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As soon as the new Cabinet had been sworn in, preparations were started for full independence. One of the difficulties they faced was the expansionist aims of South Africa. Dr Hendrik Verwoerd, who had been the Prime Minister of South Africa since 1958, had withdrawn his country from the Commonwealth in 1961 and was now seeking to construct a series of satellites and buffers made up of South West Africa, the Bantustans, and the High Commission Territories. The idea that the High Commission Territories might form part of South Africa had been a consideration of British policy since 1910. But now that it was clear this was not going to happen – since Britain was backing their wish for self-determination – the Nationalists decided to woo public opinion in the High Commission Territories, especially among conservative diKgosi.
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As part of this campaign, they reached out the hand of friendship to Seretse. After Seretse's election victory, Verwoerd announced that the South African Government had rescinded the ‘prohibited immigrant' ban on him and his wife.
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Seretse had no intention of responding to Verwoerd's advances. But South Africa had to be managed very carefully: for although its policy of apartheid was roundly and robustly condemned by the African population of Bechuanaland, the Protectorate was dependent for its economic survival on its racist neighbour. In 1966, when Seretse was in London, he discussed the problem with Tony Benn. For his part,
he said, ‘he was being subjected to strong pressure from South Africa which wants to absorb the Protectorates into a new semi-independent Bantustan status'.
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Since Macmillan had given his ‘wind of change' speech in March 1960, Verwoerd had been pressing ahead with the consolidation of apartheid, restricting African people in every aspect of their life. A few weeks after the speech, at Sharpeville, police had fired into a crowd protesting against the Pass Law; sixty-nine people were killed, including children, most of whom were shot in the back. The South African Government then declared a state of emergency and banned the ANC. After this, in the early 1960s, fugitives from the struggle for liberation from apartheid – including Mandela in 1962 – found a haven in Bechuanaland and an escape route to the north. Some refugees, like Joe Slovo, moved rapidly north to freedom; others, like Oliver Tambo, stayed there for a while before moving on to Zambia.
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The years leading up to the independence of Bechuanaland were exhausting for Seretse. He travelled all over the Protectorate and also to Europe and the US, seeking economic assistance to develop the country.
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Many of the health problems that had plagued him over the years returned and although Ruth did her utmost to make him rest, Seretse drove himself hard. While in Washington in 1965, he had a medical check at a hospital where the examining physician told him he was a ‘very sick man', with uncontrolled diabetes and anaemia. He urged immediate treatment, pointing out the risk of a diabetic coma. At the very least, he said, Seretse should be admitted to hospital in London before returning to Bechuanaland.
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But despite the pressure of work and his suffering from ill health, Seretse never lost sight of his dream of his country's future – or even his sense of humour. During discussions of a suitable name for the new official residence of the President, names like State House and Presidential Palace were put forward – and Seretse asked, mischievously, ‘What about the Woodpile?'
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Independence Day was set for 30 September 1966. To prepare for this, talks were held at Marlborough House in London in February 1966, to discuss the new constitution; these talks were attended by Seretse, Masire, Opposition Leader Philip Matante, Bathoen II, as representative of the House of Chiefs, and senior British officials from
Bechuanaland and the Colonial Office.
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It was decided that the newly independent country would be called Botswana and the people would be known as Batswana; Botswana would remain within the Commonwealth, as the tenth African nation to choose to keep such a link with Britain. The talks were a resounding success, but at a cost for Seretse, who suffered an attack of diabetes and had to stay for a while in a London hospital before returning home.
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Shortly before Independence Day, Elizabeth II proclaimed Seretse as a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire. Only a decade and a half before, because of his marriage to Ruth, the leading men of the British Government had sought to keep secret a report stating that Seretse was a ‘fit and proper person to be Chief', because they wanted to keep him out of any position of power. But now he became Sir Seretse Khama, and his wife became Lady Khama. ‘The stone that was rejected had now become the head cornerstone!' observed Joe Appiah with amusement – Sir Seretse and Lady Khama ‘had overcome the follies and prejudices of little men parading as gods'.
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The wind of change which blew the Republic of Botswana into being at midnight on 29 September 1966 was no simple gust – but a blizzard of biting, blinding sand from the Kalahari Desert. For six hours a gale had raged, with winds of up to 35 miles an hour. At the new airport just outside Gaborone, men rushed out to tie down the light aircraft parked in front of the single-storey reception building. There was a full moon, but it was almost hidden by the thick dust flying in swirls through the air.

Princess Marina of Kent had come to Gaborone on behalf of the Queen to hand over the reins of government. At Government House, where she was staying, her officials grew worried about the weather as it grew close to midnight, when the party of dignitaries would leave for the celebrations at the Independence Stadium. One of them suggested to Seretse the possibility of postponing the ceremony, to protect her from the storm. But Seretse was horrified. ‘You cannot postpone independence!' he replied indignantly. The Princess was in complete agreement. She briskly pulled a headscarf over her tiara and set off for the stadium with the Queen's Commissioner.
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In a gold lamé evening dress, she took her seat in the grandstand with the other dignitaries, in their morning coats and evening dresses, huddled under blankets.
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Guests from all over the world had arrived to share in the celebrations, including several British Government ministers. Many visitors experienced first-hand the difficulties of Botswana's dependence on South Africa, because the only straightforward route to Gaborone was via Jan Smuts Airport at Johannesburg, which some delegates, including those from Ethiopia, wanted to avoid. The best alternative
was a long and circuitous journey: by aircraft to Lusaka, train to Livingstone, then by Bechuanaland National Airways from Livingstone, stopping overnight at Kasane and not arriving until the next day at Gaborone.
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A compromise was organized: a waiting area and overnight accommodation were made available at the in-transit area of Jan Smuts, so that Botswana's guests would not have to enter South Africa officially.

