SOS Bushmen

Les Bushmen du Botswana ont annoncé le 20 novembre 2007 leur intention de retourner prochainement devant la justice si le gouvernement persiste à les empêcher de retourner chez eux.

Les Bushmen gana et gwi ont été expulsés de leurs terres du Kalahari central en 2002 mais ils ont gagné l’an dernier un procès confirmant leur droit de retourner chez eux.

Des centaines de lettres de protestation signées par les Bushmen ont été remises aujourd'hui au Département de la faune et de la flore du Botswana. Ils y dénoncent le refus du gouvernement de les laisser chasser pour nourrir leurs familles. Depuis leur victoire judiciaire en décembre dernier, 53 Bushmen ont été arrêtés pour avoir chassé.

Le gouvernement interdit également aux Bushmen d'utiliser leurs puits et insiste sur le fait que seul un nombre limité d'entre eux peut retourner dans la Réserve. Bien que la Haute cour ait jugé que l'expulsion des Bushmen avait été illégale et contraire à leur volonté, le gouvernement a refusé de leur fournir des moyens de transport pour retourner chez eux.

Un représentant de l'organisation bushman First People of the Kalahari a déclaré aujourd'hui : "Nous ne voulons pas continuer à nous battre devant les tribunaux. Ce n'est pas une solution pour résoudre nos problèmes. Mais nous avons le sentiment de ne pas avoir d'autre choix. Nous sommes désespérés".

Botswana's government denied Friday accusations it was preventing bushmen from returning to their ancestral lands despite a court ruling last year granting them that right.

The San bushmen, who were evicted from the Central Kalahari Game Reserve (CKGR) in 2002, have accused the government of refusing to transport them back, let them hunt, or supply them with water.

"Every bushman is free to go home, we have always made our stance clear," said foreign ministry spokesman Clifford Mariba.

"Those who have opted to remain at their current settlements have remained behind to enjoy a wide range of social amenities offered by the government."

Maribe said bushmen living in the reserve were "at liberty to make their own arrangements to bring in unlimited amounts of water," as the court decision did not compel the government to provide it.

He also said special game licenses had been issued to the hunter-gatherers.

The San were evicted from the game reserve in 2002 and placed in six settlements just outside the CKGR, but some 210 bushmen then took the government to court with the assistance of British NGO Survival International.

The San's attempt to return to the reserve resulted in Botswana's longest ever court case, which ended last year when a judge ruled they were driven out of the Kalahari desert unlawfully.

The First People of the Kalahari (FPK), a non-governmental organisation campaigning for the rights of the bushmen, has previously threatened the government with a return to court if their latest demands are not met.

FPK spokesman Roy Sesana could not be reached for comment after Friday's government statement.

Once numbering millions, roughly 100,000 San are left in southern Africa, with almost half of them -- 48,000 -- in Botswana. Others are spread across Angola, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

El pueblo bosquimano de Botsuana anunció hoy su intención de volver a juicio "en cuestión de semanas" si el Gobierno del país sigue impidiendo su regreso a lo que consideran su casa: las tierras ancestrales que les han pertenecido desde hace generaciones en el desierto del Kalahari.

Los representantes de los pueblos 'gana' y 'gwi' fueron expulsados de sus tierras en el Kalahari Central en el año 2002, pero el año pasado ganaron un histórico proceso judicial que confirmaba su derecho a volver a su hogar, informó hoy la ONG de defensa de los pueblos indígenas Survival.

On November 20th, 2007, Bushmen in Botswana announced they plan to return to court within a matter of weeks if the government continues to prevent them from returning home.

The Gana and Gwi Bushmen were evicted from their lands in the central Kalahari in 2002, but last year won a landmark court case affirming their right to go home.

Hundreds of letters signed by Bushmen were today handed to Botswana's department of wildlife, detailing their concerns. They say the government is refusing to let them hunt to feed their families. Fifty-three Bushmen have been arrested for hunting since the court victory in December.

The government is also preventing the Bushmen from using their water borehole, and is insisting that only a limited number of them can return to their land. It has refused to provide transport for the Bushmen to go home, despite the court's finding that they were evicted illegally and against their will.

A representative of the Bushman organisation, First People of the Kalahari, today stated, 'We do not want to keep fighting in the courts. That is not the way to resolve problems. But we feel we have no other option. We are desperate.'

Se il governo continuerà a impedire loro di ritornare a casa, i Boscimani del Botswana torneranno in tribunale nel giro di poche settimane. Lo ha annunciato oggi un portavoce della loro organizzazione, la First People of Kalahari.

Survival has placed a full-page advert in the UK's Independent newspaper today, condemning the torture of Bushmen evicted from their land in the Kalahari in Botswana and appealing to the British public to support them.

The ad shows pictures of ten of the men arrested and beaten, tortured or assaulted in Kaudwane resettlement camp in September, and asks, 'What does it take to let these people live in peace?'

The ad reads, 'Last year, the Bushmen of Botswana won an historic victory. Expelled from their ancient homeland, the Bushmen took the government to court - and won. Botswana's High Court ruled that the Bushmen have the right to return to their land, and to hunt and gather there. That's all they've ever wanted.' The ad highlights the fact that since the court victory, the government has arrested more than 50 Bushmen for hunting to feed their families, banned them from using their water borehole, and backed plans for a massive diamond mine worth $2.2 billion on the Bushmen's land.

Survival's director Stephen Corry said today, 'The Botswana government has had nearly a year to implement the court's ruling. It's now clear it has no intention of doing so, so the Bushmen's campaign has been reignited. Hundreds of thousands of people have already voiced their support for the Bushmen. Now, tortured and persecuted, they need this support more than ever.'

Schokkende details over de martelingen van een groep Bosjesmannen uit het Kaudwanekamp zijn aan het licht gekomen. Het betreft een groep van vijftien Bosjesmannen die eind september gearresteerd waren omdat ze zogenaamd illegaal aan het jagen waren. Ten minste tien van hen zijn ernstig mishandeld.

 Malgré le verdict de décembre 2006, les Bushmen du Kalahari sont sont toujours persécutés par le gouvernement. Un groupe de Bushmen du camp de relocalisation de Kaudwane a été torturé et brutalisé. Sur les 15 hommes qui ont été arrêtés à la fin du mois de septembre pour avoir chassé, une dizaine a été torturée.