“Herero and Nama file suit against genocide agreement
Daniel Pelz
January 22, 2023
A lawsuit has been filed against Namibia’s agreement with Germany to recognize the colonial-era genocide of the Herero and Nama. Representatives claim that it’s illegal because descendants are not directly compensated.
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According to the claim, which has been obtained by DW, the joint declaration by Germany and Namibia on the genocide of the Herero and Nama people between 1904 and 1908, in what was then the colony of German Southwest Africa, is illegal.
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Charismatic and vocal opposition politician Bernadus Swartbooi and 11 traditional representatives of the Herero and Nama are behind the lawsuit. Among them is the Ovaherero Paramount Chief, Mutjinde Katjiua, who refers to a resolution passed by the Namibian parliament in 2006, according to which the descendants of the victims should negotiate directly with Germany and receive compensation. From the plaintiffs’ point of view, the treaty with Germany violates this.
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Still, the Namibian government is likely to reject the plaintiffs’ position. When Kauta’s team wrote to the attorney general in September 2022 about their view that the agreement was illegal, the response they got a few days later said “there is no substance in such assertions,” and that they apparently lacked knowledge of the Namibian constitution and the powers of the president and the government.
The court may not necessarily follow that reasoning, however.
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This article originally appeared in German.”
- Full report on the website of the Deutsche Welle (DW) (last checked in September 2024)
- See also the Motion on the OvaHerero Genocide, adopted by the Namibian National Assembly on 26 October 2006
- See also the Joint Declaration of the Governments of Germany and Namibia, initialled on 15 May 2021