Namibia’s government has accepted Germany’s N$18.4 billion ($1.4 billion) compensation for the genocide of 1904-1908, claiming that this will put Namibia’s foot in the door for more cash through bilateral relations.
Despite his unhappiness with the offer, Vice President Nangolo Mbumba said on Friday that the administration had accepted it in the hopes that Germany will raise the sum.
“As the implementation of the reparations proceeds, Germany has promised to evaluate and renegotiate the amount,” he stated.
Mbumba and deputy prime minister Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah also stated that the Namibia-Germany joint statement has improved bilateral relations and that more money will be pumped into the country.
“I am glad to note that the bilateral relations between the two countries will no longer be at the same level, and will be elevated to the highest level through a bi-national commission. These new enhanced relations between the two countries will enable Namibia to address any remaining issues pertaining to the reconciliation and reconstruction programmes,” the vice president explained.
Why is the agreement contentious in Namibia?
Last Monday, the two countries negotiated a financial accord as part of a compromise in which Germany admitted the massacres constituted genocide. The agreement brings to a close a round of talks that began in 2015.
Many Namibians have subsequently criticized the conclusion of the talks, calling the sum offered disrespectful. They demanded that Germany repay victims directly in the form of “reparations,” a term Berlin has shunned. Many people are particularly outraged by a statement made by German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, who called the executions “genocide from today’s perspective.”
