‘Bring back sex workers’

A group of NGOs, who have united under the banner of the Namibia National Diversity Consortium Human Rights Organisations, are demanding to know what happened to the foreign, migrant sex workers that were arrested late last month in the Windhoek city centre.It is believed that of the initial group of 46, which also included three teenage schoolgirls, 16 are illegally in Namibia, from neighbouring countries.They currently find themselves locked up at the Windhoek Central Police Station.The NGOs want to know whether these foreign sex workers have been given access to legal representation and translation services, and whether they have appeared in court within 48 hours of their arrest.“The media and police often reports on these investigations as smuggling or trafficking, without explaining the nuances of migrant women, who are working underground and often, because of labour and border restrictions, the conditions of migration are exploitive, but the sex work itself is not. “Because sex work is not recognised as work, many migrant women who do sex work find themselves in labour markets that are unregulated, and that leaves room for exploitation,” the NGOs said in the statement. The status and the wellbeing of the foreign sex workers is unknown, with both the police and the Ministry of Home Affairs and Immigration mum on the matter. It was initially thought they were detained at the Windhoek Central Prison. Last week, police spokesperson Slogan Mathues referred Namibian Sun to the Ministry of Home Affairs and Immigration, saying the sex workers were arrested under the Immigration Act. He said 16 sex workers are in custody at the Windhoek Police Station. Of the initial group, those who were Namibian were released, while some, who were in the country legally with study permits, were also released, while the rest were charged with violating the Immigration Act. Home Affairs and Immigration Director for Immigration and Border Control Nehemia Nghishekwa said the sex workers were arrested by police officers and not immigration officials. Nghishekwa said he has not been briefed about the issue being an immigration case. Namibian Sun understands that the sex workers are detained at the Windhoek Central Police Station. Initial reports suggested that there were also Namibian sex workers among those arrested. After the arrests, a local daily reported that 46 prostitutes were in custody, including three girls aged between 15 and 17. They were allegedly apprehended in the vicinity of a German private school and a local shopping centre. The schoolgirls were returned to the school hostel, where they reside. It was reported that seven of them were Namibians, while the rest are from Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania and Botswana.Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are now demanding answers about the wellbeing of the sex workers, while calling on government to protect the human rights of all people. In a press statement, the Namibia National Diversity Consortium Human Rights Organisations, which includes the Rights Not Rescue Trust and Voice of Hope Trust, questioned whether these workers “have legal representation and translation services”. The organisations also wanted to know whether the women appeared in court within 48 hours of their arrest.The organisations called on government to protect sex workers from violence, abuse and discrimination. They said the police have initiated a street clean up and are targeting persons, who are identified as sex workers, and these were mainly foreign sex workers. The NGOs said that migrant women, who are sex workers, are often targets of police investigations. GORDON JOSEPH

‘Bring back sex workers’

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Namibian Sun 2026-06-09

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‘Bring back sex workers’

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Namibian Sun 2026-06-09

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