The plaintiff was a citizen of Botswana, married to a non-citizen, whose children had been denied citizenship under a provision

of the Citizenship Act 1984 that conferred citizenship on a child born in Botswana only if "a) his father was a citizen of Botswana; or b) in the case of a person born out-ofwedlock, his mother was a citizen of Botswana." The plaintiff claimed that this provision violated guarantees of the Botswana Constitution. The High Court agreed, holding that the provision infringed the right to liberty, the right not to be expelled from Botswana, the right not to be subjected to degrading treatment, and the right not to be discriminated against on the basis of sex. It concluded that the right to liberty had been infringed because the provision hampered a woman's free choice to marry a non-citizen and, in fact, undermined marriage; that the right not to be expelled from Botswana was infringed because, if the plaintiff's resident permit was not renewed she would be forced to leave Botswana if she desired to stay with her family; and that the right not to be subjected to degrading treatment was infringed because any law discriminating against women constitutes an offense against human dignity. This decision was subsequently upheld by the Botswana Court of Appeal.

this is that Mrs Dow argued:

1. Applicant's Notice of Motion TAKE NOTICE that I, UNITY DOW (hereinafter called the Applicant) intend to make application to this Court and you are hereby called upon to show cause why an order should not be made in the following terms:

a) Declaring Section 4 of the Citizenship Act ultra vires Section 3 of the Constitution of the Republic of Botswana in so far as the said Section 4 discriminates against women. b) Declaring Section _5 of the Citizenship Act ultra vires Section 3 of the Constitution of the Republic of Botswana in so far as it discriminates against women. c) Declaring Section 13 of the Citizenship Act ultra vires Section 3 of the

Constitution of the Republic of Botswana in so far as it discriminates against women.

d) Ordering and directing that Sections 4 and 5 of the Citizenship Act be gender neutral and that the protective provisions of the said sections extend and apply to children of all citizens of the Republic of Botswana.

e) Ordering and directing that Section 13 of the Citizenship Act be gender neutral and that the protective provisions of the said Section extend and apply to spouses of all citizens of Botswana.

f) Declaring Sections 4, 5 and 13 of the Citizenship Act ultra vires Sections 7 of the Constitution of the Republic of Botswana.

g) Declaring Section 4, 5 and 13 of the Citizenship Act ultra vires Section 14 of the Constitution of the Republic of Botswana. h) Declaring the Applicant's children Tumisang and Natasha to be citizens of Botswana notwithstanding any other citizenship they may have.

i) Declaring the Applicant's spouse Peter Nathan Dow to be entitled to make application for naturalization under section 13 of the Citizenship Act.