Namibia communities affected by German genocide demand return of land

Namibian communities whose ancestors were massacred by German colonial forces and had their property seized more than a century ago are calling for fresh talks with Berlin to negotiate the return of ancestral land.

Germany agreed in May 2021 to fund projects worth $1.2 billion over 30 years to make up for the property seizures and killings of thousands of Herero and Nama people by German colonial forces between 1904 and 1908, after the tribes rebelled against German rule.

Germany also apologised for its role in the slaughter, officially describing the massacre of some 65,000 Herero and 10,000 Nama people as genocide for the first time.

But critics have said Germany should not have directed its apology to the Namibian state, which did not exist at the time of the genocide and had no mandate to speak to Berlin on behalf of traditional Herero and Nama authorities.

Mutjinde Katjiua, leader of a faction of the Ovaherero Traditional Authority, praised late Namibian president Hage Geingob for fast-tracking negotiations with Germany, but criticised him for excluding descendants of the affected communities from the talks.

He said this was a deviation from a 2006 parliamentary resolution that stated that negotiations should be between the victims, the affected communities - Herero and Nama - and the perpetrator government.

The communities also argue that the issue of land ownership was not addressed in the 2021 joint declaration after German colonial forces took over ancestral land, which has not been returned.

"Germany must come to the table, discuss with us, negotiate with Hereros and Namas, and together we agree on what is appropriate to repair the damage (caused)," Katjiua told Reuters.

"If nothing works out, the only thing that we can lay our hands on is the land because we know where that is, we know the names of the rivers, we know the names of the farms," he added.

The joint declaration was subject to ratification by the Namibian parliament but the process that has been put on hold as the two governments discuss amending the joint declaration, according to Harald Hecht, chairman of the Forum of German-speaking Namibians.

"I think the Joint Declaration needs support and it is definitely not the perfect model because the amount of compensation of it does not amount to reparations, but there is at least an offer on the table," Hecht said.

The Foreign Affairs Ministry in Berlin did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Germany, which lost all its colonial territories after World War One, was the third biggest colonial power after Britain and France. However, its colonial past was ignored for decades while historians and politicians focused more on the legacy of Nazi crimes, including the Holocaust.

Formal negotiations with Namibia started in 2015.

White people make up 5 percent of Namibia's population but control more than 70 percent of prime agricultural land.