[Ed. Note: This paper, presented at the 11th Session of the Working
Group, was submitted by European immigrants to Namibia in the hopes
that they could claim to be "indigenous peoples".]
ON THE DISCRIMINATION
OF THE
REHOBOTH BASTERS
An indigenous people in the Republic of Namibia
A fact file prepared by
Dr. Y.J.D. Peeters
International Legal Counsel
for the 11th Session
of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations and the
45th Session of the Subcommission on Prevention of Discrimination
and Protection of Minorities of the United Nations Commission
on Human Rights.
Geneva, July-August 1993
REHOBOTH BASTER
GEMEENTE - GEMEINDE - COMMUNITY
Republic of Namibia
Permanent Representation to the International Organizations
IEV - MONTOYERSTRAAT 1 BUS 20 - B-1040 BRUSSEL
Tel. +32.2.428.56.14 Fax. +32.9.221.17.45
ON THE DISCRIMINATION
OF THE
REHOBOTH BASTERS
An indigenous people in the Republic of Namibia
Independence of multi-ethnic societies does not necessarily bring
benefits to all the ethnic groups in these societies. A very relevant
case for this phenomenon is the newly established state of Namibia
where small nomadic peoples like the Bushmen are now in great danger of
being swamped by the immigration of settlers from other regions.
Another threatened group is the Community of Rehoboth Basters. This
community numbers some 35,000 people, living in an area of 14.216
square kilometres south of Windhoek, the capital of Namibia. They
settled in their lands in the early 1870's. They developed their own
legislation, years before the Germans installed their colonial rule
over Namibia in 1885 and as such they constitute an indigenous people
in present-day Namibia.
The first Baster communities emerged between the Cape Colony's
northwestern frontier and the lower course of the Orange River at the
end of the eighteenth century. In the beginning of the nineteenth
century, missionary organizations, such as the "London Missionary
Society" and the "Rheinische Missionsgesellschaft" established
congregations in the territory of the Basters and supported the local
communities (gemeentes) in developing written forms of regulations that
were already in custom for a long period. Several of these political
institutions were adopted from the neighbouring Khoi tribes, in
particular the offices of "Chief" (Kaptein) and "Sub-chief"
(Onderkaptein) and the annual tribal gathering. The regulation of
public life depended largly on the introduction of written
congregational constitutions (or "gemeenteordenings"), not only for the
christianized people within the community but also for the Heathen, who
were treated on equal footing. All community-members were liable to pay
taxes and levies, to attend church services, to send their children to
school from the age of seven and to have births and deaths within their
families registered with the authorities. Every community elected
yearly between their members a "Council" (Raad), responsible for the
control of the civil and ecclesiastical order, the settlement of.
disputes between the community members, the punishment of offences and
the distribution of garden-plots and arable land. During such meeting,
the community decided also about the acceptance of new members. At
their public gathering on the 24th of March 1868, the community of
Basters of Tuin decided to emigrate beyond the borders of the Cape
Colony. In order to find new places for settlement on the northern
banks of the Orange River, the Council of Tuin sent out an advance
party under the leadership of "kaptein" Hermanus van Wyk. He conducted
several negotiations with the tribal governments in Nama- and
Hereroland and he participated in a common Peace Conference at
Okahandja in 1870. At the beginning of the people's "Great Trek" from
de Tuin to Rehoboth, the Basters drafted a Provisional Constitution
during the trekkers' sojourn in Warmbad on the 15th December, 1868.
A revised form of this Constitution was promulgated on the 31st of
January 1872 at Rehoboth and it was again renewed and amended on the
first of January 1874. This legislation became known as the "Vaderlike
Wette" (Parental Laws). These laws did not only restrict themselves to
constitutional matters (such as the election of a Chief and of a
Council, citizenship,...) but included at the same time civil and
criminal laws and regulations.
