National Youth Council (NYC) affiliates are still nursing tear gas-related injuries a week after the council’s general assembly at Swakopmund violently derailed, leaving nine delegates hurt.
Some say they are now dealing with damaged muscle tissue and breathing problems.
The council’s general assembly aimed to elect a new executive chairperson and board with former Namibia National Students’ Organisation presidents Esther Simon and Simon Taapopi contesting for the executive chairperson position.
NYC affiliate Refilwe ‘Kiki’ Kaposambo is wearing an arm sling after doctors found severe muscle and tissue injuries in her right arm. She is also undergoing further tests after the incident allegedly worsened her asthma.
“I think I was the first person to get an asthma attack when they switched off the lights because I was really traumatised. Everything happened so fast. My friend was crying. Everything was just traumatic,” she says.
Kaposambo says she has been booked off for two weeks, depending on her recovery. She is also scheduled for a computed tomography (CT) scan to determine whether the exposure to tear gas affected her lungs.
“I’m already on stage four asthma. The pain is making it difficult to breathe, and I’m going for a CT scan so doctors can see whether the tear gas affected my lungs,” she says.
The meeting reportedly left nine delegates injured, forcing minister of education, innovation, youth, sport, arts and culture Sanet Steenkamp to halt the assembly.
Another NYC affiliate, Kigelia Orlam, says she and at least three other delegates are still receiving treatment for breathing problems and other injuries linked to the incident.
She says she returned to hospital after struggling to breathe and was put on oxygen before doctors referred her for X-rays and a CT scan.
“I had to go back because I couldn’t breathe at all. They put me on two rounds of oxygen and referred me for X-rays. When I returned with the results, they admitted me and put me on oxygen again,” Orlam says.
She says another affiliate was admitted to hospital in critical condition for severe swelling.
“They were struggling to stabilise her. We were later taken to Windhoek Central Hospital, where she was admitted. She is now out of danger, but she has not fully recovered,” she says.
Orlam says many of those still receiving treatment are asthmatic, which made the effects of the tear gas worse.
She says the number of affected delegates could rise because some have already returned to their home regions and may still require medical care.
The youth council has, however, been assisting injured delegates, she says.
“The acting director was with us at the hospitals and assisted with our medical bills. She asked us to keep updating the council if more delegates experience the same symptoms so they can keep a record and provide assistance,” she says.
The fallout has continued this week, with interim executive chairperson Patience Masua and board members Jamie Theron, Unombuiro Kauteza and Ester Shitana resigning from the council.
Deputy youth minister Dino Ballotti last week told the National Assembly that holding elections under the current circumstances would have risked producing a disputed outcome and creating further instability within the youth council.
Erongo police spokesperson senior inspector Hilma Shomongula yesterday said the police did not fire the tear gas during the general assembly.
“It was not from the side of the police. The police were present at the general assembly because they were called due to the situation that turned into chaos,” she said.
The Namibian also sought acting NYC director Sircca Nghitila’s comment, who did not respond by the time of going to print.
