New genocide reparations advocacy forum launched

WINDHOEK, 02 JUN (NAMPA) - The newly established Genocide Reparations Advocacy Forum (GRAF) has officially entered the public discourse, positioning itself as a strategic partner in the campaign for reparations from the German government for the 1904–1908 Ovaherero and Nama genocide.
Speaking at the forum’s launch in Windhoek on Tuesday, interim steering committee member Kavehorere Chris Murangi said GRAF would complement existing organisations rather than replace them in the pursuit of justice.
“We are terming it a movement because it is not just another organisation among the many organisations campaigning for reparations. It is a group of concerned descendants simply adding their voices to this noble cause, thereby supporting in every possible way the broader call for reparations and every entity that genuinely believes in true and just reparations,” he said.
Murangi said the forum seeks to unite voices by collaborating with advocacy groups and traditional authorities as Namibia enters what he described as a critical phase in bilateral negotiations with Germany.
“We want to emphasise true and just reparations in terms of the 1948 United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide,” he said.
According to Murangi, the launch comes at a crucial time, particularly after President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah indicated during the State of the Nation Address in April that negotiations are nearing completion and are expected to conclude by the end of 2026.
He said pressure is mounting to incorporate the views of affected communities, including the Ovaherero, Nama, and increasingly vocal San and Damara groups, into the final agreement.
Murangi further alleged that government continues to withhold details of the negotiations from descendants of the 1904–1908 genocide, arguing that the current terms of the agreement do not constitute justice, but rather amount to a repackaged development aid initiative that betrays the sacrifices of their ancestors.
“Thus, in the face of our government’s intransigence, at the behest of the German government, to finalise the JD, we cannot but add our voices to those of fellow descendants who have remained steadfast in their view that the JD does not, even by its broad and loose definition and interpretation, represent just, fair and appropriate reparations for the crime of genocide,” he said.
Murangi called on all descendants and traditional leaders, both locally and abroad, to unite in support of ongoing advocacy efforts.
(NAMPA)
UK/HP/AS