Objectifs :
The Joint Declaration by Germany and Namibia (2021) is a reconciliation agreement addressing the 1904-1908 Herero-Nama genocide during German colonial rule. Germany officially recognised the genocide and agreed to fund 1.1 billion euros worth of Namibian projects over 30 years. However, the funds are described as “grants” rather than “reparations”, and many Indigenous leaders criticised their exclusion from negotiations. Germany rejected any legal responsibility for the genocide. Germany called the events “what they are from today’s perspective: a genocide”, but critically the term ‘genocide’ was employed in a historical-political, rather than in a legal sense.The agreement remains unratified.
Mesures de restitution :
Aucun.
When the special envoys initialled the draft in May 2021, the Ovaherero Traditional Authority and Nama Traditional Leaders Association dismissed it as a public relations coup by Germany and an act of betrayal by the Namibian government.
Limitations du cadre :
UN Special Rapporteurs sent letters to both governments on 23 February 2023 noting the negotiations violated the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The Ovaherero Traditional Authority and the Nama Traditional Leaders Association submitted a lawsuit to the high court in early 2023 seeking to declare the declaration unlawful.
