by Article 7.

[1] Fax from P.S. Tau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 8 May 2003.
[2] Botswana presentation to the ICRC-hosted Southern African Regional Seminar on International Humanitarian Law, Pretoria, South Africa, 21-23 May 2002.
[3] Article 7 Report, 28 September 2001. The reporting period is not specified.
[4] Interview with Colonel Tjatanga Moloi, Botswana Defense Force, Gaborone, 2 March 2001. However, according to Jane’s Mines and Mine Clearance, 2002-2003, South African Shrapnel No. 2 and the Zimbabwe RAP No. 1 and RAP No. 2 blast mines are believed to be present in Botswana. See, Jane’s Mines and Mine Clearance, 2002-2003, Jane’s Information Group Limited, 2002, p. 718.