THE ROLE OF PARLIAMENT IN INTELLIGENCE AGENCY OF

BOTSWANABY

TSHEPHAONE REASENTSE201104855

PRESENTATION LAYOUT

1.DEFINITION OF ABSTRACT TERMS2.ESTABLISHMENT OF BOTSWANA PARLIAMENT3.FUNCTIONS OF PARLIAMENT4.ROLE OF DIRECTORATE OF INTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY SERVICES

5.CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES REGARDING THE FUNCTIONS OF INTELLIGENCE & NATIONAL SECURITY

6.CONCLUSION7.RECOMMENDATIONS

THE EXTENT TO WHICH PARLIAMENT MONITORS INTELLIGENCE AGENCY IN ENSURING STRICT CONFORMITY

TO RULE OF LAW AND PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS

DEFINITION OF ABSTRACT TERMS

• INTELLIGENCE: processed information provided to and used by political and military leaders to help them make decision on the basis of informed analysis rather than instinct or information concerning an enemy or an area

• LEVELS OF INTELLIGENCE

i. STRATEGIC INTELLIGENCE: information that is needed to formulate policy and military plans at the international and national policy levels

ii.TACTICAL INTELLIGENCE: Intended primarily to respond to the needs of military field commanders so they can plan for and if necessary, conduct combat operation

• INTELLIGENCE SERVICES: services organized expressly for the collection of secret information. such services also take covert (disavow able) activity on behalf of the state in Britain there is m16 which is supposed only to operate abroad and M15 which operates at home. in USA there is federal bureau of investigation (domestic) and central intelligence agency (overseas).

CONT…

• NATIONAL SECURITY: the protection of nation states from external and internal threats to their national threats. Botswana has an act to make provision for national security, and other activities prejudicial to the interests of the nation, and other matters incidental to or connected therewith thus the national security act of 2005.

ESTABLISHMENT OF BOTSWANA PARLIAMENT

• the legislature is one of the three branches of government which are the executive and the judiciary. the present national assembly or the parliament of Botswana was established by section 57 of the constitution of Botswana which states that “there shall be a parliament of Botswana which shall consist of the president and a national assembly”

FUNCTIONS OF PARLIAMENT

• Among the most important functions of the parliament of Botswana is to examine, debate and possibly pass government policies that are tabled before it as draft white papers. the papers usually originate from ministries of government departments.

• Parliament is the highest legislative body in the country and is responsible for the formulation of policy and the enactment of laws. In the performance of their political and judicial functions, members of parliament form an important link between the people and the policy. The national assembly scrutinises bills coming from the executive and clothe them with legal and binding power which is enforceable in the courts.

• Parliament undertakes the role of scrutinising and controlling the government. The national assembly has look searchingly at the activities of various government departments and subject them to methodical examination in order to deliver a responsible and accountable government to the people. This is done through question time and parliamentary committees

CONT…

• Another function of the national assembly is to control public finance, that is, money raised for public expenditure by government in the form of taxes, loans, rates and other levels. It is crucial to note that the national assembly has the power to order attendance of witnesses that is any order to provide evidence documents, records etc.

• Although the constitution of Botswana provided for the separation of powers the executive, the legislature and the judicature in practice the parliament of Botswana is a department of the office of the president

ROLE OF DIRECTORATE OF INTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY

SERVICES• The primary role of intelligence according to section 5(1) of the ISS act would be to investigate, gather, coordinate, evaluate, correlate, interpret, disseminate and store information whether inside or outside Botswana for the purposes of detecting and identifying threats or potential threats to national security

CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES REGARDING THE FUNCTIONS OF INTELLIGENCE &

NATIONAL SECURITY

MEDIA REPORTS• The director of DISS has so many issues and in a Botswana guardian newspaper stated that observers say that Kgosi’s fall from grace has serious political implications on Khama’s administration, powerbase and legacy. The allegations and even his own admissions under questioning by the directorate on corruption and economic crime have been so damaging that some in the intelligence community including within the DIS are calling for Kgosi to be axed.

• Intelligence Security Services bill and law contradicts vision 2016 in many fundamental ways and that it contradicts the emerging trends in leading liberal democracies in the region and abroad.

