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New York, USA – A court in the United States heard the first oral argument between representatives of the Herero and Nama people and representatives of the German government in a case involving damages for what was called the first Genocide of the twentieth century
About 100,000 Ovaherero and Nama were killed between 1904 and 1908 as a result of a massive extermination policy launched by German colonial troops in South West Africa, currently known as Namibia, when the territory was a German colony
US District Judge Laura Taylor Swain presided on Tuesday the one-hour hearing in New York where a delegation of 50 Herero and Nama from around the world joined the complainants.
we are asking for restorative justice for the genocide, "said Ngondi Kamatuka, an American native of Namibia native origin." All we want is that there is a jury that can weigh the preponderance of the evidence. "
The key question in the study was whether a US federal court had jurisdiction to hear the case, carried by the natives seeking
In order for the US law on sovereign immunities to be firmly established in the United States, the Herero and Nama must demonstrate that the wealth from the property was taken during the German colonial period Kenneth McCallion, the Plaintiffs' Counsel , argued that a number of German properties in New York were purchased as a direct result of the wealth accumulated by forced labor and the expropriation of property during the genocide.
I also argued that the sale of the human remains of genocide victims at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) demonstrates a valid commercial connection between the genocide and Ame
The German lawyer, Jeffrey Harris argued that the plaintiffs had not sufficiently demonstrated a commercial connection. He also stated that the presence of skulls at the AMNH was the result of a private donation from the German anthropologist Felix von Luschan, and not from a commercial exchange.
Germany therefore argues that the United States does not have jurisdiction to hear the case. 19659004] Swain ends the meeting by adjourning the case. It will decide if the United States has jurisdiction over the case in the coming weeks, without setting a date.
Struggle for Justice
The descendants of the victims, a diasporic group of at least four countries, were In January 2017, the plaintiffs Ovaherero, the supreme leader Vekuii Rukoro, the chief Nama Jeffrey Isaacks and the head of the Ovaherero Genocide Association in the United States, Barnabas Veraa Katuuo, filed a class action against Germany, accusing the state of genocide, theft and expropriation of property when Namibia was under German colonial rule
The plaintiffs claim similar reparations to those of Jewish Holocaust survivors received after the Second World War. They are also asking for a seat at the table during bilateral negotiations between the Namibian and German governments on how to reckon with the atrocities of the colonial era.
This is the second time that New York courts are considering the issue of reparations for the Herero and Nama genocide. . In 2001, the Herera People & # 39; s Reparations Corporation filed a civil lawsuit against German companies. In vain, the Herero and Nama managed to trigger a debate that continued to affect German and Namibian civil society.
Tuesday's trial goes further, forcing the German state to appear in court and explain its position on a genocide.
The fact that Germany now recognizes genocide as a crime under international law is still unclear. While German politicians have recognized genocide in a series of public statements in recent years, the state continues to submit legal documents to the court that denies that the event constitutes genocide.
"The legal concept of genocide does not apply in the present case," states Germany's petition to dismiss the case.
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WATCH: Tribes Namibia file suit against Germany on genocide |
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