PREPARATIONS are underway for the repatriation of several hundred Namibians in exile in Botswana following recent negotiations between the ministry of home affairs and the United Nations, the ‘Namibian’ reported on Monday. Thousands of Namibians fled to Botswana in late 1998 following the uncovering of a secessionist movement in the region led by former opposition leader Mishake Muyongo and a subsequent security clampdown. Home Affairs spokesman Mikka Asino said there had been discussions between some senior officials from his ministry and UNHCR over the issue. The total number of refugees at the remote camp at Dukwe currently stands at 3_707. Of these 2_308 are Namibians, 782 are Angolans and the rest hail from Somalia and the Great Lakes Region while a few are from West Africa. At the time of their flight several hundred Namibians, among them women and children, claimed they were escaping persecution in the Caprivi. – IRIN