Botswana Political Scenario:

The Sedudu Confrontation

Focus Question: How should the Sedudu island land dispute be resolved?

The Context – Botswana, Namibia and the Caprivi Strip

Geography
Botswana is a landlocked country located in
southern Africa, neighboring South Africa to the
south, Namibia to the west, Zimbabwe to the east,
and Zambia (partially) to the north.

Relationship Between Botswana and Namibia

Botswana and its’ western neighbor Namibia share
common experiences and histories and have had
good relations since their independence from the
British and Germans, in 1966 and 1988 respectively
except, however, for a conflict between these two
countries over some islands, in a strip they both
share known as the Caprivi Strip.

The Caprivi strip, creates an unusual shape, highlighted in purple on the map below left. Sedudu
island, located in the Choebe river within this Caprivi strip, is 5 squared km with no permanent
residents (see the image below right).

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Historical Background
There was a historical “scramble for Africa” between 1880 and 1900 by European nations who
carved up the African continent for access to resources. Many of the borders that were created
during that period by European countries colonizing African nations, such as Britain, France,
Portugal, Spain and Germany, still exist today.

Germany colonized Namibia and at the time hoped to own the Caprivi strip in order to have water
access via the Zambezi river for easy trade across west to east Africa, hoping it would lead to the
Indian Ocean. What they didn’t realize at the time was that Victoria Falls, considered the largest
waterfall in the world, is on that same route, making it impossible to access the Indian Ocean.

The Context – The Origins of the Sedudu Conflict

There are five islands in the Caprivi Strip whose ownership or territorial sovereignty is contested
by Botswana and Namibia, three in the Chobe River, including Sedudu island, and two in the
Zambezi River. However two disputes, Situngu and Sedudu, have been more vocal for years.

See the history of Sedudu conflict below:

Botswana Claims

Ø Botswana claimed that Sedudu Island is its own territory unless it could be proven that the
main channel passes through the south region of the Island, and therefore falls within the
sovereignty of Namibia. Botswana held the view that the north and west channels of the
Chobe River constitute the main channel, and in accordance with the Anglo German Treaty
of 1890, which established the boundary between the two nations. Hence, accordingly
making the Sedudu Islands fall exclusively within the sovereignty of Botswana. (See the
map above)

Namibia Claims
Ø Namibia claimed that the main channel of the Chobe River indeed passes through the south
of the Island and that Namibia and its predecessors had occupied, used, and exercised
sovereign over the Sedudu Islands since 1890. As such Sedudu Islands is a territory
governed by the sovereignty of Namibia.

As a result of these claims there has been a push and pull as demonstrated in the cases below:

• In November 1993 two British tourists were kidnapped while at Sedudu Island within the
Caprivi Strip by alleged Namibians. This lead to an exchange of fire between the Botswana
and Namibia troops and also following claims by the Namibian government that the
Botswana troops had flown the Botswana National flag on the island and that Botswana
troops tried to take the Island through the “Barrel of the gun”.

• As a result of these issues, in the 1990s, Botswana accelerated its’ arms procurement
program. In June 1996, it was reported in the mainstream media that Botswana was in the

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 process of negotiating the purchase of a Canadian built F-35 fighter bombers for the
Botswana Defense Forces and also main battle tanks from the Netherlands. These actions
raised eyebrows especially from the Namibia government, which publicly stated in 1996
that Botswana was acquiring weapons to attack Namibia over the border disputes.

Definitions
Colonization: When a group of people from one country claim land and build settlement in
another territory (colony) for the original country. The original country has some control over the
new colony.

Territorial sovereignty: Having independent control over a land/region

Stakeholder: A person, group, or organization who is involved in and/or affected by a course of

action

International Law: A body of rules established by custom or treaty and recognized by nations
as binding in their relations with one another.

Conflict Management: Conflict management is the process of limiting the negative aspects of
conflict while increasing the positive aspects of conflict. The aim of conflict management is to
enhance learning and group outcomes, including effectiveness or performance in an
organizational setting

Use of Force: The use of force, in the context of law enforcement, may be defined as the
"amount of effort required by police to compel compliance by an unwilling subject".

The Stakeholders
For the purposes of this case study, the stakeholders we will be investigating are:
• The Government of Botswana
• The Government of Namibia
• The Batswana – the people of Botswana
• The Namibians – the people of Namibia
• The South African Development Community (SADC) - a Regional Economic
Community comprising 15 Member States: Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of
Congo, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, So
uth Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Established in 1992, SADC is
committed to Regional Integration and poverty eradication within Southern Africa
through economic development and ensuring peace and security.

