EDITORIAL: Violence ranking expected

According to the 15th edition of the Global Peace Index (GPI), Namibia is the country where the experience of violence is the greatest worldwide.It said 63% of the population has experienced serious harm from violence or know someone who had endured such in the past two years.To top the global charts sounds like an exaggeration, especially knowing violence has become a national pastime for countries such as South Africa. State-sponsored violence is also particularly rife in neighbouring Zimbabwe.Due to Namibia small and compact population, sometimes the country’s ranking in matters like this can be derogatory.Yet it speaks to the extent to which Namibians, even in their small numbers, violate the rights of others – be it physically or in other silent forms.For example, the report poignantly states that the country’s changing economic conditions also had a hand in increasing the likelihood of political instability and violent demonstrations.This speaks to our long-held position that prolonged spells of economic hardships would eventually erode our ‘peace and stability’ mantra because the unemployed do not consume slogans for dinner.The silver lining of this report is that it ranked Namibia amongst the top 10 most peaceful countries in sub-Saharan Africa.Politically and socially, we are a fairly stable country. But in light of many challenges we face today, that stability is hanging by a very thin thread.

EDITORIAL: Violence ranking expected

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Namibian Sun 2026-04-03

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EDITORIAL: Violence ranking expected

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Namibian Sun 2026-04-03

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