“San, Damara demand genocide seat

By Martin Endjala

31 May 2026

The San Chiefs Council and Damara King’s Council are demanding formal inclusion in Namibia’s ongoing genocide reparations negotiations with Germany, citing shared historical atrocities.

They say their communities were equally affected by colonial violence, displacement and forced labour.

The councils issued a statement yesterday in which they are demanding that San traditional leaders be given seats at the negotiating table alongside representatives of the Ovaherero, Nama and Damara.

The two bodies are chaired by chief Willem Aib.

“San communities were subjected to extermination campaigns historically referred to as ‘Bushmen hunting’, particularly after the 1904 to 1908 genocide period under German colonial administration,” he says.

The councils further call for reparatory justice, including compensation for the loss of ancestral hunting grounds, culture, language and traditional livelihoods destroyed during German colonial rule.

[…]

Meanwhile, Damara cultural activist Bebe |Huseb criticised Khomas governor Sam Nujoma for commemorating the day in another region instead of attending events in Khomas.

In a letter dated 26 May, which The Namibian has seen, |Huseb says the governor’s absence undermined the significance of the occasion for the Damara community.

[…]

Charles Eiseb, the lead negotiator representing the Ovaherero and Nama communities, says the commemoration at Lüderitz was held at Shark Island because of its historical significance as a concentration camp site.

He says the day recognises not only genocide descendants, but also the San and Damara communities.”

• Full report “San, Damara demand genocide seat” on the website of the Namibian (last checked in June 2026).

• Check also the nine-hour recording “Genocide Remembrance Day – 28 May 2026” by NBC Digital News on YouTube in the ‘Media Reports’ section of this website.

Editor’s note

The Joint Declaration (Section I, Point 9) explicitly names the Daman (generally called Damara) and San as communities affected by the genocide during the German colonial era.

• See the Joint Declaration of the Governments of Germany and Namibia in the ‘Primary Sources’ section of this website.