Legal Assistance Centre-Namibia

WHAT'S NEW

CELEBRATING MOTHER'S DAY by recognising the need to protect some of our most vulnerable mothers: PREGNANT WOMEN
13 May 2011: As we celebrate Mothers Day on Sunday, we would like to bring people's attention to the following finding from our forthcoming report Seeking Safety: 2 victims out of every 100 victims of domestic violence is a pregnant woman. This statistic is based on information from a large sample of people who applied for protection order in Namibia.

Babydumping: What the public says
In 2011 the Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare and the Ministry of Youth, National Service, Sport and Culture with the support of UNICEF and the Legal Assistance Centre asked the public why baby dumping is such a problem in Namibia and how the government can address it.
The survey asked three multiple choice questions. The questions were published in The Namibian and Die Republikein newspapers and interested persons were asked to respond by text message. The results of this questionnaire are now available. Read the results

Presentation on "Beliefs and attitudes towards gender, sexuality and traditions amongst Namibian youth"
It will be held on 17 April 2012 from 12.30-14.00
in the "Auditorium North" of the Health Sciences Building at Polytechnic of Namibia.
This is the first time this data will be revealed.
Read the press release. See all our monographs.

Illegal fencing still an issue
!Naruseb said the new land boards should familiarize themselves with the Communal Land Reform Act
and people living on the communal land will have to register their piece of land.
Read also: "Fencing remains hot potato" and "Who benefits?"
Communal Land for the wealthy in the "Namibian".
Elite land grabbing in Namibian communal areas and its impact on subsistence farmers’ livelihoods by Willem Odendaal
For detailed "how to information" download the booklet from the Ministry of Landsand Resettlement.

The Child Care and Protection Bill: Translating the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child into a Namibian Law for children in Namibia
Read an edited version of the speech given by Benyam Dawit Mezmur, Vice-Chairperson (2nd) of the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child of the African Union at meeting with Members of Parliament to discuss the role of children’s rights and responsibilities on 29 September 2011

Court orders prison probe
18 July 2011: A Handwritten case that a group of inmates of Windhoek Central Prison have filed with the High Court in Windhoek is set to spark a judicial investigation into conditions at Namibia’s largest penal institution.

Permit relief for foreign spouses - yet another confirmation
09 June 2011: The Legal Assistance Centre is extremely pleased to note that the Minister of Home Affairs and Immigration has now stated under oath that which the LAC has been advising its clients for years: namely that no permits of any kind are required by a person married to a Namibia citizen and who is domiciled in Namibia.
The concern is, however, that time and time again resources have to be utilized to convince the Minister’s staff of this state of affairs. The LAC therefore urges the Minister to disseminate this information clearly to all the Home Affairs offices around the country and also to all immigration offices and entry points in Namibia.
Read the article from the Namibian and other articles from the LAC: I do... and Marriage to a foreigner.

Dual citizenship legal for born Namibians
07 June 2011: Namibian citizens by birth can hold dual citizenship. This is the effect of an order that was given in the High Court in Windhoek yesterday.