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Court rules Bushmen were evicted illegally from their ancestral lands

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published December 14, 2006

LOBATSE, Botswana - A court ruled Wednesday that Botswana's Bushmen were entitled to live and hunt on their ancestral lands in the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, after they accused the government of illegally evicting them to exploit the diamond and mineral potential in the vast area.

But the three-member High Court also said the government was not obliged to provide basic services, such as water, to anyone returning to the reserve.

The Bushmen, also known as the Basarwa, were backed by the British-based advocacy group Survival International in Botswana's longest-running court case. They accused the government of evicting them in 2002, often at gunpoint, to clear the way for prospecting for precious gems.

The southern Africa country is the world's largest producer of diamonds.

The government had argued that the Bushmen agreed to move off the land as part of efforts to make the Central Kalahari a game reserve and that they received compensation. The government said it already owned the mineral rights even if Basarwas were in the reserve.

"Today is the happiest day for us Bushmen," said one of their leaders, Roy Sesana. "We have been crying for so long, but today we are crying with happiness."

[Last modified December 14, 2006, 00:50:12]