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Learning Outcomes
• Conflict Management
• Use of Force

• Southern Africa Geo-Politics

Teacher Guidelines
Prior to the Discussion, Sign Up to WorldVuze (20 min class time)

Week 1 (January 23rd to January 27th) – Case Study Intro and Online
Discussion (1-2 hours class time)

1. Introduce your class to the Know Your World Initiative Botswana student case study
brief on http://blog.worldvuze.com/botswana-political-scenario-the-sedudu-conflict/
2. Divide your class into the different “stakeholder groups” listed in the case study and
debate as a class, as these stakeholders, on what you think would be the most
sustainable solution to the case study problem. Use only the information presented in
the case study.

Framing Question: How should the Sedudu land dispute be resolved?

3. Students log onto WorldVuze and share your perspectives on the Know Your World
Initiative Dialogue questions (tagged KYWI), as part of a global dialogue. Answer the
questions as the stakeholder you were assigned to in the class debate. Students can
log onto WorldVuze in class or at home.

Possible Questions to Explore with Your Class During the Debate:

• What would the potential impact be of this decision on the different stakeholders?
• What were the primary factors you used to make your decision as your stakeholder?
• Would your decision change if:
o The Sedudu islands were populated
o The Sedudu islands had a major resource (i.e. oil, etc.)
o The Sedudu islands had significance of another kind (i.e. cultural or religious)
• In what ways do you think the “Scramble for Africa” in 1880 to 1900 have on African
nations, like Botswana and Namibia today?

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 • What are the pros and cons of involving international bodies in land disputes?
Week 2 (January 30th to February 3rd) –Reflection (1-hour class time)

1. Students log back onto WorldVuze to investigate how other students assigned to your
same stakeholder group interacted with this case study (i.e. how they were affected by
the problem, what they thought the preferred solution should be, and what they thought
the impact of the class solution would be)
2. Discuss as a class any similarities and differences between how the same “stakeholder
groups” interacted with the case study
3. Students, share your final reflections on WorldVuze on whether these new international
perspectives you found on WorldVuze, shared by students in other classrooms, would
change the way you would address the case study problem.

Possible Reflection Questions to Explore:

• How were the perspectives of other students who were assigned to the same stakeholder
as you, shared on WorldVuze, similar or different to your own? Are there any new
perspectives that your class did not think of?
• Did students from other countries introduce new ways of addressing the Botswana
Sedudu Confrontation that would change the way you would approach the problem? Why
or why not?
• Describe how 1-2 concepts in this case study relate to a situation that is happening or that
has happened in your country/community. If you can not make a connection to your own
community/country, why not?
• What are the 2-3 major ways this case study is similar or different from the situation in
your own country or community?
• What important lessons or concepts from your discussion do you think can be applied to
the scenario in your country/community?

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The Real Outcome of the Botswana Sedudu Confrontation – Do not
Share this with Your Students Until After the Exercise
The dispute over the two islands can be traced back to 1991 when Botswana laid claim to Kasikili-
Sedudu and responded by stationed troops on the island. When a boundary delimitation
committee set up by the two countries failed to determine the ownership of the island, and after
some substantial military build-up along the common border between the two neighboring
countries, the dispute was finally referred to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in 1996.

The Governments of Botswana and Namibia had agreed to accept the mediation of His
Excellency Robert G. Mugabe of Zimbabwe as the chair of the former frontline states and
the three Heads of State met at Kasane on the 24th of May 1992. It was agreed by both
states that a Joint Team of Technical Experts was to be established to determine where
the boundary lies; in terms of the Anglo-German Agreement of 1890. The Joint committee
findings were to be final and binding on Botswana and Namibia. On the 15th of February
1995, the Joint Committee reported that the team was unable to agree on the issues of
substance. However, they made a recommendation that the dispute be referred to
international arbitration.

