San people are made to work for nothing …given a glass of tombo – Amathila
By William J. Mbangula
Oshakati
Deputy Prime Minister Dr Libertina Amathila has accused some members of society of engaging in what she termed a ‘slave trade’ with regard to the San people in their respective communities.
Speaking at a meeting attended by traditional leaders, local and regional councillors, heads of departments and members of the business community at Oshakati yesterday, she accused some Namibians of mistreating San people on their farms and homes through exploitation and other forms of human degradation.
Having seen first hand how the San people are mistreated, she was tempted to establish a project exclusively dedicated to their plight. The project was approved by government and allocated a budget of N$300 000. However, the budget was insufficient hence she sought assistance from the business community and foreign embassies. Some of them have shown goodwill by giving donations.
Operating under the theme: “San children back to school and stay in school”, the project has as one of its priorities to bring all the San children back to school, since at all the places visited not a single San had gone beyond Grade 6. The project has also initiated the making of coffins and plans are under way to arrange for the construction of mortuaries.
“I have learned through my travel in various parts of the country that San people are made to work for nothing. Some are given a glass of tombo. If they are lucky, they are given N$2 for fetching containers of 25 litres of water or for more work done. There are those Namibians who take children from their parents under the pretext of taking them to school but these children end up working as domestic workers or at farms and business premises. We should try to address this issue, because it is our own problem from chicken to snake, not a foreign one,” she said.
The Deputy PM said she has personally instructed San parents not to give away their children. As part of efforts to empower San people, tangible measures need to be taken to allow them to participate in social life on an equal basis. She said it was high time that the government did away with the glorification of community hostels for San only. Instead, it should start housing them in normal hostels and provide incentives for them such as exemption from paying fees.
Arrangements are under way to call a conference on San people in October, where participants will brainstorm on the future and livelihood of the San.
During her visit to Oshana Region where 1 102 San people are registered, Amathila gave blankets to needy San people at Okatyali and Uuvudhiya constituencies.
The Deputy Prime Minister was accompanied, among others, by Chief Sophia Jakob of the !Xoo community in the Omaheke Region who expressed the need to have many of her community members empowered to participate fully in the day-to-day activities of society. She bemoaned the fact that at this specific meeting, not a single person who speaks her language and who holds a leading position attended.
Some participants at the meeting felt that the San project should focus more on changing the mindset of some local people who have grown up with negative attitudes towards the San.