The German colonial administration concluded a "Schutz- und
Freundschaftsvertrag" (Treaty of Protection and Friendship) with the
Rehoboth Basters on the 15th of September 1885. According to this
Treaty, "the German Emperor recognized the rights and freedoms acquired
by the Basters at Rehoboth for themselves....". Further, the Treaty
mentions that all disputes between Rehoboth community members "will be
tried by their own judges and according to their own laws". An
important passage in the Treaty is Paragraph 7, which reads as follows
"if there should be any other matters to be settled between the German
Empire and the Kaptein of the Basters at Rehoboth, these will later be
solved by agreements between the two Governments". Despite the efforts
of the German administration and legislation to increase their
influence in the Basters community, the Council of the community
continued to enact new laws. The Councillors also played a leading part
in the rebellion of April 1915 against the Germans.
The form of local self-government remained unchanged during the period
of military occupation of South West Africa by Union forces (1915-1919)
and in the first years of the mandatory system. On the 17th of August
1923, two members of the Executive Council of the Basters (the
Government) and seven members of the "Raad" (the Parliament) signed an
Agreement with the South West Africa Administration. But a majority of
the Rehoboth Basters rejected the Agreement because "it limited their
rights to self-determination and it failed to restore rights to land
filched under German regime." Finally, this opposition led to an open
rebellion in 1925 and the formation of an oppositional "Nuwe Raad" (New
Council). The S.W.A. Administration reacted with Proclamation 31 of
1924, whereby the "Kaptein", the traditional courts and officials
appointed by the "Raad" were temporarily dispensed with and their
powers transferred to the Magistrate and his Court. It is important to
notice that Proclamation 31 did not repeal the Agreement of 1923; it
only suspended a number of provisions. Local self-government of the
Rehoboth Baster community was partly restored with the Proclamation 9
of 1928, whereby an "Advisory Council" was introduced. In a first
period, the Council consisted of three elected members and three
members appointed by the S.W.A. Administration. According to a
Proclamation in 1935, the three appointed members of the Council were
to be elected. The "Advisory Council" governed the community in all
"internal matters", such as the approval of loans to citizens, buying
and selling of land, village affairs,... The oppositional "New Council"
continued to function in the period between 1925 and the early
thirties. On their initiative, a number of petitions were sent to the
"League of Nations", requesting the restoration of full self-
government. Finally, on the 11th of April 1933, there came an end to
the division of the community and a new "Advisory Council" was elected
by all members of the community.
In 1946 the mandate of the League of Nations was transformed into the
Trusteeship system of the United Nations and the Republic of South-
Africa continued to be the administrating power. In 1966 the General
Assembly, by resolution 2145 (XXI) terminated South-Africa's mandate
and legally took over the responsibility of the territory. However
factually the Republic of South Africa continued to administer the
territory under various forms until the installation of the United
Nations Transitional Assistance Group (UNTAG). In all this period, the
Rehoboth Baster community save-guarded its ancestral institutions and
organisation.
In 1976, South-African parliament voted a law No 56-(1976) which
created a formal type of institutions which fitted in the traditional
existing ones. This Law in no way replaced the so-called Paternal Laws
but merely tried to insert them into the South African administrative
structure for the territory. The UNTAG suspended the Act in 1989
without making reference to the Paternal Laws, which were not repealed
as they formed in no way part of the South African legal system. By
virtue of schedules to the Namibian constitution, all so-called
discriminative South-African law ceased to have effect. This applied
also to law 56-(1976). It seems obvious that the repeal of the above
mentioned law recreated the "status quo ante" i.e. the Paternal Laws
and eventual dispositions of the Treaty of 1885.
Under the excuse of eliminating all so-called "remnants" of the South
African Administration, the government of Namibia has since
Independence set out on a path of total destruction for the small
Rehoboth-Baster People. By virtue of the Constitution which declares
English to be the only official language, they have forcefully switched
the whole administration and schooling of Rehoboth to English from
Afrikaans, the mother-tongue of all the Baster People. The government
of Namibia has tried to destroy the century old system of self-
government and taken away all assets of the previously recognised
authorities. The communal land has been illegally transferred to the
Namibian State, under pretext that it was "public property", under the
South African rule. The Namibian government got also hold of the assets
of the Rehoboth Development and Investment Corporation, worth $3
million but sold to government allies and friends for next to nothing.
