The 41 asylum seekers are currently housed at Molepolole Centre for Illegal Immigrants, 50 kilometers outside the capital, from Gaborone.
They were denied entry into Botswana, having stayed at Mamuno next to the border gate on the Namibia side since they fled Namibia on July 7.
Permanent secretary in the Ministry of Defence, Justice and Security, Mr Augustine Makgonatsotlhe said unlike in
the past, the DRC was now gaining peace.
He said the group also originates from an area that has never had fights or war.
The asylum seekers had left Mamuno claiming that the tent that they were provided with had leakages and therefore needed security.
"We have already consulted with the DRC government to receive them. We furnished them with their profiles which they requested for, such that they could trace their relatives and families to let them know that they are coming," he said.
He said they would be deported once all logistics were in place.
"At present they are now under the immigration authority," Mr Makgonatsotlhe said.
He explained that once an application for refugee status is declined, a person is considered an illegal immigrant.
The Botswana government will bear the costs as has been the case when deporting other illegal immigrants," he said.
Makgonatsotlhe would not disclose how much the exercise would cost.
"Talks between Botswana and DRC are at an advanced stage and what is still pending is logistics. The international practice is that the Botswana government should hand over the refugees to the DRC government," he said.
He said some of the asylum seekers were granted refugee status in Namibia while some were rejected but they appealed to higher bodies.
It was reported that Namibia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement to the Botswana High Commission on July 31, stating that it learned with shock and dismay that 41 refugees and asylum seekers assisted by the director of National Society for Human Rights, Mr Phil ya Nangolo, crossed the border at Trans Kalahari Border Post without legal documents.
The Namibia government said in the release that the departure of the refugees and asylum seekers from the Namibian soil without relevant travelling documents violated Section 21 (b) of the refugee (Recognition and Control Act), Act 2 of 1999 which stipulates that all refugees and asylum seekers residing in Namibia are obliged to first seek for a permission which is normally granted for them to visit any part of the country for a prescribed period.
According to the release, apart from violating this law, it said they have also violated the Departure from Namibia Regulation Amendment Act, Act 4 of 1993 which requires their passports to be endorsed with departure stamps by the Immigration authorities.
The refugees had violated both their refugee status and immigration law of the country.
Since they fled Namibia, the Namibian government decided not to be involved in any form of humanitarian assistance for the refugees and asylum seekers.
The release also stated that 27 of the 41 asylum seekers were recognised as refugees in Namibia while 14 were asylum seekers. The group comprises of 11 men, 12 women and 18 children.
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