A group of 34 Tobias Hainyeko residents, who say they were arrested on 26 April for allegedly illegally occupying land at the Oshitenda One Nation informal settlement in Windhoek, says their appeals for a solution to their plight are falling on deaf ears.
Grace Martins (39), who is part of the group that includes children, says they were in custody for two days, during which time they received no food and had to sleep on a cold floor.
“The way the City Police arrested us on that day is not the way to treat people. They pointed a gun at us. We are human beings, not monkeys,” she says.
The group appeared in the Katutura Magistrate’s Court on 29 April and the case was postponed to 18 June.
Hilma Sheya (32), who was also arrested, says she cannot afford to pay her rent any more.
“It is not wrong to grab land, because it is our motherland, and we all deserve a portion of land. I slept in custody with my five-month-old baby on the first day, and without her on the second day, and now I can no longer breastfeed. The minors who were arrested missed their school examinations while in custody,” she says.
Shakadya Fabianus (32) says the group held a peaceful demonstration on 13 April, and requested the police to accompany them to the mayor’s office.
“We wanted a response regarding the land matter,” he says.
He says the group also sent two letters to the mayor’s office in early February, asking him to meet with them.
Fuly Daniel (25) says: “We are feeling bad, because no leader is coming to us or giving us a response. We have been accommodated at a hall at Oshitenda next to the coucillor of Tobias Hainyeko’s office for the past two weeks,” he says.
He says they have nowhere to turn to.
His landlord chased him away because he cannot afford to pay his rent, Daniel says.
“They are just looking at us like we do not matter. We really need assistance,” he says.
‘NOT THE RIGHT WAY’
Tobias Hainyeko constituency councillor Christopher Likuwa says he only learned of the group’s arrest some time after the incident.
He, however, says the group told him they had nowhere to sleep.
“I told them to sleep in the hall next to my office after they were discharged,” he says.
He says they should not have showed up at his office and demanded land, because “it is not the right way to go about things”.
He undertook to ask the chairperson of the regional council and mayor to respond to the matter.
National police spokesperson deputy commissioner Kauna Shikwambi confirmed the incident, saying after the group’s arrest, they were detained at the Wanaheda Police Station.
Five members of the group were released on bail, and the rest appeared in court the next day where they were released on a warning, she said.
City Police chief Abraham Kanime said on Monday that the group is misinforming the public and that they were not arrested for illegally occupying land.
“Those people blocked the City Police officers while holding pangas. The public should obey the law and go and address matters at the relevant authorities, instead of attacking law enforcement officers.”They were warned and told to leave, but they did not want to, so they were charged accordingly,” Kanime said.