Massive immigration, mainly from northern Owamba people has been
promoted to try to destabilise the demographic and social structure of
the area. In doing so, the Namibian government infringes on every and
all articles of the U.N. Declaration on the rights of Indigenous
Peoples and most of the provisions of the ILO-Convention on Indigenous
Peoples in Independent Republics. In no more than two years, the very
existence and survival of the Rehoboth Baster People is in danger.
We appeal to the U.N. Subcommission on Prevention of Discrimination and
Protection of Minorities to pay the necessary attention to this case
and to use its influence to halt this unacceptable situation by making
its concern known to the Namibian government and to the relevant bodies
of the U.N. system, especially in the perspective of the International
Year of Indigenous Peoples.
On behalf of the captain, council and assembly of the Rehoboth Baster
community.
Dr. Yvo J.D. Peeters
International Legal Counsel
HISTORICAL DOCUMENTS
DOCUMENT 1
Statutes of the Rohoboth Basters
by Resolution of the Kaptein and his Councillors in the
Years 1872 and 1874
1.1 Constitution of 31 January 1872 providing for the Kaptein, the
Kapteinsraad (Council), the Volksraad (Parliament), civil rights,
resolutions and voting.
On this the thirty first day of January in the Year of our Lord One
Thousand Eight Hundred and Seventy Two, the citizens of Rehoboth
reached agreement on the form of government as provisionally
established on the 15th of December 1868 at Warmbad, to be amended and
established as follows:
1. As supreme Ruler of the citizens is chosen and appointed one from
their midst as Kaptein, who shall then fulfil his office during his
lifetime unless he is prevented from so doing by illness or other
exigencies.
2. In the event of the death of the Kaptein, or if he is forced to
resign from his offlce, the citizens shall immediately gather to
elect and nominate another Kaptein.
3. In the interim period before the citizens have elected and
nominated a new Kaptein, the elder of the two Councillors (and
longest serving offlce bearer) who assists the Kaptein will take
over the government as provisional Kaptein.
4. The Kaptein shall have a Council consisting of two citizens of
unimpeachable character to assist him, and to be chosen by the
Kaptein himself for as long a period as the Kaptein may deem fit.
5. In the election of the Kaptein every citizen who has full
citizenship shall be enfranchised.
6. The Kapteinsraad or Council may be summoned at any time to assist
with the government by the Kaptein, but in most urgent and
essential matters a Councillor has the right to abandon his offlce
for a period, provided that he shall inform the Kaptein beforehand,
who may then nominate another in his stead for the period of his
absence from the Council.
7. In order to allow the citizens to also participate in the
government, they will elect and nominate from amongst them three
citizens of unpeachable character as members of parliament or
Volksraad.
8. The parliament is always elected for a period of one year. In the
first forthnight of a new year, re-election of the Volksraad shall
take place.
9. The Volksraad elects from its midst one member who shall be
entitled to summon the members of the Volksraad to meet as often as
he may deem necessary,
10. The spokesman or speaker also negotiates on behalf of the fellow
members of the Volksraad to take care of the interests of the
citizens who elected them.
11. It is the duty of the Volksraad to take care of the interests of
the citizens who elected them.
12. The citizens shall make their wishes and desires known to the
Volksraad, who shall inform the Kaptein and his Council so that the
may inquire into these and, if practicable, deal with these in
their legislation.
13. At the election of the Volksraad, one member of the Kapteinsraad
(Council) shall always be present in order to ensure that no
irregularities ensue for the Kaptein and the Domain. But the
Council shall not be empowered to interfere in the voting provided
there are no irregularities.
14. Every citizen who pays tax shall have the right to vote.
15. Every Baster, or anyone married to a Baster, shall become a
citizen. All others will be given residence rights subject to
conditions to be prescribed later.
16. Each person wishing to become a citizen, shall present himself to
the Kaptein, who shall inform him regarding the laws. If he is
prepared to comply with the laws and if he is well known, he will
be adopted as citizen by the Kaptein, in the presence of the
Council and the speaker of the Volksraad.
