Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
By the 19th century, Christian missionaries had begun to arrive, bringing with them an
entirely new set of ideas that dislodged many indigenous traditions and practices. They es-
tablished the first schools and as a result the Christian message began to spread.
Today about 30% of Batswana adhere to mainstream Christian faiths (the majority are
either Catholic or Anglican), while around 60% adhere to the practices of the African Re-
ligion, an indigenous religion that integrates Christian liturgy with the more ritualistic ele-
ments of traditional ancestor worship. It comprises a variety of churches (the Healing
Church of Botswana, the Zionist Christian Church and the Apostolic Faith Mission), and
is extremely popular in rural areas.
WOMEN IN BOTSWANA
If the statistics are to be believed, Botswana's women are clawing back admirably against centuries of inequality.
Yes, only 7.9% of the country's parliamentarians are women, but 73.6% of adult women in Botswana have
reached secondary school or higher (compared to 77.5% of men) and female participation in the labour force
stands at 72.3% (compared with 80.9% among men). One of Botswana's Paramount Chiefs is a woman, and
around half of the country's professional and technical workers are female.
But Botswana has a dark side and it's one that you'll rarely hear anyone speaking about. In a recent survey con-
ducted by the
Women's International League for Peace and Freedom
(
www.peacewomen.org
)
, 86% of re-
spondents rated violence against women as a community problem and 88% said it was on the increase. Over 60%
saw severe beating as the most prevalent form of abuse; 47% identified rape. A third of respondents knew a wo-
man who had fled her home due to violence.
Traditional culture is often cited as the 'excuse' for battering women, as traditional law permits men to 'chas-
tise' their wives. Monica Tabengwa, director of Metlhaetsile Women's Information Centre, went on record saying,
'Most women expect to be battered and most men consider it their duty to batter'. Customary or traditional law
has always regarded women as legal minors who require their husband's consent to buy or sell property and enter
into legally binding contracts. That may be about to change after Botswana's High Court in 2012 overturned a
customary law which prevented women from inheriting the family home, holding that the law ran counter to Bot-
swana's constitution, which guarantees equal rights for men and women.
Botswana's current laws prohibit rape but do not recognise the concept of marital rape. The minimum sentence
for rape is 10 years; the penalty increases to 15 years with corporal punishment if the offender is HIV positive,
and to 20 years with corporal punishment if the offender knew they were HIV positive at the time of the rape.
Arts & Crafts
Botswana's earliest artists were the San, who painted the world they lived in on the rock
walls of their shelters. They were also master craftsmen, producing tools, musical instru-
