Sir Seretse Goitsebeng Maphiri Khama,GCB,KBE(1 July 1921 – 13 July 1980) was aBotswanapolitician who served as the firstPresident of Botswana,a post he held from 1966 to his death in 1980.[2][3][4]
Seretse Khama | |
|---|---|
 Sir Seretse Khama,KBE,in January 1970 | |
| 1stPresident of Botswana | |
| In office 30 September 1966 – 13 July 1980 | |
| Vice President | Quett Masire |
| Preceded by | Himself as Prime Minister[1] |
| Succeeded by | Quett Masire |
| 1stPrime Minister of Bechuanaland | |
| In office 3 March 1965 – 30 September 1966 | |
| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Himself as President[1] |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Seretse Goitsebeng Maphiri Khama 1 July 1921 Serowe,Bechuanaland Protectorate |
| Died | 13 July 1980(aged 59) Gaborone,Botswana |
| Resting place | Royal Cemetery,Serowe,Botswana |
| Nationality | Botswana |
| Political party | Botswana Democratic Party |
| Spouse | |
| Children |
|
| Alma mater | |
| Profession | Barrister |
Born into an influentialroyal familyof what was then theBritish protectorateofBechuanaland,he was educated abroad in the neighbouring country ofSouth Africa[3]and then in the United Kingdom.[3]While in Britain, he married an Englishwoman namedRuth Williams,a decision opposed by thewhite-minority governmentofSouth Africaand which led to a controversy resulting in the British government making him stay in England inexileso as to not sourU.K.-South African relations.
After the end of his exile, Khama led hiscountry's independence movementand the transition from British rule into an independent nation. He founded theBotswana Democratic Partyin 1962 and became Prime Minister in 1965. In 1966,Botswanagained independence and Khama was elected as its first president.[5]During his presidency, the country underwent rapid economic and social progress.[6]Khama served as President until his death in 1980, and was succeeded in office byQuett Masire.His son,Ian Khama,served as Botswana's fourth president from 2008 to 2018.[7]
Childhood and education
editSeretse Khama was born in 1921 inSerowe,in what was then theBechuanaland Protectorate.He was the son of Queen Tebogo andSekgoma Khama II,the paramount chief of theBamangwatoclan of theTswana,and the grandson ofKhama III,their king. The name Seretse means "the clay that binds".[8]He was named this to celebrate the recent reconciliation of his father and grandfather; this reconciliation assured Seretse's own ascension to the throne with his aged father's death in 1925. At the age of 4, Seretse becamekgosi(king), with his uncleTshekedi Khamaas hisregentandguardian.
After being educated in his youth at theTiger Kloof Educational InstituteinSouth Africa,Khama attendedFort Hare University Collegethere, graduating with a generalB.A.in 1944. He travelled to the United Kingdom and studied for a year atBalliol College, Oxford.He next joined theInner Templein London in 1946, to study to become abarrister.[9]
Marriage and exile
editIn June 1947, Khama metRuth Williams,an English clerk atLloyd's of London.[3]After a year of courtship, they married. Theinterracial marriagesparked a furore,[3]alarming both theUnion of South Africa,which had established legalapartheid(racial segregation), and the tribal elders of the Bamangwato, who were angered he had not chosen one of their women.
On being informed of the marriage, Khama's uncleTshekedi Khamademanded his return to Bechuanaland and theannulmentof the marriage.[3]Khama did return to Serowe. After a series ofkgotlas(public meetings), he was reaffirmed by the elders in his role as thekgosiin 1949.Ruth Williams Khama,travelling with her new husband, proved similarly popular. Admitting defeat, Tshekedi Khama left the Bamangwato reserve for voluntary exile in the Bakwena reserve while Khama returned to London to complete his studies.[10][3]
Impact on U.K.-South African relations
editHowever, the international ramifications of his marriage were not so easily resolved. Having banned interracial marriage in 1949 under the apartheid system,South Africa's government opposed having an interracial couple ruling just across their northern border. The couple was banned from entering South Africa, includingMafeking,which then operated as the administrative capital ofBechuanaland.Since Bechuanaland was then a Britishprotectorate(not acolony), theSouth African governmentimmediately tried to exert pressure on the UK to have Khama removed from his chieftainship.