• In the National Development Plan (NDP10) the estimated cost for intelligence is P 1,163,196 and the budget speech the ministry of defence justice and security is given a share of P4.18 billion thus there is need for reform

CONT…• Currently there is according to statute a parliamentary committee on intelligence and security which examines the expenditure, administration and policy of the directorate. Moreover this committee shall have the same powers and privileges set out under the national assembly powers and privileges act but according to sunday standard newspaper reported that in a letter dated 28 July 2014 and addressed to president Ian Khama and copied to national assembly speaker Margaret Nasha, the two committee members Moeng Pheto and Bagalatia Arone state that, “it is with great regret to advice your excellency on our joint and collective decision to resign as members of the intelligence and security parliamentary committee with immediate effect.”

However Chris Maroleng observed that under the banner of national security and the demand for secrecy, national intelligence communities have often enjoyed unlimited freedoms when performing their functions, often times abusing their mandate and misusing powers. A clear illustration to show the reality of this statement was a publication of the sunday standard newspaper the Lobatse high court awarded a default judgment in favour of a harassment victim (Phillip Tlhage) who was suing the directorate of intelligence and security (DIS) P450,000 for breach of constitutionally protected rights, P750,000 and P500,000 for unlawful arrest by DIS, P750,000 for unlawful detention by police and P500,000 for what he calls “delictuaal damages for breach of a statutory duty.

LAST CONTROVERSIAL ISSUE

• What need to be understood is the budget of intelligence, their operations, assessments are secret thus the structure of the intelligence and security architecture with the president at the apex makes it, let alone the issue of appointment, completely answerable to the president and seals the absence of political neutrality, he is virtually the head of the intelligence edifice thus in the Botswana guardian newspaper and sunday standard newspaper published “DIS IS FOR KHAMA, WHY KHAMA WILL NOT DROP KGOSI, KHAMA’S ABSOLUTE CONTROL FOR DIS OPENS DOORS TO ABUSE” the directorate on intelligence and security (DIS) is an instrument of fear more than of intelligence collection and has been unable to ward off scepticism and suspicion, a senior DIS agent has said

QUESTION: TO WHAT EXTENT WOULD WE SAY PARLIAMENT MONITORS AND HAS CONTROL OVER INTELLIGENCE

AGENCY IN ENSURING PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND RULE OF LAW?

• As regards the activities of security agents, it is reported that at least 10 citizens died at the hands of security agents. The most recent killing is that of John Kalafatis. No arrest has been made and yet there are popular claims that assassins are known. The situation has been described comprehensively by the law society of Botswana in a petition to the president, representing the general feelings of the citizens on operations of intelligence and security agents. In their petition, the law society stated:

• “Your excellency ascended to presidency on 1st April 2008 since which time there has been an unprecedented rise in gross human rights violations at the hands of state security agents… the most publicized of these was the death of John Kalafatis whose killing by all accounts was premeditated in response to the public outrage, the vice president, then Morafhe, is on record saying one or two killings will not tarnish the image of our democracy and (this) in the absence of any comments from your excellency, has lamentably, become the official government position”

HUMAN RIGHTS COALITION OBSERVED FURTHER THAT

• “It is a truism the intelligence and security are by nature secretive and not accessible to public scrutiny. However, it is essential that within a functioning democracy, there are essential values which form the guiding tools for ensuring oversight. There also need to be clarity concerning the relationship between the executive and legislature…without a common understanding of the extent of the distinct and separate powers and operations of these bodies, parliament runs the risk of becoming a toothless watchdog”

CONCLUSION

• Intelligence agencies the world over have tended to violate the human rights freedoms and liberties that have been entrenched in most national constitutions. As a result of these extremes of abuse, citizens have demanded more effective oversight. Not trusting oversight by the government itself, which in many case would be self-oversight, people have looked to parliament as the only institution that can provide this functions, simply because that is where they are represented. Therefore parliament which they elect ought to be directly accountable to them

RECOMMENDATIONS

• DEMOCRATIC AND PARLIAMENT OVERSIGHT OF THE INTELLIGENCE AGENCIES IS ESSENTIAL FOR A NUMBER OF REASONS:

• PARLIAMENTARY OVERSIGHT MUST ENSURE A BALANCE BETWEEN SECURITY AND LIBERTY, PRIVACY AND CIVIL RIGHTS, WHICH ARE VITAL COMPONENTS OF EVERY DEMOCRACY.