17. If the applicant for citizenship is a stranger, he shall then be
subjected to a trial period of six months. The Kaptein then informs
the speaker of the Volksraad accordingly, and he shall notify the
citizens in order that anyone who has any objection against the
applicant, may submit it. If during the period of six months, no
objection is lodged against the applicant, he shall be accepted as
citizen as set out above.
18. For their own part, the Kaptein, members of his Council and the
Volksraad and citizens, will all be duty bound through the slapping
of hands instead of the taking of an oath, to fulfil their offlce
and profession without self-interest and to the benefit of the
Domain.
19. Resolutions are taken by the Kaptein and his Council, likewise laws
are formulated, and then sent to the speaker of the Volksraad in
writing and he shall then immediately call a meeting of the
Volksraad in order to consider the submitted resolutions or laws.
20. No resolution or law may be submitted to the Volksraad before the
Kaptein and his Council have reached consensus on it.
21. Should there be a difference of opinion in the formulation of
resolutions and laws, the Council shall vote on the matter.
22. If the Kaptein and one of the members of his Council have a
difference of opinion which they are unable to resolve, the opinion
of the Kaptein as Supreme Head shall be adopted.
23. On the other hand, should the two members of the Council concur,
then the Kaptein shall submit to the Council.
24. Occurrences of differences of opinion between the Kaptein and his
council shall be kept secret.
25. Any member of the Council who reveals such a secret may be relieved
of his offlce and punished.
26. If the Volksraad adopts the submitted law or enactment, the speaker
shall return same to the Kaptein who then has the power to
determine that it shall serve as law in force, and to promulgate
it.
27. On the other hand, should the Volksraad reject the submitted law,
the speaker of the Volksraad shall inform the Kaptein accordingly,
and he shall then determine a time and place for a joint meeting of
the Kaptein and his Council together with the Volksraad in order to
discuss the points of difference.
28. After each party had raised its reasons and objections, the matter
shall be put to the vote.
29. If the entire Volksraad rejects a proposal of the Kaptein and his
Council, all enfranchised citizens shall be summoned and informed
of the difference, whereupon the entire meeting shall vote on the
matter.
30. For the purpose of this vote, the Kaptein as Supreme Head shall be
allocated one tenth of all the enfranchised citizens as his vote.
His Council members each have two votes, the citizens and members
of the Volksraad on the contrary, have only one vote each.
Given at Rehoboth on 31 January 1872.
Kaptein K. Van Wyk
Council: P. Diergard
J. Van Wyk
Speaker of the Volksraad: Mechiel Diergard
1.2. OTHER LEGAL NORMS OF THE REHOBOTH BASTER COMMUNITY
1. Law of 31 January 1872 providing for a Judge, Field Cornet and
officials.
2. Law of 27 February 1872 dealing with murder, assault and bodily
harm, theft, ill-treatment and tax.
3. Law of 13 March 1872 dealing with brandy, debt, use in an emergency,
marriage and lands and gardens.
4. Law of 10 April 1872 dealing with infectious diseases and war.
5. Law of 8 July 1872 dealing with irregularities, resistance or
opposition to sentence, summons, defamation, ill-treatment and
opposition to the law.
1.3 REVISED STATUTE OF 1 JANUARY 1874
In this month of July in the year 1874 the citizens of Rehoboth
resolved to renew the form of government, done at Nisbeth Bath in 1868
and amended at Rehoboth in the year 1872, with the following rules.
Section 1. On January 1874 the resident citizens at Rehoboth
appointed as Kaptein one Hermanus Van Wyk. He retains his
full authority as paramount chief indefinitely.
Section 2. Furthermore, if the citizens have an accusation against
the Kaptein in that they are of the opinion that he is not
worthy of his office, the citizens shall not have the
right to remove him from his offlce. But any person who is
of the opinion that he has a well-founded legitimate
complaint, shall submit his complaint to three impartial
chiefs of the country who have adopted Christian law, to
be resolved by them.
