Turning Brothers Into Foreigners:
An open letter to the President of the Republic of Namibia Hifikepunye Pohamba and to Prime Minister Nahas Angula.
COMRADES during Apartheid and the liberation struggle Africans all across the continent joined hands to remove the yolk of oppression. Together as Africans and human beings we stood against what was wrong until one by one our nations gained independence. On the battlefields and in the halls of the UN, we stood side by side. In OAU and SADC meetings today we speak of togetherness and collective development, as well as freeing up the movement of goods and services.
In spite of these talks, charters and conferences and pronouncements, when I, as an African, get to the borders of Namibia, an immigration official who speaks to me rudely and without a care greets me. You almost feel as if they want to say, “What do you want here? Go back to your country!” Perhaps that can be forgiven for I have seen Namibian immigration officials also treat my fellow Namibian brothers and sisters with disrespect. Now let us now move to Home Affairs; a labyrinth filled with confusion. Arriving there I see a sign that says ‘don’t lose your temper here’ – a warning of the bad service to come perhaps? Not anywhere in the lobby of Home Affairs can one find a booklet or document that details as to what visa, permits and documents one can obtain from the Ministry, what they require and how they work.
When you get to the counter the people there assume that you have magically obtained information about procedures of what happens where from non-existent documentation. The person attending you then acts like they are angry or have a problem with you. Contempt is clearly evident when as an African you apply for things at Home Affairs.
The minute you start applying for more sophisticated offerings such as certificates of domicile, permanent residence and citizenship etc, procedure and rules cease to apply. How can an application for a simple certificate of domicile take two to three years? Is the purpose of it not simply to confirm that a person is married to a Namibian, and if said person gets divorced does the law not say they are still entitled to stay in the country? Then why so long a delay? The same time frames are experienced when applying for permanent residence and citizenship. People are left in limbo for years unable to plan with no information other than ‘we are working on it’ ever coming out of Home Affairs. The Ministry further does not justify its reasons for decisions. A person can be told your application for permanent residence has been denied but the grounds for rejection not given. The whole process lacks transparency and accountability, as do the people working on the decision boards at Home Affairs. Yes, Home Affairs has a lot of work but how many certificates of domicile, permanent residence and citizenship requests does it get? Why do so many of the people working there seem to be busy doing anything but being at work? In a country this size I doubt there are enough applications to require three years to process or even for my fellow Namibian brothers to wait for months for an ID.
Then one begins to ask – and I would like to formally request for clarification from the President’s Office as well as the Prime Minister’s – does the attitude of Home Affairs reflect the true nature of the Namibian Government’s view of foreigners? Does the Republic of Namibia wish to accept and allow foreigners to obtain Certificates of domicile, Citizenship and Permanent Residence or not?
At this point in time, I am of the opinion that perhaps we non-Namibians are failing to understand that the Namibian Government and State does not want us coming to this country, marrying their citizens, earning an income here and deciding that we would like to settle here. After all, what other legal reason is there for people to be kept waiting for years or denied what some definitely qualify for, according to the law? Or is it retaliation for some bad treatment that Namibians are receiving elsewhere in Africa? If so please make us aware of it so we can petition those governments to change their policies and attitudes.
Perhaps the true message is that brotherhood ended the minute Namibia became independent. Seeing the great partnerships that esteemed leaders like former President Dr Sam Nujoma and other top ranking members of Swapo established in the past and spoke of maintaining and building with other Africans, I am left baffled, as to why when in belief that we are brothers, I go to Home Affairs and apply for permanent residence or whatever else I have to endure run-arounds and wait for years?
In the end many foreigners leave in frustration. What experience do they take back to the parliaments and boardrooms of their nations from the Land of the Brave? But I, as one who still has a pending application for my domicile certificate would like to ask these esteemed comrades please just tell us you don’t want us here, if that is the case, in a loud and clear manner, in a newspaper, on TV or in a radio campaign and at SADC meetings. If you do this, there will be no need for Home Affairs to hint at it or to waste years of our lives.
Rather than never-ending calls and trips to Home Affairs, please just issue a press release that all of us foreigners should just leave the country in 48 hours and that this country is only for those born here not those who wish to settle or build a life here.
Comrades I appeal to you as fellow Africans and brothers as to why Home Affairs operates as it does.
With respect, and still waiting for documentation, a foreigner.
T Mar
Via e-mail