Namibia: Traditional Leaders Oppose Abortion Law Reform

Traditional and community leaders within the Uukolonkadhi Traditional Authority on Saturday spoke out against the amendment of Namibia’s abortion law, saying this would reduce the country to the biblical Sodom and Gomorrah.

They were speaking at a public hearing by the parliamentary standing committee on gender equality, social development and family affairs with regard to reforming the Abortion and Sterilisation Act No. 2 of 1975.

The hearing took place at Onesi in the Omusati region.

The chairperson of the Uukolonkadhi Traditional Authority, Andreas Amunyela, said he does not support the idea, since it may lead to the closure of schools as there would be no children in the country to attend schools.

“We need children to help us at home,” he said.

Oshitumbe village headman Andreas Amukwa said abortion has always been a punishable offence.

“I was born at Oshika village in June 1940. I grew up there and when I was growing up, if a woman aborted she would be fined . . .

“If a woman aborts, she will lose her value in life and she is likely to be infertile, and no one would want to marry her,” he said.

Amukwa said in the past when young women fell pregnant they sought refuge at Uukolonkadhi because they were afraid of being burnt.

He said women who do not want to fall pregnant should use condoms and family planning.

Maria Iyambo from Swapo’s women’s council said abortion should not be legalised because it will reduce the country’s population size.

“We can’t afford to lose any life. We don’t support legalising abortion, it will make our country look life Sodom and Gomorrah,” she said.

Paulina Iipinge said Namibians should be guided by divine laws before considering legalising abortion.

“If we do what we want, we will go against God’s will,” she said.

Helena Nambano, a senior registered nurse at Onesi Health Centre, also opposed abortion reforms.

She said abortion should only be allowed as prescribed in the current act.

IN SUPPORT

The former director for the directorate of disaster risk management in the Office of the Prime Minister, Jafet Iitenge, said he supports reforming the current abortion law.

Onesi station commander warrant Jeremia Kamati said abortion was morally wrong.

“People will deliberately have unprotected sex, because they know if they fall pregnant they can abort,” he said.

The committee’s team leader, Gothardt Kasuto thanked the people who attended the hearing.

During a parliamentary committee public hearing last year, Dr David Emvula said 14 Namibian women died as a result of unsafe abortions between 1 April 2018 and March 2021.

He said about 7 000 unsafe abortions were recorded in 2017.

Senior sociology lecturer at the University of Namibia Lucy Edwards says it’s a woman’s right to choose whether she wants to terminate a pregnancy or not.

She says traditional leaders, who are mostly men, do not support abortion because they will never have to face this decision.

“It undermines a woman’s right to choose, and the right to her bodily autonomy . . ,” she says.

“I don’t know why we are always peddling tradition when it comes to upholding women’s rights . . .

“A lot of traditional views are deeply entrenched in patriarchy and the desire to control women’s bodies . . ,” she says.

Abortion in Namibia is prohibited under the Abortion and Sterilisation Act, which Namibia inherited from South Africa at independence.

The act only allows for the termination of a pregnancy in cases of serious threat to the maternal or foetal health, or when the pregnancy is a result of rape or incest.

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