Bonolo Selelo met Tsholofelo Kumile at a Gaborone Pride event and their relationship quickly deepened. They moved in together two months later and Selelo proposed during an Easter hike in 2024. A year after the proposal, they visited a local government office to register their intent to marry but were told it was not legal. They launched a court case to claim the right to marry, with hearings scheduled for 14 and 15 July. If successful, Botswana would become the second African country to legalise same-sex marriage after South Africa. The case faces opposition from the government and traditional and church groups. Botswana decriminalised same-sex relations in 2019 after a high court ruling that a colonial-era ban was unconstitutional.
"Bonolo Selelo was at Botswana's national museum for a Gaborone Pride event when she spotted Tsholofelo Kumile and was struck by her good looks. The two initiated a conversation and when Kumile expressed anxiety about what a tarot reading at the event might hold, Selelo thought nothing of offering her a hug. The reading turned out positive but Kumile claimed her hug anyway and they talked for hours. That was 1 October 2023. Two months later, they moved in together."
"A year later, they visited a local government office to register their intent to marry and were told it wasn't legal. It was kind of expected. But I don't think they expected the response, Kumile said. She looked affectionately at Selelo. She does not back down. The couple launched a court case, claiming the right to marry. Hearings are scheduled for 14 and 15 July. If they succeed, Botswana would become the second African country to legalise same-sex marriage, after South Africa in 2006."
"We did have a frank discussion about it, said Selelo, sitting next to her fiancee in the office of her law firm, which Kumile also works for. I said I want us to get married, because I love you, but there's also the practical part. As a lawyer, Selelo worried what would happen to Kumile if she died. I feel that I would be able to withstand a lot of legal pressure, but I wouldn't want her to be harassed if I am no longer there to offer that protection. And, for me, marriage would give her that added protection that no other institution would be able to give her."
"However, the case is facing fierce opposition from the government and traditional and church groups. We did have a frank discussion about it, said Selelo, sitting next to her fiancee in the office of her law firm, which Kumile also works for. Botswana decriminalised same-sex relations in 2019 when the high court ruled that a British colonial-era ban was unconstitutional. The decision was upheld o"
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