• By Feni Hiveluah
The Landless /Khomanin Association has intensified its long-standing campaign for ancestral land rights, calling for the Namibian government to take immediate action to resolve what they call a land thirst that has persisted for generations.
Following a community meeting held on 31 January 2026, which united leaders from different areas such as Dordabis, Nossob, and Baumgartsbrunn, the association submitted a formal petition to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform.
According to documents seen by Confidente, this move seeks to reclaim the /Khomanin way of living and reverse historical injustices that began with colonial displacement in 1885 and continued under apartheid.
The association’s primary demand is for the government to purchase at least farms to establish communal land, with a commitment of five farms specifically for the 2026/2027 financial year.
They highlight a perceived double standards, noting that while returnees from Botswana were promptly settled on six farms at a cost of N$195 million in late 2025, the indigenous /Khomanin continues to face “empty promises” despite decades of petitioning.
“These people only started returning to Namibia in September 2024 and in December 2025 they were bought six farms at an investment of N$195 million.
No such thought was ever generated for the thousands of taxpaying /Khomanin people since independence,” the documents read,
Along with their demands for land, the community initiated a formal process to overhaul their traditional leadership, citing fifteen years of neglect and a total lack of transparency.
In a formal notice delivered on 13 April 2026, the association invited their leader chief Jul iane Gawa-!Nas and the entire traditional authority council to deposition proceedings scheduled for 16 May 2026, which the authority refused to acknowledge.
These proceedings were aimed at installing an acting chief for a 24-month period to oversee a disciplinary committee and a comprehensive review of customary laws, which the association claims have been distorted and misapplied.
The leadership is further under fire for allegedly failing to provide financial or land allocation reports for over a decade, and for purportedly selling communal land to foreign nationals.
Following a recent protest, the association made it clear that they are no longer willing to wait, stating that they are prepared to pay the ultimate price to restore their dignity and ensure their cultural survival.
According to the association, land is fundamentally important to the /Khomani indigenous nation and communities, because it serves as a source of our identity, spirituality, culture and survival.
“It represents more than just property, we have a duty to reclaim our land even if it means to pay the ‘ultimate price’ and to steward it for generations to come, not just owning it.”
