Liberation children back to Berg Aukas

A SOCCER field in Wanaheda, where a group of ‘struggle children’ from Berg Aukas had been squatting for 23 days, is now empty after all the protesters returned to their training camp.

The last group of about 40 young people left the capital for Berg Aukas on Monday last week, their spokesperson, Golden Nendongo, told The Namibian.He said they were given transport by well-wishers.About 80 protesters had left earlier and rejoined the others at Berg Aukas after Government plainly told them that it would not talk to them.The Ministry of Youth is angry with the protesters because they left the Berg Aukas camp without their superiors’ knowledge to pressurise Government officials in Windhoek to give them jobs.Cabinet announced that those who had taken part in marches to Windhoek and Ondangwa had disqualified themselves from its programme to secure them jobs.Nendongo said the Berg Aukas camp commander had indicated that they would be accepted back at the camp. Two weeks ago the group’s representative went to the Ministry of Youth to see Minister Kazenambo Kazenambo, only to be confronted by Police officers who told them that they could not see the Minister.The camp commander, Colonel Nestor Shalauda, told The Namibian that Government had not yet informed him of its announcement and therefore, he assumed that it still stood.He said the last group that remained in Windhoek had arrived at the camp but, ‘there is a difference between people who just go somewhere, open the door and get in and those who were somewhere and have to be welcomed.’Asked if the group would be removed from the camp if the Government decision still stood, Shalauda said he was just a supervisor under the Ministry of Youth, Sport and Culture and such a move could only be taken if the said Ministry gave such instructions.