‘Non-Racialism’: Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland

Lesotho and Swaziland have adopted constitutions, which are said to be race and colourblind, and a policy of non-racialism in that legislation ignores differences of race and colour among the people within their states. A negative definition of non-racialism is contained in a speech by the Vice-President of Botswana, Dr Q. K. J. Masire, delivered to the expatriate community in Francistown: Non-racialism means what it says. It means that minorities, whatever their colour, will be protected from oppression. But it certainly does not mean that minorities can be permitted to preserve in independent Botswana the pattern of social and economic discrimination which obtained in colonial days and which still obtains in neighbouring countries which have not yet achieved majority rule. If we permit racialist attitudes to go unchecked in an avowedly non- racial society the majority of our people will lose faith in non-racialism, and our hopes of achieving a permanent climate of tolerance, harmony and unity will be dashed. Such a climate is required not only to fulfill our national principles, but also to achieve the stability necessary for successful development in the interests of all our people.’

A Zambezia article on race relations in Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland in the 1970's. Originally given as a paper at the Symposium on race relations in Southern Africa, Univesity of Rhodesia 1972.