Surprise return to Botswana by ex-president to face trial

Botswana’s former President Ian Khama has unexpectedly returned to the country after three years of self-imposed exile, appearing in court to face charges, including money laundering and owning illegal firearms.

The 71-year-old had only recently claimed there was a plot to poison him if he set foot on home soil.

The government called those allegations “outrageous”.

Supporters chanted “the general is back” as Khama left the courthouse on Friday in the capital, Gaborone.

“We were taken by surprise,” said state prosecutor Ambrose Mubika of Khama’s decision to appear.

Ian Khama led Botswana for 10 years until 2018.

He is not standing for office again in next month’s election, in which his bitter rival President Mokgweetsi Masisi is seeking a second term.

Khama has called Masisi “the Botswana version of Donald Trump” and believes appointing him as his successor in the governing Botswana Democratic Party was a “mistake”.

At Friday’s hearing, the magistrate dropped arrest warrants against Khama that had been issued in 2022 after his previous no-shows at court.

“I’m happy with the magistrate’s ruling,” Khama said afterwards, according to the AFP news agency.

“The state wanted him back in the country and now he is back. He is in the country for as much as he likes,” his lawyer Unoda Mack told reporters.

Khama has long denied the 14 charges against him, which also include handling stolen property, saying they are politically motivated.

He is jointly charged with the former heads of intelligence and police services.

During his presidency, Khama was praised for seeking to diversify the economy which is heavily reliant on diamond production.

Since Masisi assumed office he has reversed some of his predecessor’s policies, which is said to have played a part in the rift.

According to the polling company Afrobarometer, citizens of Botswana feel increasingly concerned about corruption, including the awarding of large government contracts to officials’ relatives.

Khama is next due to appear in court on 23 September.

The ex-president had been living in South Africa since falling out with Masisi, and, in a sign of mistrust between the two men, has said he pays for his own private security guards despite being entitled to state-funded protection.

The former army general is known for his love of flying planes, but was reportedly barred from using the state fleet as his feud with President Masisi worsened.

Ian Khama was born in 1953 in the UK county of Surrey, the son of exiled independence leader Seretse Khama and his British wife, Ruth.

Khama senior went on to become Botswana’s first president in 1960. His life was the subject of a recent Hollywood film called A United Kingdom.