In this episode of Future Perfect | Futur Antérieur, Jephta Nguherimo, founder of the OvaHerero People’s Memorial and Reconstruction Foundation, speaks to us about the legacies of Germany’s genocide of the ovaHerero and Nama people in 1904-1908.
It is not common knowledge that Germany’s first concentration camps were in Namibia; the camps were among the tools of genocide employed by the German colonial state. Describing how the genocide’s impact endures in Namibia’s landscape, in bodies, in families, as well as in the country’s economic conditions, Jephta discusses Herero activists’ fight for recognition and repair from Germany.
He draws attention to the important shortcomings of Germany’s 2021 apology and the agreement between the German and Namibian states for a 1.1 billion euro development aid package. As he shines a light on the difference between reparations and economic aid and argues for what true reparations should entail, Jephta speaks to the link between strengthening African states and pursuing reparations for colonial crimes, as well as the role that civil society must play in this process.
Throughout our conversation, Jephta reminds us that the goal of reparation is the restoration of the dignity of African peoples.