Bushmen appeal for legal costs
December 5, 2007
This page was created in 2007 and may contain language which is now outdated.
The Kalahari Bushmen applied in Botswana’s High Court today for leave to appeal for the Botswana government to pay their legal costs.
Last December, the Bushmen won their landmark case against the government. The court ruled that the government’s eviction of the Bushmen was ‘unlawful and unconstitutional’.
Two of the three judges presiding over the eviction case ruled that the Bushmen and the government must share the costs, despite the Bushmen’s win. The judge in today’s hearing has reserved his decision, but if he decides in their favour, the Bushmen will appeal for the government to pay all the costs.
The government has failed to uphold the 2006 ruling, and one year after the Bushmen’s historic victory, most remain stranded in resettlement camps. The Bushmen have announced that they will launch a new case against the government if it continues to prevent them from returning home.
For more information contact Miriam Ross on (+44) (0)20 7687 8734 or email [email protected]
