Captives taken after the Herero rebellion were either killed or subjected to appalling brutality |
Namibia's President Hage Geingob welcomed the
"historic" move, but Herero paramount chief Vekuii Rukoro dismissed a
deal agreed by the two governments as "an insult" because it did not
include payment of reparations.
Instead Germany will fund 1.1 billion euros ($1.3 billion)
of reconstruction and development projects in Namibia, which German Foreign
Minister Heiko Maas said would directly benefit the genocide-affected
communities.
"That's a black cat in the bag instead of reparations
for a crime against humanity," Rukoro told Reuters.
"No self-respecting African will accept such an insult
in this day and age from a so-called civilized European nation."
While Germany has previously acknowledged "moral
responsibility" for the killings, it had avoided making an official apology
for the massacres to avoid compensation claims.
In a statement announcing an agreement with Namibia
following more than five years of negotiations, Maas said the events of the
colonial period should be named "without sparing or glossing over
them".
"We will now also officially call these events what
they were from today's perspective: a genocide," he added.
"In light of Germany's historical and moral
responsibility, we will ask Namibia and the descendants of the victims for
forgiveness."
Namibian media reported on Thursday that the funds promised
by Germany would support infrastructure, healthcare and training programmes
over 30 years.
Mr Rukuro (pictured) told local media the deal was "not enough for the blood of our ancestors" |
"The apology on the part of Germany and acceptance
there was a genocide is in itself historic and speaks to the moral
responsibility Germany has towards Namibia and the communities affected by the
first genocide of the 20th century," Alfredo Hengari told Reuters.
HUMAN DIGNITY
Germany, which lost all its colonial territories after World
War One, was the third biggest colonial power after Britain and France.
However, its colonial past was ignored for decades while historians and
politicians focused more on the legacy of Nazi crimes, including the Holocaust.
Sima Luipert, 52, who identified herself as of Namibia's
Nama people, said Germany should not have directed its apology to the Namibian
state, which did not exist at the time of the genocide and was given no mandate
to speak to Germany on behalf of traditional authorities.
"Germany must come to the Nama people, and to the
Herero people, and to ask for forgiveness," she said. "It is up to us
to decide if that apology is genuine or not.
"This is not about money, it is about the restoration
of human dignity."