Archive 2011
February 2011
Nam women have made a lot of progress
28 February 2011: Windhoek – Dianne Hubbard of the Legal Assistance Centre of Namibia with the organisation’s Gender Research and Advocacy Project has shown there is reason to celebrate regarding progress made by the country towards gender equality.
How Should Rape Cases Be Dealt With
04 March 2011: The Namibian newspaper reported a story about an alleged gang-rape of a 14-year-old girl by nine boys.
Stock theft sentences unconstitutional
11 March 2011: The heavy prison terms that the Stock Theft Act prescribed for people convicted of stealing livestock after the law was changed in 2004 were declared unconstitutional in a judgement of the High Court.
LAC condemns kicking cop
31 March 2011: The Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) has condemned the killing of a Katima Mulilo civilian – allegedly at the hands of a Police officer.
Stats Bill Should Be Withdrawn
8 April 2011: This week the Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) and the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) took exception to provisions of the Statistics Bill which require Government permission prior to the undertaking of any statistical survey or research.
Statistics bill to be revised
8 April 2011: The Statistics Bill, which caused alarm bells to go off in civil-society and private-sector circles recently, will be amended before it is tabled in the National Council next week.
“Keine Visumspflicht” – no visa needed
26 April 2011: Re-entry visas are not needed for Permanent Residents says Uwe Rathmann from Otavi in a readers letter in the Allgemeine Zeitung.
Uranium company loses desert water plan appeal
20 May 2011: A Legal challenge to a Canadian-owned mining company’s plan to use underground water to set up a uranium mine in the Namib Desert south-west of Usakos is heading back to the High Court after an appeal judgement that was given in the Supreme Court yesterday.
Dual citizenship legal for born Namibians
7 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.
“Status von Ausländern gestärkt” – permit relief for foreign spouses
8 June 2011: No additional permits to live and work in Namibia. Read in the Allgemeine Zeitung.
Permit relief for foreign spouses– yet another confirmation for foreign spouses
9 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.
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.
San Community Faces Unlawful Eviction
22 July 2011: A Khwe community living at Omega 1 in the Western Caprivi region of the country have been threatened by the Namibian police with unlawful eviction from the houses they occupy. An analysis by Delme Cupido
San group fights eviction threats
22 July 2011: A group of San people in the western Caprivi claim they are facing eviction threats from the local Police.
Response to WAC to a report of the Worker’s Advice Centre on an international Complaints Board
29 July 2011: It has come to our attention that a report by the Worker’s Advice Centre was posted on a Complaints Board website on 12 July 2011. This report contains a number of defamatory and outrageous statements regarding the Legal Assistance Centre as well as its previous director and members of the judiciary.
Namibia: Domestic Workers Still Face Many Challenges
29 July 2011: The dismissal of domestic workers on the basis of their HIV/AIDS status is unlawful, however, they can be dismissed on the grounds of incapacity caused by the illness.
Speaking at a public lecture on ‘Domestic workers in the context of HIV/AIDS: implications of the ILO Convention’ on Wednesday, Amon Ngavetene, coordinator of the AIDS Law Unit at the Legal Assistance Centre, said it is now required of employers to provide their workers with information on HIV. (All Africa.com)
Communal fencing: Who’s benefiting?
1 November 2011: NAMIBIA’S pre-independence legislation relating to communal land was developed in an unstructured manner, making it exceedingly confusing to interpret. Please read the article for more information.
LAC defends school pregnancy policy
1 November 2011: The Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) has come out in support of Government’s policy to allow pregnant girls to attend school until four weeks before giving birth.
A Pageant for Tolerance
24 December 2011: A tiny southern African country becomes a case study in building
a more open society. By Gloria Song