In the stadium in Gaborone, 5,000 people were waiting for the moment when their country would become Botswana. Then Seretse arrived with Ruth, who was wearing a white dress with thin, black stripes, a white fur jacket and opera-length white gloves. The 8-year-old twins, Tshekedi and Anthony, wrestled under a blanket as they waited with 16-year-old Jacqueline and Ian, now 13.
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Nobody minded the dust as they waved banners and little flags in great excitement, singing and dancing. Bechuanaland was about to become the 38th independent state in Africa. The 39th would be Basutoland, which became Lesotho a few days after the Independence of Botswana; two years later, the last of the High Commission Territories – Swaziland – became independent. After this, Britain would no longer have any colonial responsibilities on the African continent, apart from Rhodesia.

In the hour leading up to midnight, the crowd was entertained by a march of the Royal Irish Fusiliers, dressed in kilts and carrying bagpipes. They were members of the force guarding Britain's Freedom Radio near Francistown, which was beamed to Rhodesia by the British Government as one strand of its various – but largely ineffective – measures to combat Ian Smith's UDI. Then a group of San performed dances celebrating a successful hunt; this was followed by dances and singing, including a prayer for rain.

The ceremony of transferring power from Britain to the people of Botswana was modelled on the formula that had quickly become established as, one by one, Britain's colonies had achieved their independence. In solemn silence and great dignity, Seretse arose; now 45 years old, the lanky figure of his younger years had become more sturdy and he looked very much a statesman. Then, ten minutes before midnight, a prayer was given and the lights of the stadium were put off. Seretse now stood in the arena, facing the grandstand, dressed
simply in a dark suit; the Queen's Commissioner was on his right, wearing a starched white uniform and white helmet, plumed with ostrich feathers. In the darkness behind them, a detachment of police was drawn up in two lines, with fixed bayonets. The band played the opening bars of ‘God Save the Queen' and the Union Jack – which had flown in Bechuanaland for eighty-one years – was finally lowered down a tall, thin pole.

Then a spotlight was focused on an adjoining white pole. In complete silence, the band started to play the new Botswana national anthem,
Fatshe leno la rona
– ‘Blessed be this noble land'. Very slowly, the Botswana flag was run up. The flag has a thick strip of blue at the top, representing the sky; a thick strip of blue at the bottom, representing water; a black strip in the centre is bordered by two white strips, representing racial harmony. The motif of black and white stripes was taken from the zebra – an animal that, out of all the wild animals of the country, was not the totem of any particular section of the population. It was seen to represent the non-racial, inclusive, character of the new nation. Two zebras – with ‘
Pula
' inscribed underneath – appeared in the new coat of arms; it was also agreed that the inter-racial sporting teams which would go abroad to represent Botswana would be known as the ‘Zebras'.
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Seretse stood rigidly to attention, by the flagpole, in front of his people. For a few moments, the flag remained stuck, caught in the gusts of sand and wind. Then, suddenly, it streamed out into the wind of the storm – to the jubilation of the crowd and shouts of ‘
Pula!
' At that moment, drops of rain were felt among the sand blowing through the air. After the searing drought, the rain had come – and many people could hardly believe their eyes. This was the start of several days of rain. The dam near Gaborone filled up to overflowing with badly needed water and the whole country was awash. At the airport, some children took their shoes off to wade through the wet, in order to reach their plane.
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‘The weather gave its independence blessing with copious rains, after several years of drought,' reported the British High Commissioner to London.
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In Gaborone next day, at a ceremony in front of the newly built National Assembly building, Princess Marina formally handed over the Constitutional Instruments. The President took the oath of office,
while Ruth stood proudly behind him, and Ketumile Masire was sworn in as Vice-President. This was followed by a series of celebrations: a combined church service, then a police parade and sporting events. Princess Marina opened a hospital named after her and visited a number of exhibitions and schools, where she was given a tumultuous welcome; she endeared herself to everyone by her lack of formality and her genuine interest in everything she saw.

The lowering of the British flag – and the raising of the Botswana flag – was repeated in towns and villages all over Botswana at midnight, so that everybody could participate. Everywhere, too, celebrations followed, such as dances, sports sessions and feasts of roast meat. Throughout the week, reported the
Mafeking Mail
– referring both to the weather and to the celebrations – ‘the wind of change kept up a nice steady breeze'.
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One of the guests at the official celebrations, John Stonehouse, who had attended in his role as Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies, described them as ‘Spartan'.
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It was true that they were quieter and less lavish than the independence celebrations in Kenya or other former colonies. But it would have been more accurate to describe them as ‘modest' – appropriate to the difficulties faced by an impoverished country. This style was adopted as a deliberate strategy by the new Government. Only the President travelled first class – the rest went by economy. This frequently caused confusion in host countries, as when Vice-President Masire and the Minister of Agriculture flew to Uganda in 1968. ‘We flew by BOAC to Entebbe,' recorded an official who was travelling with them in economy class –

and just before we landed were instructed over the loudspeaker to remain seated when we landed because important Ugandan officials were coming on board. We did as instructed and I noticed much activity going on in the first class.

The official asked one of the stewards what was happening and was told they were looking for the dignitaries from Botswana – and he said they were sitting next to him. The Ugandans hauled them off the plane to a red carpet, and a lavish champagne reception in the VIP lounge. ‘They were amazed', recorded the official, ‘that Botswana Ministers should travel economy class.' In any case, he added, the
reception did not last long, because neither Masire nor the Minister of Agriculture touched alcohol.
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Even when he had become President, Seretse assumed none of the more pompous trappings that often accompany high office. He frequently strolled out of the office of the president to the nearby shops to buy a detective story, stopping for a chat about the latest books.
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