TheAttlee ministry,Britain'sLabour-led government, then heavily in debt fromWorld War II,could not afford to lose cheap South African gold and uranium supplies. They also feared that South Africa might take more direct action against Bechuanaland, either economic sanctions or a military incursion.[11][12]London based Black civil rights leaderBilly Strachan,who served as the Joint Secretary of the Seretse Khama Fighting Committee, wrote a letter defending Khama which was then published in theManchester Guardian.[13]On 28 March 1950,Fenner Brockway,a British Labour MP, forced a debate in theHouse of Commonson the decision by the Labour government to banish Seretse Khama from his homeland, while withholding recognition of him as the Chief of the Bamangwato people, because he had marriedRuth Williams.[14]
The British government conducted a judicial enquiry into Khama's fitness for the chieftainship. The investigation did not disapprove of interracial marriage as such and reported that he was eminently fit to rule theBamangwato,"but for his unfortunate marriage", which prevented good relations with neighbouring apartheid regimes.[15]The government ordered that the report be suppressed (it would remain so for thirty years) and exiled Khama and his wife from Bechuanaland in 1951.[16]
Return to politics
edit
The British government's decision concerning Khama immediately proved controversial, both in Britain and Bechuanaland. SeveralBritish newspapersmade calls for the resignation ofLord Salisbury,the minister responsible for the decision.[17][18]A deputation of six Bamangwato travelled to London to see the exiled Khama and Lord Salisbury, in an echo of the 1895 deputation of three BatswanakgosistoQueen Victoria,but met with no success. However, when ordered by the British High Commission to find a suitable candidate to replace Khama, the Bamangwato rebuffed the order.
In 1956, both Khama and his wife were allowed to return to Bechuanaland as private citizens, after he had renounced the tribal throne. Khama began an unsuccessful stint as a cattle rancher. He became involved in local politics, being elected to the tribal council in 1957 as its secretary. In the1961 Birthday Honours,he was recognised for his services as tribal secretary by his appointment as an Officer of theOrder of the British Empire(OBE).[19]
In 1961, Khama returned to politics by founding theBechuanaland Democratic Party.His exile gave him an increased credibility with an independence-minded electorate, and the BDP swept aside itsSocialistandPan-Africanistrivals to dominate the 1965 elections. AsPrime MinisterofBechuanaland,Khama continued to push for Botswana's independence while based in the newly established capital ofGaborone.A 1965 constitution delineated a newBotswana government,and on 30 September 1966, Botswana gained its independence. As prescribed bythe new constitution,Khama became its first President.[1]Ten days prior to this,Elizabeth IIhad promoted Khama within theOrder of the British Empire,appointing him a Knight Commander (KBE).[20]
Presidency
editAt the time of its independence in 1966, Botswana was the world's third-poorest country, poorer than most other African countries.[21][22][23][24]Its infrastructure was minimal, with only 12 kilometres (7.5 miles) of paved roads; and few of its people had formal education, with only 22 university graduates and 100 secondary school graduates.[25]
Khama set out on a vigorous economic programme intended to transform the nation into an export-based economy, built aroundbeef,copperanddiamonds.The 1967 discovery ofOrapa's diamond depositsaided this programme.[21]
Khama instituted strong measures againstcorruption,the bane of so many other newly independent African nations. Unlike other countries in Africa, his administration adoptedfree-market-friendlypolicies to fostereconomic development.Khama promised low and stabletaxesto mining companies,liberalized trade,and increasedpersonal freedoms.He maintained low marginalincome taxrates to detertax evasionand corruption.[24]He upheldliberal democracyandnon-racismin the midst of a region embroiled in civil war, racial enmity and corruption.[26]
The smallpublic servicewas transformed into an efficient and relatively corruption-freebureaucracywith workers hiredbased on merit.Calls to immediately "indigenize" the bureaucracy were resisted, and the government retained foreign expatriates working in the bureaucracy until suitably qualified locals could be found to replace them. Khama and his people also drew on international advisers and consultants. Mining companies were encouraged to search the country for more resources, leading to the discovery of additional copper,nickel,andcoaldeposits.[25]
Between 1960 and 1980 Botswana had the fastest-growing economy in the world.[27]This growth was primarily driven bymining,and the government acted to gain a greater percentage of its revenue.[citation needed]Thecustoms unionbetween Botswana and South Africa was renegotiated in 1969, with the government of Botswana securing for itself a greater share of the mining revenue. In 1975, after it had become clear how productive these mines were, the government again renegotiated the diamond mining agreement to guarantee itself 50% of the revenues. By the mid-1970s, Botswana had abudget surplus.