Section 3. Hereby it shall also mean that the Kaptein is subject to
the law in a manner similar to any citizen or Council
member.
Section 4. The Kaptein as paramount chief shall be deemed worthy of
maintaining order and issuing commands whenever necessary
to the benefit of the nation.
Section 5. Each citizen shall propose 10 men as councillors to assist
the Kaptein, and from amongst the ten men to receive the
majority vote the Kaptein shall choose 4 men as the
members of his Council.
Section 6. Every Council member is elected for one year and may, if
he fulfils his office well, be re-elected.
Section 7. Every citizen who has full citizenship shall be entitled
to elect the Kaptein.
Section 8. The Kaptein shall appoint one of his Council members in
his place if he has to leave home or, also in other
circumstances, even if he is at home but indisposed.
Section 9. The Kaptein's Council may be summoned by the Kaptein at
any time in connection with government matters.
Section 10. Every member of the Council shall inform the Kaptein if he
has to leave and the Kaptein shall appoint one from
amongst the citizens to take such Council member's place
for the duration of his absence.
Section 11. If the Kaptein or a member of the Council neglects his
clerical duties due to own interests and negligence, he
will receive written warning the first time, and if he
persists in his neglect, summons will be served on him and
he will have to answer to the complaints about his neglect
in the Office, and if he is proved guilty, he may be fined
from ten shillings to one pound Sterling, and if he
disobeys the summons, he may be relieved of his office.
Section 12. The kaptein will be similarly fined, and if any Council
member or citizen refuses to obey his summons, he will be
fined up to twice the cost at One Shilling and Sixpence
each and the third time he shall be forced to pay the
ensuing police cost to charge him in the office of the
judges, and pay it in addition to his fine of Five
Shillings to Two Pounds Sterling as punishment, as well as
the case for which summons was served on him in the first
place.
Section 13. In the event of a threat of attack by enemies, the Kaptein
is authorized to call up all men able to bear arms above
the age of sixteen years to assist in defence and each one
shall be obliged to obey orders with the exception of
anyone who is medically unfit.
Section 14. Anyone who resists call-up or refuses to obey orders shall
appear before a military tribunal consisting of two deputy
commanders appointed by the Kaptein and two members of the
Kaptein's Council, who shall have the right to fine the
guilty party from One to Fifty Pounds Sterling, and if he
is unable to pay the fine, he shall receive corporal
punishment of fifty lashes. The Kaptein shall pass
sentence.
Section 15. In every war the Kaptein shall have the supreme command
and all deputy commanders appointed by him are obliged to
obey his orders.
Section 16. For cases of complaints, either criminal or civil, the
Kaptein shall appoint Judges to investigate and punish in
accordance with the Statutes.
Section 17. If anyone who is sentenced and punished is of the opinion
that he is not guilty, he shall have the right to appeal
to the Kaptein and his Council; he shall abide by their
sentence. In every criminal case the Kaptein shall uphold
the sentence.
Section 18. Any case in which the judges have passed judgement, shall
be reported on to the Kaptein in writing immediately after
the sentence was passed.
Section 19. The citizens shall appoint the Field Cornet by majority
vote and then inform the Kaptein accordingly.
Section 20. Whenever the Field Cornet leaves the area for a time, he
shall appoint a competent man in his place with full
delegated powers.
Section 21. Murder with intent shall receive an irrevocable death
penalty.
Section 22. A death sentence may not be passed without one of the
other Chiefs in the country being present.
Section 23. If anyone causes the death of another through negligence
he shall have to prove before the Judges through two
witnesses that he did not do so out of wilfulness or
revenge and animosity, then he shall not receive the death
penalty, but will receive punishment in proportion to his
guilt, either in the form of a fine or corporal
punishment.
Section 24. If due to negligence or in a fight or some other manner a
person is injured and such injury constitutes grievous
bodily harm, the guilty party shall be fined or punished
in proportion to the injury caused the other person, with
a fine or money or goods or receive corporal punishment.
Section 25. No master may ill-treat his servants and if he is guilty
he shall be fined five shillings to one pound Sterling.
