This month, the Electoral Commission of Namibia published a new Code of Conduct for Political Parties and Political Organisations. This new code replaces the Guidelines issued in 1992. The key principles have not changed, but the new code is much…

A Wage Order was published this month under the authority of the Labour Act 11 of 2007, setting a new minimum wage for all employees. Here is a look at the details. How much is the minimum wage?N$18 an hour.…

The Public Gatherings and Public Processions Bill tabled in parliament last week appears to be aimed solely at political speech. It makes sense to require advance notice to the police when large gatherings are planned – to allow for logistical…

Some members of the public have recently raised concerns about amendments to the Criminal Procedure Act enacted last year without much attention from the press – perhaps because this amending act was part of the flurry of bills enacted in…

What It Can and Can’t Do Following the supreme Court judgement on recognition of foreign same-sex marriages for immigration purposes, some have called for a referendum on this issue. So let’s look at what Namibia’s Constitution and the Electoral Act…

What’s Positive and What’s Problematic The Marriage Bill tabled in parliament on 2 July has been in the making for many years as a replacement for the 1961 Marriage Act, although some definitions have been recently added. Here is an…

Don’t Undermine No-Fault Divorces by Bringing Fault in Through The Back Door The proposed divorce bill is aimed at changing fault-based divorce to a non-fault system based on irretrievable breakdown. It is a very positive development. Marriages are complex relationships…

Unpacking the High Court’s Decision on Sodomy In the Dausab case, a gay man challenged the laws that criminalise sexual contact between adult men. On Friday, the High Court found that the crimes in question were unconstitutional and invalid. Here…

What is sodomy? ‘Sodomy’ is part of the Roman-Dutch common law inherited by Namibia at independence. Historically, it was the legal label given to all manner of ‘unnatural’ sexual offences, including masturbation, oral sex and anal intercourse between people of…