Boss chains worker

The police are investigating an incident in which a local businessman allegedly shackled an employee to keep him from loitering or speaking to colleagues.

A video clip of the worker with a chain around his waist circulated on social media this week.

The police spokesperson, Deputy Commissioner Edwin Kanguatjivi, confirmed the incident but said no case was opened, which made it difficult for the police to charge the business owner.

According to Kanguatjivi the worker and his employer were taken in for questioning on Monday.

“The incident took place at a business in Prosperita Industrial Area, but the victim is reluctant to lay a charge. But the police are still investigating the matter,” he said.

The ombudsman, Advocate John Walters, said such acts could never be tolerated in an independent Namibia.

But he agreed that there was nothing the police could do without a witness or the testimony of the alleged victim.

“That act is a violation of a person's right to move around freely; it is treatment for a slave or a wild animal and cannot be allowed at all,” he said.

JEMIMA BEUKES