The government usedthese revenuesto heavily invest in the expansion ofinfrastructure,health care,and theeducationsystem, resulting in further economic development. In particular, the government invested in other sources ofeconomic growth.The cattle industry was heavily subsidised, with the governmentnationalisingthe country's loneslaughterhouseand building two more, heavily subsidisingveterinaryservices,vaccines,and cattle fence construction. It set up theBotswana Meat Commissionas the sole seller of beef in the country, setting prices and selling beef to regional and international markets. With Khama's direct intervention, it negotiated a lucrative trade deal with theEuropean Economic Community,gaining prices far above world levels. Khama also spearheaded a national fundraising campaign to build Botswana's first institute of higher education, which resulted in the establishment of theUniversity of Botswanain 1982, after Khama's death.[citation needed]
The Botswana Development Corporation was established in 1970 to attractforeign investmentin crop agriculture,tourism,and thesecondary sector.In 1976, theBotswana pulawas introduced, replacing theSouth African randas the national currency.[25][28]
Due to Khama's dedication to development, very little was spent on defence, and a small military police force was initially formed in place of an army.[29]However, following repeated incursions bySouth AfricanandRhodesianforces, theBotswana Defence Forcewas formed in 1977 as a small professional military. On theforeign policyfront, Khama was careful politically and did not allow militant groups to operate from within Botswana. According to Richard Dale,
The Khama government had authority to do so by virtue of the 1963 Prevention of Violence Abroad act, and a week after independence, Sir Seretse Khama announced before theNational Assemblyhis government’s policy to insure that Botswana would not become a base of operations for attacking any neighbour.[30]
Shortly before his death, Khama played major roles in negotiating the end of theRhodesian civil warand the resulting creation and independence ofZimbabwe,and the creation of theSouthern African Development Co-ordination Conference.[31]
Khama was reelected three times by virtue of the BDP easily winning the1969,1974and1979elections.[32]In Botswana, candidates for the National Assembly declare whom they endorse for president when they lodge their nomination papers, and the presidential candidate with a majority of endorsements is automatically elected. He governed with very large majorities for his entire tenure, never facing more than seven opposition MPs.[citation needed]
Death
editFor a number of years leading up to his death, Khama's health deteriorated. He suffered from heart and kidney ailments. In 1960 he had been diagnosed withdiabetes.[33]In 1976, he underwent a heart operation inJohannesburgto install apacemaker.From then on, he frequently flew toLondonfor medical treatment. In June 1980, while receiving treatment in London, Khama was diagnosed with terminalpancreatic cancer.He returned home after it was determined that no cure was possible.[34][35]
Khama died in his sleep on 13 July 1980 in the presence of his wife in Botswana.[36]Following his death, Khama was succeeded by Vice PresidentQuett Masire.Forty thousand people paid their respects to Khama as his bodylay in statein Gaborone. He was buried in the Royal Cemetery on a hill inSerowe,Central District.[37]
Legacy
edit
Twenty-eight years after Khama's death,his son IansucceededFestus Mogaeas the fourth president of Botswana;[5]inthe 2009 general electionhe won a landslide victory.[5]That year, his younger son,Tshekedi Khama II,was elected as a parliamentarian fromSeroweNorth West. Ian Khama left office in 2018.[38]
Sir Seretse Khama International Airport,Botswana's main airport, was named after Khama and opened in 1984.[39]
The 2016 filmA United Kingdom,directed byAmma Asanteand written byGuy Hibbert,told the story of the controversies that surrounded Khama's marriage. It starredDavid Oyelowoas Khama andRosamund Pikeas Ruth Williams.[40]Furthermore, it has also been suggested that Sir Seretse's relationship with Lady Khama influenced the writers of theOscar-winning filmGuess Who's Coming to Dinner,which starredSpencer Tracy,Katharine HepburnandSidney Poitier.[41]
Khama is frequently referenced inThe No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agencybooks byAlexander McCall Smith.[42]Mma Ramotswe, the series' protagonist, greatly admires him, compares him withNelson Mandelaand very much regrets the fact of his not being so well known internationally.
