Saturday, February 8, 2025

Botswana to probe prostitution allegations at military barracks in Mozambique

Vice President Slumber Tsogwane has promised to investigate allegations that Botswana Defence Force barracks in the Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado was “invaded by prostitutes.”

This is according to a report by DW News, which is a global English-language news TV program broadcast by German public international broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW).

The report by DW News states that Botswana’s vice president assured that he will be informed “first hand” of news that the barracks of his country’s military fighting armed groups in the Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado was “invaded by prostitutes.”

“We are going [to Cabo Delgado] to inform ourselves, first-hand, we are looking for information, because I have not yet seen the reports on the matter,” said Slumber Tsogwane, in statements at the end of a meeting in Maputo with the Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi.

The official said that he would also provide moral support to Botswana soldiers fighting insurgents in Cabo Delgado province, northern Mozambique.

“We will see the conditions in which our soldiers operate and provide them with moral support,” said Botswana’s vice president. 

The military contingent from that country is in Cabo Delgado as part of the Military Mission of the Southern African Development Community that has been fighting the armed groups that terrorise some districts of the province since October 2017.

In April, a Botswana media outlet headlined that “prostitutes invade BDF” (Botswana Defense Forces) in Cabo Delgado.

Cabo Delgado province is rich in natural gas, but has been terrorized since 2017 by armed rebels, with some attacks claimed by the Islamic State extremist group.

There are 784,000 internally displaced persons due to the conflict, according to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), and about 4,000 deaths, according to the ACLED conflict registry project.

Since July 2021, an offensive by government troops, with the support of Rwanda and the Southern African Development Community (SADC), allowed the recovery of areas where there was a presence of rebels.

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