Hai||om fight for recognition of Etosha land rights

The Hai||om Association is suing Namibia's government in a landmark legal action seeking the recognition and restoration of ancestral land rights for Namibia's Hai||om San community within Etosha National Park and neighbouring Mangetti West Farms.

The case represents a significant step in the long-standing struggle of the Hai||om people to reclaim land they say was taken from them during colonial rule.

In a media release on Friday, Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) director Toni Hancox said the Namibian government has not done enough since independence to address the historical injustices suffered by the Hai||om.

The claimants are asking the court to recognise their ancestral ownership of Etosha National Park and the neighbouring Mangetti West Farms. Alternatively, they seek a declaration that they were unlawfully dispossessed of the land. As part of the lawsuit, the association is requesting just and equitable reparations, which could include the restoration of their rights to the land, the allocation of alternative land or financial compensation.

The Hai||om Association, established in 2024, represents the interests of the indigenous Hai||om community, the largest San grouping in Namibia.

According to the association, the Hai||om have lived on and depended upon these ancestral lands since time immemorial. The land was central to their livelihoods, cultural practices and spiritual traditions, forming an integral part of their identity.

Their dispossession began in the 1890s during German colonial expansion. In 1907, large portions of their ancestral land were declared Game Reserve Number 2 without recognition of their rights. The situation worsened under South Africa's administration, culminating in the violent eviction of the Hai||om from the park by the apartheid government in 1954.

Since their removal, the community says it has been denied access to land, natural resources and sacred cultural sites within the park.

The Hai||om association maintains that the State’s actions violate the Constitution as well as several international human rights frameworks.

Media reports criticised

The statement also addressed a "misleading and culturally insensitive report, titled 'Hai||om Association sues Govt for N$2.8 trillion over Etosha land' published last week.

The association said it "strongly condemns" the publication’s failure to request any input from the Hai||om members or the LAC prior to publication.

"Most distressingly, the article utilised an offensive picture seeming to be of the !Kung San to represent the Hai||om, a move that inaccurately homogenises distinct indigenous groups and disregards the Hai||om’s unique identity and dignity."

Ancestral land

Community leaders say the legal action is about restoring dignity and ensuring future generations understand their history.

Jan Tsumib, widely known as the chief of Etosha, emphasised the cultural significance of the land.

“Etosha means a lot to me because it is where our resources are. I did not grow up knowing the name Etosha. As a young boy, I only knew the name Xoms. The name 'Xoms' came from the sound the sand makes when you walk – ‘Xom Xom’. That is the name I know,” he said.

Bandu Komob also highlighted the historical importance of the area to the Hai||om people.

“Etosha is our Stone Age home ground and our roots. Etosha is the Hai||om story and the Hai||om fire, so without Etosha we are nothing,” he said.

Johnny Aib stressed that the legal challenge is not intended as a confrontation but as a path towards recognition. “We are not fighting against the government. We just want our children and future generations to learn that this is, and this was, where our ancestors were,” he said.