• CONFIDENCE IN INTELLIGENCE SERVICES CAN ONLY BE FOSTERED IF THERE ARE PUBLIC DEBATES ON THE LEGITIMACY OF THE ACTIVITIES OF THE INTELLIGENCE AGENCIES

• THE LAW ITSELF (ISS ACT) NEEDS TO BE REPEALED AND HAVING SEEN THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE DIRECTOR OF INTELLIGENCE HAVING TO RESPOND TO THE PRESIDENT CAN RESULT IN CORRUPTION AS IT IS THE CASE WITH THE DIRECTOR GENERAL. FOLLOWING THE 25TH OCTOBER NATIONAL ELECTIONS THE NEW PARLIAMENT AND ITS RESPECTIVE MEMBERS MUST CONSIDER THIS AS AN URGENT MATTER FOR NATIONAL SECURITY

DICTUM“Vote For A New Parliament this October 24th 2014”

REFERENCES

• DIS AFTER ISSAC KGOSI. (2014, OCTOBER 2). RETRIEVED FROM ONLINE BOTSWANA GUARDIAN WEB SITE: HTTP://WWW.BOTSWANAGUARDIAN.CO.BW

• DIS IS FOR KHAMA. (2014, OCTOBER 4). RETRIEVED FROM ONLINE BOTSWANA GUARDIAN WEBSITE: HTTP:WWW.BOTSWANAGUARDIAN.CO.BW

• DIS ORDERED TO COMPENSATE VICTIM. (2014, OCTOBER 1). RETRIEVED FROM ONLINE SUNDAY STANDARD WEB SITE: HTTP://WWW.SUNDAYSTANDARD.INFO

• DIS OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE MEMBERS RESIGN OVER KGOSI. (2014, OCTOBER 2). RETRIEVED FROM SUNDAY STANDARD WEB SITE: HTTP://WWW.SUNDAYSTANDARD.INFO

• INTELLIGENCE. (2013). ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA. ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA ULTIMATE REFERENCE SUITE. CHICAGO: ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA.

• KHAMA'S ABSOLUTE CONTROL OVER DIS OPEN DOORS TO ABUSE. (2014, OCTOBER 2). RETRIEVED FROM SUNDAY STANDARD WEBSITE: HTTP://WWW.SUNDAYSTANDARD.INFO

REF…

• MAUNDENI, Z. (2008). TRANSPARENCY, ACCOUNTABILITY AND CORRUPTION IN BOTSWANA. CAPETOWN: PLAIN COMMUNICATIONS.

• MAUNDENI, Z. (2008). VISION 2016 AND REFORMING THE INTELLIGENCE IN BOTSWANA. BOTSWANA NOTES AND REWARDS, VOL. 40, 135-146.

• MCLEAN, I., & MCMILLAN, A. (2009). THE CONCISE OXFORD DICTIONARY OF POLITICS (EDS). NEW YORK: OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS.

• MFDP. (2009). NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN 10. GABORONE: GOVERNMENT PRINTING AND PUBLISHING SERVICES.

• MOLOMO, M. R. (2012). DEMOCRATIC DEFICIT IN THE PARLIAMENT OF BOTSWANA. CAPE TOWN: THE CENTRE FOR ADVANCED STUDIES OF AFRICAN SOCIETY (CASAS).

• NSEREKO, D. D. (2010). CONSTITUTIONAL LAW IN BOTSWANA. GABORONE: PULA PRESS.• ROBINSON, P. (2008). DICTIONARY OF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY. CAMBRIDGE: POLITY PRESS.• TSHOLOFELO, L. (2012, MARCH 3). A CRITICAL EVALUATION OF THE INTELLIGENCE OVERSIGHT

REGIME IN BOTSWANA. RETRIEVED FROM E-IR WEBSITE: HTTP://WWW.E-IR.INFO• WHY KHAMA WILL NOT DROP KGOSI. (2014, OCTOBER 1). RETRIEVED FROM BOTSWANA GUARDIAN WEBSITE: HTTP://WWW.BOTSWANAGUARDIAN.CO.BW