List farms were offered ‘in exchange for fish quotas’

THE late tycoon Werner List offered six farms to Government in exchange for fishing quotas, President Sam Nujoma disclosed at the weekend.

Speaking at the May Day celebrations at Karibib, Nujoma praised List as one of the whites who had embraced the new dispensation, putting racial discrimination aside. The President told the crowd how List had come to donate the farms to illustrate that some white Namibians had abandoned their racist attitudes, while a few continued to mistreat their workers by dumping them in “corridors” of land along the national roads.”We single out those whites who discriminate [against] their farm workers.[But] there are also whites like [Werner] List.He came to me…,” said Nujoma, and offered six farms in “exchange for fishing quotas”.List reportedly complained that the apartheid Afrikaner regime had refused to give him fishing rights.”I said to him:’Do you consider yourself Namibian or not?’” Nujoma recounted.List told him of his German heritage.The President then said to the multi-millionaire:”Why don’t you simply give the farms to Namibians who are landless? And he said:’I’m going to think about it’.”When he returned, said Nujoma, List said he had “decided to give the farms” to Nujoma on his birthday.The President said that he had told List: “Give them to the [the Ministry of Lands Resettlement and Rehabilitation] and not to me.So he gave them.”At this point the crowd applauded and ululated for the retiring Head of State.”These are white Namibians whom we accept, but we don’t accept the white of Ongombo West.He is a criminal and we are going to deal with him,” said Nujoma, wagging his finger.Nujoma criticised farmers who mistreated their workers, evicting them even when they had nowhere to go.Workers were kicked off Ongombo West, north-east of Windhoek late last year and had to camp in a riverbed.Nujoma said he was saddened by the sight of a mother breastfeeding her child in the riverbed where they had been dumped after being kicked off a farm.He promised that the farm would be expropriated, as would be others where farm owners continued to maltreat their workers.Nujoma promised tough action against all farm owners who were regarded as bad employers, even if they were “blacks or coloured”.The President earlier in his speech emphasised that the apartheid-era treatment of workers, such as the contract labour system where people where transported like cattle with tags around their necks, should come to an end.But he also used the opportunity to call on men to stop abusing alcohol and attacking women, “knifing their wives”.”From now on, every worker should go home at five o’clock.If you want to drink buy your drink at the bottle store and go home.”I love women myself [but] I don’t drink, I don’t smoke, but I know how to get her.”To men who abused women, Nujoma said: “We are going to make a law that you will be arrested [and] will never see the sun again.”The President told the crowd how List had come to donate the farms to illustrate that some white Namibians had abandoned their racist attitudes, while a few continued to mistreat their workers by dumping them in “corridors” of land along the national roads.”We single out those whites who discriminate [against] their farm workers.[But] there are also whites like [Werner] List.He came to me…,” said Nujoma, and offered six farms in “exchange for fishing quotas”.List reportedly complained that the apartheid Afrikaner regime had refused to give him fishing rights.”I said to him:’Do you consider yourself Namibian or not?’” Nujoma recounted.List told him of his German heritage.The President then said to the multi-millionaire:”Why don’t you simply give the farms to Namibians who are landless? And he said:’I’m going to think about it’.”When he returned, said Nujoma, List said he had “decided to give the farms” to Nujoma on his birthday.The President said that he had told List: “Give them to the [the Ministry of Lands Resettlement and Rehabilitation] and not to me.So he gave them.”At this point the crowd applauded and ululated for the retiring Head of State.”These are white Namibians whom we accept, but we don’t accept the white of Ongombo West.He is a criminal and we are going to deal with him,” said Nujoma, wagging his finger.Nujoma criticised farmers who mistreated their workers, evicting them even when they had nowhere to go.Workers were kicked off Ongombo West, north-east of Windhoek late last year and had to camp in a riverbed.Nujoma said he was saddened by the sight of a mother breastfeeding her child in the riverbed where they had been dumped after being kicked off a farm.He promised that the farm would be expropriated, as would be others where farm owners continued to maltreat their workers.Nujoma promised tough action against all farm owners who were regarded as bad employers, even if they were “blacks or coloured”.The President earlier in his speech emphasised that the apartheid-era treatment of workers, such as the contract labour system where people where transported like cattle with tags around their necks, should come to an end.But he also used the opportunity to call on men to stop abusing alcohol and attacking women, “knifing their wives”.”From now on, every worker should go home at five o’clock.If you want to drink buy your drink at the bottle store and go home.”I love women myself [but] I don’t drink, I don’t smoke, but I know how to get her.”To men who abused women, Nujoma said: “We are going to make a law that you will be arrested [and] will never see the sun again.”