Shooting the Messenger
September 12, 07Last week’s column on the problems between diamond manufacturers and unions in Botswana has set off a storm; it apparently identified a real issue that needs to be addressed. It brought the genie out of the bottle and we have faith in Minister Ponatshego Kedikilwe and his colleagues that they will steer the emerging national debate into constructive directions – leading to firm solutions. The genie is out – it cannot be put back in.
Some newspapers complained that my story didn’t adequately reflect the position of the unions. That’s a fair comment, even though my main purpose was to signal a major obstacle to the success of beneficiation, rather than give a comprehensive background piece on labor-industry relations.
It was interesting, however, to read the union reactions in Botswana's leading paper Sunday Standard which quoted the relevant union’s administrative Secretary, Modiri Bontshetse, and Chairman, Handy Motiki, saying that the union has never sanctioned any act of sabotage. “We would not want any of the firms to close down because they are creating employment and increasing our membership. There is no way we can pursue a strategy that will stifle our growth,” said Motiki. The growth of union membership is apparently identified as an overarching objective.
The newspaper says, “What is emerging though is that the acrimony between the cutting firms and the unions is deep, long-standing and likely to fester for sometime.” I hope that the paper’s pessimism is misplaced. The problems are solvable assuming that all parties are truly committed to finding a way out of the impasse. If diamond beneficiation fails, Botswana may not get a second chance.
Diamond Trading Company (DTC) Managing Director (and Chairman of DTC Botswana) Varda Shine also signals her determination to devote more resources to achieve the success of beneficiation. She announced the appointment of
Putting Words in One’s Mouth
What I did not expect – and it quite saddened me – is that the editor of the Sunday Standard, Outsa Mokone, saw it appropriate to use the opportunity to launch a personal attack on me as the author of the article.
In a front page commentary the paper notes “Not only is Even-Zohar’s article uninformed, it has in it traces that border on racism.”
Says the editorial: “we have serious suspicions that Even-Zohar has been planted by diamond cutting firms to put pressure on the government of Botswana so as to make further concessions to them against the employees.” Continues the editorial: “Other than drawing public attention to Even-Zohar’s potentially racist rantings (which can do great damage if not exposed for what they are) we want to call on the government to lift the moratorium currently obtaining on licensing of diamond cutting firms.”
As journalist, analyst, author or columnist I expect – and always welcome – feedback and I have no issue with those who hold other views. I respect that. When facts are in dispute, it is always good to stand corrected. That comes with the territory. Attacking the messenger, however, is a remnant from ancient times when messages were delivered in person by a human envoy. Sometimes, as in war, for example, the messenger was sent from the enemy camp. An easily-provoked combatant receiving such an overture could more easily vent anger (or otherwise retaliate) on the deliverer of the unpopular message than on its author, thus literally killing the messenger.
To understand the Union’s position, their policies, their philosophies, I studied dozens of documents, including the Botswana Trade Union’s 2003 Country Report and their 2004 Position Paper. In one of the articles in the Sunday Standard, I am attacked (“the manufacturers hard hitter – [Even-]Zohar seem to be tearing their hair out over their inability to win government and opposition parties over to their side”) for a statement that was directly lifted from a Botswana Trade Union paper. In reflection, I should have added a footnote – but that would probably not have stopped those determined to shoot the messenger. It does, however, point to the absurdity and the editorial twisting.
The most despicable type of journalism anywhere is putting words in someone’s mouth. Writes Sunday Standard’s editor, in reference to Batswana in the diamond industry “if they participate, they do so as workers who are, to a large extent, not only lowly paid but also abused by their expatriate masters, who, in Even-Zohar’s words, can easily tell the “bullshit.” A word used by an employee, which became a criminal charge, has suddenly become an Even-Zohar word? I beg your pardon – such a word doesn’t appear in my lexicon.
I could cite a dozen or so examples of untruths and distortions in the editor’s commentary, but will refrain because I do respect his right to see it the way he sees it. So when he writes that he finds it “particularly distasteful that a respectable person of Even-Zohar’s standing allows himself to be used like a hired gun to churn out untruths and unbalanced stories meant to spread unnecessary and unfounded panic and unrest in an infant industry that has the potential to reward Botswana for all the lost opportunities from the country’s diamond industry over the years,” I’ll let it pass. He is allowed to shoot the messenger – but he shouldn’t delude himself: the problems between union and industry are real, and not of my making.
There is one thing, however, I will never tolerate: charges of racism. Too many of my own family members and ancestors have been murdered just because of horrendous racism and no editor of a newspaper has the right to attribute any legitimate difference of opinion or views to racism.
Racism Charges
Before accusing people of racism – a charge which is potentially libelous –the editor might have engaged in some minimal background checking. I enjoy a long-time relationship with many journalist colleagues in Botswana, including the diamond affairs reporter of the Sunday Standard, whom I even invited to join me to one of my recent visits to a diamond factory. At the factory he was privy to the very same background briefings that I received.
Though the Sunday Standard throughout the years has often used my articles and solicited my views, I would like to quote from my own 941-page book, From Mine to Mistress: Corporate Strategies and Government Policies in the International Diamond Industry, which contains a 35-page analysis on the Botswana diamond industry which ends with the following paragraph:
“When Botswana fully assumes its rough marketing and distribution role (by 2009) this will mark the end of the historical and traditional role of London, which has been the heart of rough diamond distribution for a few centuries. The move of sorting, sight aggregation, and DTC sales to Gaborone will mark the end of the DTC as we have known it for decades. The added value that had so far escaped the people of Botswana will now be earned by the ultimate owners of the nation’s mineral resource. This has become reality because government has displayed the political will to set its own interests well above those of the other members of the De Beers group of companies. Its independent course will not fail to deliver enormous additional benefits to the people of Botswana.”
I wrote that because I believe this accurately reflects the reality. For decades the author has been one of the staunchest supporters of beneficiation and has never hidden his view that the Batswana people have the sole right to determine what to do with the country's mineral wealth.
In the analysis, I made an additional observation: “Botswana is probably the only country in Africa totally void of racial tension. Colour is not an issue.”
That observation came from my experience in well over a dozen visits to Botswana over the past thirty years.
The Sunday Standard's editor notes a growing xenophobia among Batswana. Forgive my ignorance, but I needed a dictionary to understand that “Xenophobia is a fear or contempt of foreigners or strangers.” To be precise and to not take things out of context, the editor wrote: “If at all there is any growing xenophobia among Batswana, it is a direct result of entrenched feelings among citizens that they have been left out of the economic mainstream. It is very important for diamond cutters coming into Botswana under the recent agreements between government and De Beers to show a greater sense of maturity.” I would politely suggest that this advice may be appropriate for all stakeholders, newspapers included.
In none of my visits to Botswana have I ever seen any evidence of xenophobia. Batswana are proud people and great hosts to foreigners. Maybe the editor knows better – or, maybe, the editor must have a problem himself. I can only say that no one else in more than sixty years has ever called me a racist.
It hurts – it hurts deeply.