Matlhabaphiri was responding to a question by Member of Parliament (MP) for South East South Odirile Motlhale yesterday, who wanted him to explain why government is reluctant to provide ARVs to foreign inmates doing time in Botswana prisons given that some of them have died because they cannot access the treatment.

"It is government policy that free ARV treatment is only provided to HIV positive citizens.  However, HIV positive non-citizen prisoners are entitled to free treatment against other opportunistic infections," he said.

But MP for Kanye North Kentse Rammidi enquired if provision of ARVs would not be in line with the country's Vision 2016 of a caring and compassionate nation, to which Matlhabaphiri responded saying the main problem is that the inmates go to their countries of origin after release.

He added that ARVs are very expensive. However, he said that the inmates are provided with treatment for opportunistic diseases until they are released.

Meanwhile, in a separate interview with Mmegi, the Office of the Ombudsman said that they do not have a reason to advocate for foreign prisoners because they have not approached the office.

Public relations officer Fenny Letshwiti, however, said that they would investigate to establish why they have been denied ARV treatment.

"So far, there has not been any calling or reason for an investigation, therefore, the Ombudsman cannot propound any position," he said.

Recently, the Botswana Network on Ethics, Law and HIV/AIDS  (BONELA) legal officer, Dikeledi Dingake said that they have six cases of HIV-positive foreign prisoners, some of them terminally ill and left to die.

The number of similar cases around the country is believed to be much higher since the six cases are only from the Gaborone prison.

Dingake said in local newspapers that BONELA, a human rights advocacy organisation, would soon sue the Ministry of Health before court for the 'unfair, inhuman, and degrading' treatment of foreign inmates.

Dingake said that by denying the prisoners treatment the government is condemning them to death because as prisoners, they cannot find other means of accessing ARV treatment.

The lawyer said that the situation exposes citizen-prisoners to the disease as some prisoners have confessed to sodomy in local prisons. Botswana has one of the  highest HIV prevalence rates in the world.

Meanwhile, National AIDS Coordinating Agency (NACA) coordinator, Richard Matlhare has said that even though Botswana is one of the countries with the highest HIV/AIDS prevalence rates, it has been praised by the UNAIDS for its "tremendous progress in efforts towards the universal access to prevention, treatment, care and support".