The Namibian government has told a first group of farmers they must sell their property under land reforms that some fear could wreak as much havoc with agriculture as a similar programme did in Zimbabwe. Land Minister Hifikepunye Pohamba this week sent letters to about 10 white farm owners.
Namibian President Sam Nujoma has threatened to seize land from white farmers who treat their workers badly, a local newspaper reported on Monday. Nujoma told a May Day rally in the small town of Karibib, about 200km west of Windhoek, that a few ”racist farmers” were firing their workers and leaving them homeless.
More than 15 000 people are facing floods in north-eastern Namibia as water levels rose due to heavy rains in the Zambezi river’s catchment area, officials said on Saturday. Zimbabwean air force helicopters have flown to the water-stricken area to help with rescue operations.
Having constantly dismissed comparisons with Zimbabwe, Namibia’s government last week lent credence to current perceptions when it announced plans to expropriate white-owned farms on the same day President Robert Mugabe’s propaganda chief arrived in the country.
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/ 10 February 2004
The passing of Namibia’s new Inheritance and Maintenance Law at the end of last year has proved an enormous shot in the arm for illegitimate children battling for their inheritance. The new law has been hailed as long overdue by legal experts and will also put defaulting fathers under closer scrutiny.
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/ 12 January 2004
Germany’s ambassador to Namibia expressed his country’s ”regret” on Sunday over the ruthless quelling of the Herero tribe uprising a century ago in which tens of thousands were slaughtered by German colonial troops.
An unusual and vehement war of words about historic truths dating back to the apartheid era has erupted between President Sam Nujoma of Namibia and the outspoken editor of a local newspaper.
Aids has been ravaging Africa for 20 years now, with 2,4-million people dying of the disease last year and close to 30-million people infected by its precursor HIV, but some communities maintain it does not affect them.
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/ 27 November 1987
The Namibian also reported that 202 Battalion had recently had a serious crisis when 48 soldiers refused orders and opted to resign.