Alvenus F. Dreyer

What the German government did with regards to the principles of the three pillars concerning genocide is considerable, yet still not the end of the road for reparations talks. 

We hope and trust that the Germans still understand what the word reparation means; they did it in brotherhood style with the Jews. 

On the other hand, it must also be manifested that affected communities by the 1904-08 deliberate killing of a very large number of indigenous Namibians will continue to seek for further social and economic justice.

Mathematicians might be able to tell a better and more informed story about the 1.1 billion euros (N$18 billion) to be given over 30 years. 

In laymen’s view, that amount will never account for the social, economic and cultural destruction suffered by the Ovaherero, Ovambanderu, Nama and San communities. 

Half the given amount can easily go towards research only, if we genuinely want to establish all the facts and figures of what transpired during the 1904-1908 era in the then German South-West Africa. Hence the call on all stakeholders in particular descendants of the affected communities and sympathisers, interest groups etc. to continue finding ways and means to fight for sensible reparations. 

Since the initial reparations amount at the beginning of the “genocide talks” was made by the technical committee, Germany already knew that they could at least on their own terms offer half the amount, which was proposed (not the current 1.1 billion euros). If that could have been the case, although any loss of life cannot be rewarded for in any monetary value, at least the affected communities of which many are living in absolute poverty and poor-economic slavery could be hopeful about the social, economic and political future of their people.