The death penalty has been on the books in Botswana since its independence from Great Britain in 1966.

The death penalty has been on the books in Botswana since its independence from Great Britain in 1966. Since then, there have been 44 people put to death (up to 30 June 2013).
Capital crimes include homicide, piracy, treason, attempting to take the life of a head of State and military crimes such as mutiny and desertion in the face of the enemy.
The number of executions, often carried out in secret, has always been low, one or, at most, two a year. There were no executions in 2004 and 2005. Between 2006 and 2010 there were five executions, one a year.
In 2011, there were no executions.
In 2012, there was at least one execution. According to Amnesty International, two men were executed in 2012, and five death sentences were imposed.
Another execution was carried out in May 2013.
Executions cannot be carried out without a signed mandate from the President, but no President has ever granted clemency.
In October 2008, President Lt. Gen. Seretse Khama Ian Khama said the Government does not intend to change its current stance on the death penalty. This, he said, did not mean that the government enjoyed doing it but it was the only way to discourage people from taking other individuals’ lives. “The fear of facing the death penalty can make a would-be killer think twice about murdering somebody,” he said. “Nobody wants to die.”
On 23 January 2013, Botswana was reviewed under the Universal Periodic Review of the UN Human Rights Council. It rejected recommendations to introduce a legal moratorium on executions and abolish the death penalty. As long as the greater majority of the citizens of Botswana will continue to support capital punishment the government will continue to uphold it.
After the last execution carried out on 27 May 2013 there are two death row inmates: Mangombe Tadubane and Gatlhalosamang Gaboakelwe.
On 20 December 2012, Botswana voted against the Resolution on a Moratorium on the Use of the Death Penalty at the UN General Assembly.