Africa’s Forgotten Genocide: Namibia

– Germany’s pledge to intervene on Israel’s behalf at ICJ ‘a textbook case of racism playing out in the international criminal justice arena,’ says South African academic Everisto Benyera

– ‘Interpretation that arises is the Nama, Herero and Palestinians are not human in the eyes of Germany. Only Jews and other Caucasians are humans,’ Benyera tells Anadolu

– Germany’s support for Israel can be seen as ‘privileging the suffering of European Jews over that of indigenous Africans,’ says politics professor Ahmed Jazbhay

– Colonizers like Germany used ‘scorched earth policies as an expression of their power to treat natives as sub-humans,’ according to analyst Iqbal Jassat

By Hassan Isilow

An evident fallout of South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) has been clearer divisions on the global front.

Since the hearings at The Hague last week, countries from the Global South, particularly African, Latin American and Muslim-majority nations, have rallied behind South Africa.

On the other side is the Global North, led by Western nations like the US, Canada and Germany, who stand firm in their support of Israel.

One particular instance that caught international attention was the exchange between Namibia and Germany after the latter pledged to intervene at the ICJ on Israel’s behalf.

Namibia was quick to put out a statement condemning Germany’s “shocking decision.”

“On Namibian soil, Germany committed the first genocide of the 20th century in 1904-1908, in which tens of thousands of innocent Namibians died in the most inhumane and brutal conditions,” read a statement from the Namibian Presidency, referring to the atrocities carried out by German colonial forces against the Indigenous Herero and Nama groups.

“The German government is yet to fully atone for the genocide it committed on Namibian soil … Germany cannot morally express commitment to the United Nations convention against genocide, including atonement for the genocide in Namibia, whilst supporting the equivalent of a holocaust and genocide in Gaza.”

Experts view Germany’s stance on the issue as an implication of sorts for the European power, saying it shows how it perceives Palestinians and the genocide victims of Namibia as “not human.”

“The interpretation that arises is that the Nama, the Herero and Palestinians are not human in the eyes of Germany. Only Jews and other Caucasians are humans, hence, worthy of a German apology and support,” Everisto Benyera, a politics professor at the University of South Africa, told Anadolu.

‘Textbook case of racism’

According to estimates, some 60,000 Herero and 10,000 Nama people were murdered by German troops in southwestern Africa between 1904 and 1908.

In 2021, after over five years of negotiations, Germany formally recognized its actions as a “genocide,” agreeing to fund projects in Namibia worth €1.1 billion ($1.3 billion) over 30 years for its role in mass killings and property seizures in its former colony over a century ago.

Given its history, Germany’s stance in favor of Israel is “absurd,” according to Ahmed Jazbhay, a professor of international politics in South Africa.

Its decision to support Israel in the ICJ case “can be interpreted as privileging the suffering of European Jews over that of indigenous Africans,” he said.

“Though the genocide in Namibia may be 100 years apart with that in Palestine, it evokes the same pain and suffering,” he told Anadolu.

For Benyera, the entire episode is “a textbook case of racism playing out in the international criminal justice arena, where other races are superior to others.”

“There is selectivity, not only in the application of international criminal justice, but also selectivity on who is a human and who is worthy of being defined and defended by international norms, justice and principals,” he said.

‘Impunity and utter callousness’

No matter how it tries to justify it, Germany’s decision to defend Israel at the ICJ is “immoral and a despicable act of cowardice” that should be condemned, according to Iqbal Jassat, an executive member of the Johannesburg-based Media Review Network.

“The irony is that it comes exactly 120 years since Germany perpetrated Africa’s first genocide,” he said.

The German atrocities against the Herero and Nama were in line with how colonial powers have historically acted, viewing “scorched earth policies as an expression of their power to treat natives as sub-humans,” said Jassat.

“Germany, by siding with Israel’s current genocide, has demonstrated impunity and utter callousness,” he said, urging the ICJ to dismiss its application for intervention.

Regarding the ICJ case, Benyera said it will be “an evaluation of the international justice system itself.”

“This being a case brought by a country from the Global South indicates a power shift in international power dynamics, in that countries of the Global South are now not only able but also willing to publicly stand up to the most powerful Western nations and their alliances,” he said.

The case against Israel sets a huge precedent and the ICJ and International Criminal Court (ICC) have to prove themselves as “impartial” or run the risk of “finding themselves redundant,” he warned.

“This is not only good news for the Palestinians, but also for other marginalized people like the Rohingya,” said Benyera.

“Whatever judgment comes from the ICJ case will set a precedent that is going to live with us for a very long time.”

The article was first published in Anadolu Agency