References
edit- ^abcThe President and Vice President.Chapter 4, Part I, Constitution of Botswana
- ^"Sir Seretse Khama | president of Botswana | Britannica".www.britannica.com.Retrieved22 May2022.
- ^abcdefgRamsay, Jeff (1 July 2021)."Seretse Khama Centenary: A profile of our first president".Mmegi Online.Retrieved22 May2022.
- ^Henderson, Willie (January 1990)."Seretse Khama: A Personal Appreciation".African Affairs.89(354): 27–56.doi:10.1093/oxfordjournals.afraf.a098278.ISSN1468-2621.
- ^abc"IFES Election Guide | Elections: Botswana Parliamentary Election 2009".www.electionguide.org.Retrieved22 May2022.
- ^"The Presidency – Republic of South Africa".Archived fromthe originalon 20 July 2009.
- ^"Botswana issues arrest warrant for ex-President Ian Khama".AP NEWS.2 January 2023.Retrieved16 June2023.
- ^Parsons, Neil."Sir Seretse Khama".University of Botswana History Department website.Retrieved28 April2012.
- ^"We pay homage to Botswana Presidents – past to present".YourBotswana.Retrieved24 May2020.
- ^Benson, Mary (1976). "Tshekedi Khama as I Knew Him".Botswana Notes and Records.8:121–128.ISSN0525-5090.JSTOR40979462.
- ^
Redfern, John (1955). "An appeal".Ruth and Seretse: 'A Very Disreputable Transaction'.London:Victor Gollancz.p. 221.
The British government knew well enough, throughout the dispute, that theUnion[of South Africa]'s Nationalist Government was playing up the theme of the protectorates, and that it was within the Union's power to apply economic sanctions at any time. (The latest available figures show that more than half the cattle exported from Bechuanaland go to the Union...)
- ^
Rider, Clare (2003)."The 'Unfortunate Marriage' of Seretse Khama".The Inner Temple Yearbook 2002/2003.Inner Temple.Archived fromthe originalon 19 July 2006.Retrieved6 August2006.
Under the provisions of the South Africa Act of 1909, the Union laid claim to the neighbouring tribal territories and, as theSecretary of State for Commonwealth Relationspointed out to the Cabinet in 1949, the 'demand for this transfer might become more insistent if we disregard the Union government's views'. He went on, 'indeed, we cannot exclude the possibility of an armed incursion into the Bechuanaland Protectorate from the Union if Serestse were to be recognised forthwith, while feeling on the subject is inflamed'.
- ^"Letters to the Editor: Seretse Khama".The Manchester Guardian.18 March 1950. p. 6.
- ^Dutfield, Michael (1990).A Marriage of Inconvenience.London: Unwin Hyman.
- ^Rider, Clare (2003)."The 'Unfortunate Marriage' of Seretse Khama".The Inner Temple Yearbook 2002/2003.Inner Temple.Archived fromthe originalon 19 July 2006.Retrieved6 August2006.
Since, in their opinion, friendly and co-operative relations with South Africa and Rhodesia were essential to the well-being of the Bamangwato Tribe and the whole of the Protectorate, Serestse, who enjoyed neither, could not be deemed fit to rule. They concluded: 'We have no hesitation in finding that, but for his unfortunate marriage, his prospects as Chief are as bright as those of any native in Africa with whom we have come into contact'.
- ^"Sir Seretse Khama – first President of Botswana".BBC – Radio 4 Making History.BBC Radio 4.22 July 2010.Retrieved6 September2017.
- ^Williams, Susan, 2006,Colour Bar: The Triumph of Seretse Khama and His Nation,Allen Lane
- ^Redfern, John (1955). "The mean marquis".Ruth and Seretse: "A Very Disreputable Transaction".London:Victor Gollancz.p. 189.
Some sections of the press attacked him, theDaily Expresswith especial force:... "For the nation's good, Lord Salisbury's first deed as Commonwealth Relations Secretary should be his last."
- ^"No. 42370".The London Gazette(Supplement). 2 June 1961. p. 4164.
- ^"No. 44120".The London Gazette.23 September 1966. p. 10295.
- ^abJames Haskins, Jim Haskins.African Heroes.p. 126.
- ^Robert Guest (2004).The Shackled Continent.Smithsonian.ISBN978-1588342140.
- ^"Economic Freedom, Not More Aid, will Transform Africa".Fraser Institute. 2002. Archived fromthe originalon 20 July 2009.
