Namibia genocide: Descendants of victims press German parliament for reparations
Ovaherero and Nama representatives are pressing for reparations in Berlin as the Bundestag debates motions by the Left Party and the Greens on Wednesday evening.
Archive image · Photo: Photo: Andreas Praefcke / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0 (cropped and resized)
More than 120 years after the genocide in what was then German South West Africa, representatives of the Ovaherero and Nama peoples called for justice in Berlin. The Bundestag was set to hold a 30-minute debate late Wednesday on two motions by the Left Party and the Greens seeking full recognition of the 1904-1908 atrocities. According to U.N. estimates, about 80% of the Ovaherero and 50% of the Nama were killed.
The Greens' motion calls for an official government apology but not reparations. The Left Party goes further, demanding compensation for descendants and a mechanism developed jointly with the communities. Chief Mutjinde Katjiua of the Ovaherero Traditional Authority stressed that development aid is no substitute for full reparations.
No vote is scheduled; both motions are to be referred to the foreign affairs committee. In 2021, Germany recognized the killings as genocide and pledged 1.1 billion euros over 30 years for development projects. The deal with Namibia was never ratified, and the victims' communities were not part of the talks.