NB: Even though SADC was the eligible venue for which this dispute could be handled efficiently,
it is imperative to understand that SADC was officially formed in August of 1992, much later after
the dispute had already been referred for mediation by the head of the neighboring state. It’s also
important to note that Namibia had not become a member of SADC, until the August of 1992.
SADC also had no institutional mechanisms by this time to solve the particular dispute. These
mechanisms became established much later, for example the tribunal for settling disputes among
states was established in 2005, following its inauguration in Windhoek, Namibia. (His Excellency
Robert G. Mugabe of Zimbabwe could have been chosen to mediate by virtue of having been the
former chair of the frontline states that was a coalition of African Countries in the 1960s to 1990s
committed to ending apartheid. It was only disbanded when Nelson Mandela became president
of South Africa in 1994. Some of the Frontline states included Angola, Botswana, Lesotho,
Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The International Court of Justice

The court gave an account of the history of the dispute between the Parties which is set against
the background of the nineteenth century race among the European colonial powers for the
partition of Africa. In the spring of 1890, Germany and Great Britain entered into negotiations with
a view to reaching agreement concerning their trade and their spheres of influence in Africa. The
resulting Treaty of 1 July 1980 delimited inter alia the spheres of influence of Germany and Great
Britain in South-West Africa; that delimitation lies at the heart of the present case.

In the ensuing century, the territories involved experienced various mutations in status. The
Independent Republic of Botswana came into being on 30 September 1966, on the territory of the
former British Bechuanaland Protectorate, while Namibia (of which the Caprivi Strip forms part)
became independent on 21 March 1990.

Shortly after Namibian independence, differences arose between the two States concerning the
location of the boundary around Kasikili/Sedudu Island. In May 1992, it was agreed to submit the
determination of the boundary around the Island to a Joint Team of Technical Experts. In February
1995, the Joint Team Report, in which the Team announced that it had failed to reach an agreed
conclusion on the question put to it.

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In the Court's opinion, the real dispute between the Parties concerns the location of the main
channel where the boundary lies. The court then proceeds to determine the main channel. In so
doing, it sought to determine the ordinary meaning of the words "main channel" by reference to
the most commonly used criteria in international law and practice, to which the Parties have
referred.

The Court noted that the Parties to the dispute agree on many of the criteria for identifying the
"main channel", but disagree on the relevance and applicability of several of those criteria. For
Botswana, the relevant criteria are as follows: greatest depth and width; bed profile configuration;
navigability; greater flow of water. Botswana also lays stress on the importance, from the
standpoint of identification of the main channel, of "channel capacity", "flow velocity" and "volume
of flow. Namibia greatest emphasis was on weight to the amount of flow: according to it, the main
channel is the one "that carries the largest proportion of the annual flow of the river". Namibia also
emphasized that another key task was to identify the channel that is most used for river traffic.

Regarding the depth of the river the Court concludes that the northern channel is deeper than the
southern one, as regards mean depth, and even as regards minimum depth. Regarding the width,
the Court finds, on the basis of a report dating from as early as 1912, aerial photographs taken
between 1925 and 1985, and satellite pictures taken in June 1975 that the northern channel is
wider than the southern channel. Regarding to flow of water, the Court is not in a position to
reconcile the figures submitted by the Parties, who take a totally different approach to the
definition of the channels concerned.

The Court's interpretation of Article III (2) of the 1890 Treaty led it to conclude that the boundary
between Botswana and Namibia around Kasikili/Sedudu Island follows the line of deepest
soundings in the northern channel of the Chobe. Since the Court has not accepted Namibia's
argument on prescription, it follows that Kasikili/Sedudu Island forms part of the territory of
Botswana.

The Court however observed the Kasane Communique of 24th May 1992 which recorded that the
Presidents of Namibia and Botswana agreed and resolved that:

(c) existing social interaction between the people of Namibia and Botswana should continue;
(d) the economic activities such as fishing shall continue on the understanding that fishing nets
should not be laid across the river;
(e) navigation should remain unimpeded including free movement of tourists".

The court based subparagraph (e) and the interpretation of that subparagraph Botswana gave
before the Court in this case, that the Parties have undertaken to one another that there shall be
unimpeded navigation for craft of their nationals and flags in the channels of Kasikili/Sedudu
Island. As a result, in the southern channel of Kasikili/Sedudu Island, the nationals of Namibia,
and vessels flying its flag, are entitled to, and shall enjoy, a treatment equal to that accorded by
Botswana to its own nationals and to vessels flying its own flag. Nationals of the two States, and
vessels, whether flying the flag of Botswana or of Namibia, shall be subject to the same conditions
as regards navigation and environmental protection. In the northern channel, each Party shall
likewise accord the nationals of, and vessels flying the flag of, the other, equal national treatment.

For the aforementioned reasons, the court, in long interpretation of the law and the treaties that
established the particular territory in contention by 11 votes to four found that the boundary
between the Republic of Botswana and the Republic of Namibia follows the line of deepest

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soundings in the northern channel of the Chobe River around Kasikili/Sedudu Island; and that
Kasikili/Sedudu Island forms part of the territory of the Republic of Botswana.