- ^abMarian L. Tupy (14 May 2008)."Botswana and Zimbabwe: A Tale of Two Countries".
- ^abc"An African Success Story: Botswana".Economics.mit.edu.Retrieved27 February2017.
- ^"Mmegi Online:: A glimpse of Seretse Khama's legacy".Mmegi.bw.26 April 2007.Retrieved27 February2017.
- ^Acemoglu, D., S. Johnson and J.A. Robinson. 2003. “An African Success Story: Botswana.” Chapter 4 in 14 in D. Rodrik (Ed.). 2003.In Search of Prosperity: Analytical Narratives on Economic Growth.Princeton: Princeton University Press. pp. 80–119.
- ^"Botswana facts, information, pictures | Encyclopedia.com articles about Botswana".Encyclopedia.com.Retrieved27 February2017.
- ^"Ottawa Citizen - Google News Archive Search".Archived fromthe originalon 2 November 2015.
- ^Dale, Richard.Botswana's Search for Autonomy in Southern Africa.Westport: Greenwood Press, 1995: 50
- ^Boddy, Alistair."Biography of the African Statesman: Sir Seretse Khama".Africanhistory.about.com.Retrieved27 February2017.
- ^Polhemus, James H. (1983)."Botswana Votes: Parties and Elections in an African Democracy".The Journal of Modern African Studies.21(3): 397–430.doi:10.1017/S0022278X00023491.ISSN0022-278X.JSTOR160817.S2CID154524876.
- ^"President Seretse Khama | South African History Online".www.sahistory.org.za.Retrieved22 May2022.
- ^"The Montreal Gazette - Google News Archive Search".Archived fromthe originalon 24 January 2016.
- ^"The Montreal Gazette - Google News Archive Search".Archived fromthe originalon 24 January 2016.
- ^Akyeampong & Gates 2012,p. 359.
- ^Tlou, Thomas;Parsons, Neil; Henderson, Willie (1995).Seretse Khama, 1921–1980.Braamfontein:MacmillanBoleswa. pp. 391–2.ISBN99912-60-31-5.
- ^"Botswana's Khama steps down as president after a decade at helm".Reuters.31 March 2018.Retrieved22 May2022.
- ^"Sir Seretse Khama International Airport".Civil Aviation Authority of Botswana.Retrieved4 October2023.
- ^Fullerton, Huw (25 November 2016)."How accurate is David Oyelowo's A United Kingdom?".www.radiotimes.com.Retrieved22 May2022.
- ^Brozan, Nadine (16 February 2006),"Peggy Appiah, 84, Author Who Bridged Two Cultures, Dies",The New York Times.
- ^Counihan, Clare (2011)."Detecting Outside History inThe No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency".Mosaic: An Interdisciplinary Critical Journal.44(2): 101–118.ISSN0027-1276.JSTOR44029511.
Works cited
edit- Akyeampong, Emmanuel Kwaku; Gates, Henry Louis, eds. (2012).Dictionary of African Biography.Vol. 3. New York: Oxford University Press USA.ISBN978-0-19-538207-5.
Further reading
edit- Mungazi, Dickson (2004).We Shall Not Fail: Values In The National Leadership Of Seretse Khama, Nelson Mandela And Julius Nyerere.Africa World Press.ISBN1-59221-250-6.
- Dutfield, Michael (1990).A Marriage of Inconvenience: Persecution of Ruth and Seretse Khama.HarperCollins.ISBN0-04-440793-9.From the 1990film of the same name.
- Williams, Susan. 2006.Colour Bar.Allen Lane.ISBN0-7139-9811-3
- Seager, Alan. 2005.The Shadow of a Great Rock.Connah's Quay, Flintshire, Wales, GB: I & D Books/ the author
- Parsons, N., Henderson, W. & Tlou, T. (1995)Seretse Khama
- Murdock Larsson, Clotye (1965)."Chapter 22 – An African Abdication – by Seretse Khama".Marriage across the Color Line.Johnson Pub. Co. pp.173–182.ISBN978-0-87485-014-7.
"If you bring this white woman, the tribe will scatter and you will be the Chief only of the bare poles in the market places." So spoke Bathoen, a sub-chief, who, like my uncle, Tshekedi, believed that I should forfeit my position as Chief-Designate rather than bring a white queen to our land.