Traditional Rule

Bogosi and the Kgotla: Agents of Sustainable Democracy and Development

One important feature of the precolonial Tswana traditional rule was the use of tribal assemblies or kgotlas and the conduct of public affairs, including the tradition of peacemaking, that took place through the kgotla. Tswana institutions of governance, such as bogosi (chieftainship) and the kgotla system, have continued to be relevant to the lives of Batswana.

Earlier studies suggested that the kgotla had been a central element in the traditional machinery of Tswana government. Kofi Darkwah (1996) argues that before 1966, the kgotla may be said to have been not just a public meeting place but also the seat of the government or administration of the community. As Isaac Schapera (1994) notes, the central kgotla of the kgosi was the public assembly where he not only delivered judgments and laws but also listened to the people when matters of public interest were discussed. Chiefs (dikgosi) presided in large kgotla meetings (pitso or phuthego), where after lengthy discussion in which “all” could participate, the Kgosi had the right to make final decisions on all matters. The chief exercised authority over a large area (a district today) through a hierarchy of relatives and officials, including close advisers and ward headmen (P. M. Mgadla & A. Campbell, 1989, p. 49). During the 19th century, BaNgwato in what is today the central district and BaTawana of Ngamiland (northwest district) extended their political control over other groups considered of lower status than the Tswana dominant groups. The so-called minority groups included San/Basarwa, BaYei, Bambukushu, BaKalanga, BaBirwa, and BaTswapong. BaNgwato and BaTawana were among those who considered themselves superior to others because of their strong political and administrative system, which included monarchy, as well as courts of laws and an economy based on large-scale animal husbandry. In both the Ngwato and Tawana hierarchical system of government, the whole area under their thraldom was divided into “counties” with senior Tswana each in charge as chief's representatives (baemedi ba kgosi). The chief's representatives would supervise their areas and ensure that the paramount chief's (kgosi e kgolo's) property, such as cattle, ivory, and furs, was properly guarded. Representatives of the constituent wards expressed their opinions at the main kgotla on behalf of their charges. The constituent ward far from the administrative center of the traditional rule also had its own small kgotla, which gave certain semiautonomy from the paramount chief and invested the group with the authority to regulate some of its affairs and to address the chief.

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