Up to 18 Batswana have been arrested for entering Zimbabwe illegally. The people from Pandamatenga veered into Zimbabwe unwittingly when fetching thatching grass at an unfenced border area.A contingent of Zimbabwe police and soldiers arrested the group in the Kazuma forest.
They spent a night in custody and were released the following day after paying P60 admission of guilt fine. Inspector Marks Masabae of Pandamatenda said the people were arrested on August 12.
He said they did not know that they had crossed into Zimbabwe because there is no border fence and they did not notice markings along the borderline. He denied that cases of this nature are common in Pandamatenga. He said this is the first incident to occur in the area. The border demarcation in the area has been problematic for sometime. It is said that there is a similar problem at the centre of Zambezi River where Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe borders meet.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Presidential Affairs and Public Administration, Margaret Nasha told Parliament recently that her ministry has set aside over P70 million to be spent on erecting the border fence during National Development Plan 10 (NDP10). The money will be spent on compensation of property owners along the border with South Africa. It is said that some white farmers along the border usually deny security forces entry into their farms during patrols.
“Some preparatory work has already been started towards the implementation of this project. For example, consultations with stakeholders and assessment of the extent of the dilapidation of the fence have been done,” she said.
Mmegi Online
Post published in: News