Keetmans residents want magistrate removed

Keetmanshoop residents last week staged a peaceful protest demanding the immediate removal of magistrate Unchen Konjore. According to a petition filed by the Landless People’s Movement (LPM) Youth Command, the residents have asked for Konjore’s suspension after she struck several court cases - including that of police brutality victim Elleste Plaatjie - from the roll. In January 2023, two police officers were accused of brutally assaulting Plaatjie (31) in Keetmanshoop, leading to his death a week later in Katutura State Hospital in Windhoek. The petition highlighted police misconduct, judiciary inconsistency and discrepancies in case management as key causes for concern. Konjore has also been accused of intimidating people in the magistrate’s court. "She threatens everyone she has a personal feud with or whom she perceives as having an attitude, [who] is affiliated with someone she dislikes, that she will deal with them in court. She goes to the extent of taking cases from other magistrates just to get to the cases she has an interest in. No one dares to speak out because you might be next in line," the petition read.Blacklist herThe group has demanded that Konjore be blacklisted, transferred to another region and removed from all pending criminal matters involving police officers to maintain the integrity of the judiciary."We assert that the issue of police brutality extends beyond local impacts; it resonates on national and global levels. The situation of Elleste Plaatjie is emblematic of broader systemic failures. We have endured these injustices for too long,” the residents said. “It is time for accountability and meaningful reforms in our justice system. Magistrate Unchen Konjore has overstayed her welcome in Keetmanshoop.”

Keetmans residents want magistrate removed

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Namibian Sun 2025-06-18

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Keetmans residents want magistrate removed

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Namibian Sun 2025-06-18

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