Statement by Selma Ashipala-Musavyi at the International Conference on the Crimes of Colonialism in Africa

Algiers, Algeria, 30 November 2025

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On behalf of my delegation, allow me to thank the government and people of the sisterly People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria for the traditional warm and legendary hospitality extended to me and my delegation since our arrival in this historic white city of Algiers, “El Bahdja”.

Namibia acknowledges with profound gratitude the wisdom and foresight of president Abdelmajid Tebboune for his timely initiative in convening this landmark International Conference on the Crimes of Colonialism in Africa, as endorsed by the African Union Assembly of Heads of State in its Decision 903 of February 2025, as part of consolidating an African position to seek justice and reparations for colonial-era gross injustices.

Namibia applauds and recognises Algeria’s exemplary leadership in organising this International Conference, having been shaped by its own painful past. This experience forms the backbone of Algeria’s long standing advocacy and support for anti-colonial justice and the inalienable rights to self-determination for people still living under occupation and oppression.

Namibia will always remember and thank Algeria for the unwavering and all-round support rendered to us during our liberation struggle. Through the foresight and steadfastness of president Ahmed Ben Bella of Algeria at the Founding Summit of the Organisation of African Unity in 1963, he urged other leaders to “die a little or even completely” to free people still under colonial rule and to end apartheid. Therefore, the narrative of Namibia’s liberation struggle cannot be complete without citing the contribution of Algeria. It is here in Algiers that Swapo of Namibia received our first weapons to launch our armed struggle for national liberation, as well as many other acts of pan-African solidarity. Hence, it is only fitting that we converge in Algiers for this pertinent Conference.

It is said that history is the compass of the present and the future. In our quest for independence, Namibia endured colonialism, the 1904-1908 genocide against the Ovaherero and Namas – the first of the 20th century –  and apartheid. The relentless and systematic killing of the Herero and Nama resulted in the loss of approximately 80% of the Herero population and 50% of the Nama. These Namibian communities were also stripped of prime arable land, resulting in economic and cultural losses that continue to be felt throughout Namibia to this day. The suffering endured by the Herero and Nama during the genocide, and the generations that followed, is a reminder of the depth of the physical and psychological wounds caused by colonial violence and exploitation. The psychological wounds are even more challenging and continue to be passed from generation to generation.

The case of Namibia shows that calls for African reparation are not recent; they have deep roots going back to colonialism itself. A greater awareness of the antecedents of these politics will buttress the moral weight of reparation claims and strengthen the legal case for compensation.

Africa is replete with structural reminders of colonialism, racism and slavery. African people, through their agony, used every available opportunity to record their brutal experience under colonialism. They did so not for the mere sake of history, but to enable posterity to tell the African story of suffering and resilience – a story that needs to be recognised and codified so that it does not repeat itself in any form, a story that yearns for justice.

There is a moral imperative for us to work together to create a legal framework of accountability for colonial wrongs and address the complex legacy of the transgenerational social, economic and cultural harm caused by colonialism to our peoples, communities and countries.

Historically, international law and international criminal justice have been blind towards colonial crimes. Major legal instruments governing international crimes, such as crimes against peace, war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, have excluded colonial crimes from their ambit, treating them as distant events and rendering them almost invisible. The resulting accountability gap is glaring and unacceptable. To address this gap, we must identify and develop legal norms and techniques for framing and articulating colonial crimes and demanding justice in the form of appropriate remedies.

Namibia is of the firm view that, if international law is to fulfil its promise of universality, equality and justice, it must reckon with colonial crimes and colonial legacies. Africa, countries of the Global South and scholars have a proud history of shaping and further developing contemporary norms of international law, including norms such as self-determination and sovereignty.

For Namibia, the question of the Western Sahara remains legally and morally unambiguous. International law recognises the Sahrawi people as possessing an inalienable right to self-determination and independence.

We firmly believe that removing independence from consideration and redefining self-determination is tantamount to the ratification of annexation through the United Nations system. Namibia continues to stand with Western Sahara in their quest for self-determination, and we maintain that decolonisation remains the only lawful path for the people of Western Sahara.

Let me conclude by emphasising the following: it was the humiliation and dehumanisation of the African person, the destruction of our children’s innocence by witnessing brutality, that brought our forebears together to advocate and fight for Africa’s decolonisation.

There is no humane colonialism. As a collective, we were all victims. International governance and financial institutions are remnants or semblances of colonialism. Hence, we advocate for the reform of the United Nations Security Council and global financial institutions. Only by speaking and acting in unison shall we succeed in making colonialism a recognised crime.

I thank you.

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