The Ministry of Defence and Veterans Affairs dismisses allegations that Botswana and Namibia are negotiating to withdraw troops from the disputed Chobe River border.
This denial comes after Botswana’s Sunday Standard reported on March 3 that Botswana and Namibia are negotiating to withdraw soldiers stationed along the controversial Chobe River, as a code of conduct agreement indicates.
According to the Sunday Standard, a document seen by them, prepared by a team from the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA) secretariat for the two neighbouring countries, advised both countries’ security forces to “keep a low profile” around the Chobe River.
The recommendation is based on the fact that the two countries
Under mounting public criticism, they have attempted to retain decent diplomatic contacts. Namibians have criticised the reported ongoing harassment of locals, as well as the murder of the Nchindo brothers, Tommy, Martin, and Wamunyima Nchindo, and their cousin Sinvula Munyeme, on November 5, 2020, along the Chobe River, on suspicion of being members of a poaching syndicate.
Alphonsina Mubu (69), the Nchindo brothers’ mother, collapsed and died five days after their deaths, unable to handle the shock.
In response to this story, the defence ministry’s spokesperson, Petrus Shilumbu, stated that all reports are untrue, and that the presence of soldiers near the borders will stay constant.
“The Namibian Defence Force (NDF) does not have the alleged agreement as reported in the article, and NDF deployment in Zambezi Region remains unchanged,” he added.
Before directing The Namibian to Shilumbu, Defence Minister Frans Kapofi disputed that NDF forces had been deployed at the Chobe River boundary.