by Kuzeeko Tjitemisa
Windhoek
Namibian Ambassador to Germany, Adreas Guibeb has defended his position on genocide, saying the majority party usually does not vot in favour of a motion tabled by opposition parties.
While descendants of the genocide in the capital yesterday expressed outrage over the Namibian Ambassador to Germany, Adreas Guibeb’ s request for all chief whips in the German Federal Parliament to withdraw their draft resolutions for the genocide reparations debate, Guibeb defended his actions saying the majority party usually does not vote in favour of a motion tabled by opposition parties.
In a media statement issued yesterday, Guibeb clarified that the only way a motion on the genocide will ever be successful is to either have a motion tabled by the ruling party or by an all-party motion.
“This way, nobody would thereafter contest the validity of the acknowledgement of genocide and the official apology,” said Guibeb.
Against this background, Guibeb said it is clear that the same fate will be befall the two motion of the left and the Green party will come up for debate yesterday (Thursday).
Guibeb reiterated the appeal for an all-party motion made under similar circumstances to all the parties in the Federal Government already in 2007 by then Ambassador Professor Peter Katjavivi appealing to the German to treat the Namibian genocide as the exception, which it deserve to be.
“Our wish is that the German parliament would now join hands and table an all-party motion so as to deal with a genocide against the Hereros, Namas, Damaras and San in the dignified and respectful manner which it deserves,”
Speaking on behalf of the Ovaherero and Nama Tradition Leaders Council on Genocide and Reparations, Ovaherero Paramount Chief Advocate Vekuii Rukoro yesterday question whether it was a common diplomatic practice that Guibeb an ambassador of another country would interfere in the parliamentary politics of the host country and start asking members of parliament or their parties to withdraw their Motions in support of ongoing “so-called” negotiation in his country.
“It is not strange that whilst the Guibeb is lobbying the support of the German Federal Parliament for the mess at home, we have it on good authority the even the German Parliament is not informed of the content of the negotiations,” said Chief Rukoro.
He slam the decision by Guibeb saying that he was ashamed that his own government does not seem to have any respect for the rule of law.
“I feel ashamed that our own government flouts its own resolution, violates international conventions principles and protocol governing the rights of the victims of genocide,” Chief Rukoro said at a media briefing.
Rukoro said he was sure that Guibeb was working under the instruction from Windhoek to play another trick, this time with all the German Parliamentary parties.
According to him, Guibeb started with the Green Party and then the left Party requesting them to withdraw their Motions from the German Federal Parliament and to join all the other political parties in German Parliament and to come up with “a common all Party German Federal Parliament resolution that should in its content simply endorse the outcomes of the on-going German-Namibian Government negotiations.”