Jaenique Swartz
Activist Friedel Laurentius Dausab said the moment for the LGTBQI community to be heard and recognised came 30 years too late, but he is pleased about Monday’s court proceedings.
“I am more pleased that it was not just a day for me, but rather a day that everyone else had been working towards for many years for the law and the political class to listen to us,” he said after Windhoek High Court judges Nate Ndauendapo, Shafimana Ueitele and Claudia Claasen reserved judgement to 17 May 2024, which falls on the same day as the International Day against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia. About this coincidence, Dausab said if he were to ledge into his spiritual side, he would say the “angels were speaking through the judges
that they will have a good judgement”. He is challenging the Constitution on the
criminalisation of sexual acts between men.
“I could sense that our honourable team of advocates gave a good and solid argument around justice for LGTBQI rights in the country. On 17 May, all Namibians, especially Namibians who are LGTBQI, will know this is their home, and they will not be discriminated against even in the privacy of their homes”, he said during a media conference later the same day.
Flavian Rhode, the executive director of Positive Vibes Trust, also reflected on the proceedings of the court. “As a member of the queer community, we had a moment to go to court and state our case. We had the privilege of being listened to, and to me, that is significant. It’s a day that I never thought we would see, and I think we did that quite well”, Rhode noted. Positive Vibes Trust is a Namibian organisation campaigning for equity and justice for all people, including the LGTBQI community, which is supporting Dausab in his legal challenge.
He added that how adults conduct their private lives within loving, consensual relationships and in the intimacy of their own homes should not be a matter of state interference.
“The Namibian Constitution – the supreme and homemade law of our land – should be respected and upheld as sacrosanct. Obsolete and outdated colonial laws which breach our constitution have no place in a diverse, post-independence Namibia, and they should be relegated to the history books,” said Rhode.
He further reflected on the backlash they received from religious groups after the hearing. “We found ourselves somewhat unprepared for that. We had people physically and verbally violated, and I think that was a reminder for us to remain vigilant, and to get into our heads this idea of readiness.”
Moreover, Rhode stated that they have been continuing dialogue with community leaders and various community structures around this case, where the element of safety and security is paramount to a discussion that is forefront in all their processes and engagements. They are thus continuing to set up and strengthen community systems which help protect the people who were violated, through their emergency response department at Positive Vibes.
Positive Vibes and all relevant parties are actively fighting the Office of the Ombudsman to create a human rights violation database, as well as reviewing the current human rights action plan.
“We will also be launching a safety and security fund which will be funded by a mechanism called Juris, which will try to increase our response in terms of emergency situations, and a litigation support fund to address some of these issues we have faced as a community,” highlighted Rhodes. The parties will thus continue to strengthen safety and security within their communities, as they have been working closely with the police commissioner and the commissioner of the gender-based violence unit around specific issues.