San raise land and rights concerns in Windhoek
Paralegal workshop highlights grievances
Deep-seated grievances over land rights, forced removals, exclusion from social assistance and persistent gender-based violence dominated discussions at a recent workshop on San rights in Windhoek.
Speakers at last week’s San Paralegals’ National Reflection and Planning Workshop urged government to uphold constitutional protections, as well as the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), for the community.
The workshop was hosted by the Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) for San trainee paralegals, with project support from the European Union (EU). It was held to mark Human Rights Day and Namibia’s Day of the Namibian Women, highlighting progress in the EU-funded San paralegal programme and efforts to strengthen grassroots human rights capacity in San communities across the country.
Kobus Kaiseb from Otjikoto Lake also raised concerns about what he described as the continued dispossession of San communities that have occupied the same land “for more than 50 years”.
Citing Articles 10 and 26, he said indigenous communities must “not be forcibly removed ... without free, prior and informed consent”, adding that they have the right to own, use and develop their traditional land and resources. However, he argued that this principle is frequently violated.
According to his account, government allegedly purchased a farm in 2007 “without proper channels or consultation with the indigenous community present at the time” and later allegedly designated it for resettlement. Two individuals were subsequently allocated plots on the farm, despite the community's long-standing presence there.
“These people were not consulted,” Kaiseb claimed.
“Government resettled two people on this farm without the prior consent of the Indigenous people... and the same government now labels the original community as illegal occupiers.”
The community now faces the possibility of eviction, he added, despite having ancestral ties to the land, including burial sites. “The question stands: who is the legal owner of that land? The Indigenous community that has been there for 50 years, or the people allocated land by the government?”
Barriers to social grants and food aid
Participants also decried systemic barriers faced by San community members attempting to access food parcels and social grants.
Speakers described a pattern of residents being turned away due to misspelled names, administrative errors or confusion over surnames and ethnic classification.
Lorraine Mukuyu from the Tsaraxa-aibes informal settlement in Otjiwarongo said elderly people are sometimes told to “go back to where they were born” to secure documentation proving they belonged to their community, an impossible task for many who were born decades ago in remote areas.
These bureaucratic hurdles, they argued, leave already vulnerable people without essential support.
The workshop also heard concerns about children ending up on the streets from as young as nine or ten, driven there by poverty, abuse, neglect, and alcohol-related harm. Participants said families often lack access to social support systems, leaving young people exposed to exploitation and criminal activity.
Forced marriages, unsafe living conditions
Gender-based violence emerged as another recurring theme. Mukuyu outlined cases in which young girls are “being forced into marriage” or pressured to exchange sexual favours for survival, particularly where families depend on their income or housing arrangements.
Mukuyu also recounted recent training sessions with youth, women and young men. She said many young people expressed a willingness to return to school but lack access to timely information about opportunities. “The mothers said they are willing to do something, but it is just a lack of information that is keeping them,” she noted.
The workshop also highlighted successes through its long-term investment approach. One example is Maria, a former participant who previously struggled with English but now trains others and partners with multiple organisations. “Some of the girls who joined us in 2016 are now training the next generation,” Mukuyu said. “That is the snowball effect we need, investing in people so they grow and uplift others.”
Speakers at last week’s San Paralegals’ National Reflection and Planning Workshop urged government to uphold constitutional protections, as well as the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), for the community.
The workshop was hosted by the Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) for San trainee paralegals, with project support from the European Union (EU). It was held to mark Human Rights Day and Namibia’s Day of the Namibian Women, highlighting progress in the EU-funded San paralegal programme and efforts to strengthen grassroots human rights capacity in San communities across the country.
Kobus Kaiseb from Otjikoto Lake also raised concerns about what he described as the continued dispossession of San communities that have occupied the same land “for more than 50 years”.
Citing Articles 10 and 26, he said indigenous communities must “not be forcibly removed ... without free, prior and informed consent”, adding that they have the right to own, use and develop their traditional land and resources. However, he argued that this principle is frequently violated.
According to his account, government allegedly purchased a farm in 2007 “without proper channels or consultation with the indigenous community present at the time” and later allegedly designated it for resettlement. Two individuals were subsequently allocated plots on the farm, despite the community's long-standing presence there.
“These people were not consulted,” Kaiseb claimed.
“Government resettled two people on this farm without the prior consent of the Indigenous people... and the same government now labels the original community as illegal occupiers.”
The community now faces the possibility of eviction, he added, despite having ancestral ties to the land, including burial sites. “The question stands: who is the legal owner of that land? The Indigenous community that has been there for 50 years, or the people allocated land by the government?”
Barriers to social grants and food aid
Participants also decried systemic barriers faced by San community members attempting to access food parcels and social grants.
Speakers described a pattern of residents being turned away due to misspelled names, administrative errors or confusion over surnames and ethnic classification.
Lorraine Mukuyu from the Tsaraxa-aibes informal settlement in Otjiwarongo said elderly people are sometimes told to “go back to where they were born” to secure documentation proving they belonged to their community, an impossible task for many who were born decades ago in remote areas.
These bureaucratic hurdles, they argued, leave already vulnerable people without essential support.
The workshop also heard concerns about children ending up on the streets from as young as nine or ten, driven there by poverty, abuse, neglect, and alcohol-related harm. Participants said families often lack access to social support systems, leaving young people exposed to exploitation and criminal activity.
Forced marriages, unsafe living conditions
Gender-based violence emerged as another recurring theme. Mukuyu outlined cases in which young girls are “being forced into marriage” or pressured to exchange sexual favours for survival, particularly where families depend on their income or housing arrangements.
Mukuyu also recounted recent training sessions with youth, women and young men. She said many young people expressed a willingness to return to school but lack access to timely information about opportunities. “The mothers said they are willing to do something, but it is just a lack of information that is keeping them,” she noted.
The workshop also highlighted successes through its long-term investment approach. One example is Maria, a former participant who previously struggled with English but now trains others and partners with multiple organisations. “Some of the girls who joined us in 2016 are now training the next generation,” Mukuyu said. “That is the snowball effect we need, investing in people so they grow and uplift others.”
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