By: Annakleta Haikera and Kelvin Chiringa
The Hambukushu community wants back their land occupied by the Bwabwata National Park.
After the country gained its independence in 1990, the Hambukushu moved back to Bwabwata, but the current government turned them down, and some people were arrested.
On Wednesday, the community told the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Constitutional and Legal Affairs (PSCCLA) during a consultation in Kavango East’s Mukwe constituency.
The committee visited the Hambukushu Traditional Authority to respond to a petition handed over in October last year.
More than 400 people attended the meeting, among the Hambukushu Traditional Authority, Khwe, and Kyramacan.
They all seek answers on land ownership and want the cattle farming restrictions lifted.
Speaking to The Villager, the Hambukushu spokesperson Dinyando Tjitho said the Hambukushu community does not know when the Bwabwata was proclaimed a park.
He also said they do not know which Fumu signed it and who was consulted.
“We the Hambukushu community will never recognise Bwabwata as a national park if we are in a democratic country. Bwabwata should be returned to the rightful owners. The current government must respect the Hambukushu tribe/Traditional Authority.
“We, the Hambukushu community, absolutely deny the cabinet’s decision of 1999, that state that no cattle should be allowed in Bwabwata National park and any other game park in the North East regions,” Tjitho said.
According to the land Reform Act of 2002, section 22, application procedures and powers fall on the traditional authority to customary land rights. Tjitho said any project initiated within the community should fall under this act.
According to Tjitho, the Hambukushu and the San shared a good relationship in the past, and the Hambukushu and the Kwe families share a wide range of responsibilities.
Tjitho said the environment ministry segregates these families and duties and causes tribalism by dividing the Hambukushu from the Kwe.
“We want unity and peace with the Kwe like before independence,” he said.
When approached for comment, the environment ministry’s spokesperson Romeo Muyunda said that the park’s return to the Hambukushu is not something they would want to see.
“Hopefully, the parliamentary standing committee will see the park’s value for protecting biodiversity. This is withstanding the fact that people around the park and living within the park have rights as well,” The Villager.
He said there is a need to find a way for conservation and the rights of the people to co-exist.
“Namibia is a democratic state, and there is nothing cast in stone. That is why the parliamentary standing committee is out there to do a fact-finding mission, which is part of democracy.”
