Namibia marks first genocide remembrance day amid reparations dispute

Namibia inaugurated its first Genocide Remembrance Day on May 28, honoring over 70,000 Ovaherero and Nama people systematically killed by German colonizers (1904–1908). The date marks the 1907 closure of concentration camps where thousands perished a grim precursor to Nazi atrocities.

While Germany acknowledged the genocide in 2021 and pledged €1.1 billion in development aid, Namibia rejected the offer, demanding explicit reparations and a formal apology.

A revised draft deal now includes an apology and an added €50 million, but descendants call it insufficient.

“Land, not money, is justice,” said Uahimisa Kaapehi, an Ovaherero leader, reflecting widespread discontent.

Critics argue negotiations excluded affected communities and failed to address stolen ancestral lands still held by German-speaking Namibians.

Historians note bitter irony: Germany once extracted “reparations” from Ovaherero and Nama rebels 12,000 cattle (worth $1.2–$8.8 million today) before orchestrating their near-extermination under General von Trotha’s “extermination order.”

The commemoration follows Namibia’s 2023 rebuke of Germany for defending Israel against genocide allegations at the ICJ, underscoring unresolved colonial reckonings.

As candles lit the ceremony, President Nandi-Ndaitwah vowed to continue pressing for “full atonement.”