Section 26. Every servant shall have the right to report a master who
ill-treats him, but if the servant is a stock herd he
shall not leave the livestock entrusted to his care in the
veld when he goes to report his master.
Section 27. Ill-treatment shall mean all undue punishment, i.e. to be
beaten with hands and feet and rocks.
Section 28. Anyone who steals large or small stock or other property,
shall return the same threefold. If he is unable to return
the stolen goods, he shall perform forced labour of from
one to twelve months or receive corporal punishment of
from five to fifty lashes.
Section 29. Anyone who knowingly sells or conceals stolen goods will
receive the same punishment as a thief.
Section 30. If the thief is a child or someone of ill health, the
judges shall take this into account in mitigation of the
punishment.
Section 31. The owner of the stolen goods shall receive it back
twofold if the thief is able to return said goods; if the
thief is unable to pay he will have to enter the employ of
the owner of the stolen goods, or in other employ or hard
labour as directed by the judges in order to serve as
punishment.
Section 32. No citizen may sell brandy or any liquor other than wine
within the area of Rehoboth without an order issued by the
Kaptein.
Section 33. Anyone contravening this provision shall permit his
premises to be searched thoroughly and any brandy or
liquor found there will be confiscated.
Section 34. Apart form the loss of his liquor, he shall also pay a
fine of five pounds Sterling for the first offence, and
double that amount for the second offence.
Section 35. Any dealer or alien who sells liquor in the area will be
fined to the same amount as the citizens and, in addition,
he will be expelled from the area.
Section 36. If a debtor is charged for his debt and he refuses to pay,
the judges shall have the right to arrange for the sale of
his goods or sell it themselves to the value of the debt
and the expenses incurred.
Section 37. To cover the expenses, the judges will calculate five
shillings for the complaint to be paid by the complainant,
but which will be refunded to him once the debtor has
repaid the debt.
Section 38. If the proceeds from the sale of the debtor's goods are
insufficient to cover the debt, then the creditor shall be
satisfied with the amount received by the judges for the
sold goods, less the five shillings complaint money and
one shilling in the pound Sterling to cover their
expenses.
Section 39. If the debtor has no property, he must find work in order
to pay his debt.
Section 40. If the debtor is the father of a family, he will receive
half of the wages earned for his family and the other half
will be paid to the creditor.
Section 41. If he refuses to enter into employment, the judiciary will
consider what is to be done with him.
Section 42. A poor person who is unable to pay the complaint money
shall have his complaint accepted without paying the fee,
but he shall pay it later if the debt is repaid and he has
enough money to do so.
Section 43. If the poor person is old or in ill health and unable to
work, the judges will charge no fee for expenses.
Section 44. If anyone is forced to use another's horse or ox or
livestock without having had the opportunity to ask
permission from the owner, he must immediately upon seeing
the owner inform him and ask his pardon and pay the amount
the owner charges for the use, though this amount shall
not be disproportionate: for a horse it is a maximum of
ten shillings per day, for an ox one shilling; and if he
has to slaughter one livestock unit out of lack, he shall
pay the full value of such unit.
Section 45. On the other hand, if the horse or the ox is injured
during use, he shall pay for the damage; in the case of
death, the full value shall be paid.
Section 46. Anyone leaving his wife without cause, shall leave his
property behind to be allocated to the wife. If the wife
leaves her husband without legal cause, the same shall
apply to her.
Section 47. For a child born out of wedlock, the father of the child,
if he is a married man, or if he is unmarried and had
promised to marry the mother, and if she complains, shall
pay her eight pounds Sterling for the upbringing of the
child.
DOCUMENT 2
REGULATIONS
From the Community Council Office at Rehoboth
1. On this, the twelfth day of January, Nineteen hundred and
seventeen, the Sections set out below are promulgated as law with
the permission of the full Council, under the name of the Kaptein
and his Council as well as the entire domain in the land and area
of Rehoboth, providing as follows:
2. Numbered A.62.A, is put into effect by the full Council and
resolved to implement.
3. No citizen, owner of farm land or other land owner shall be
entitled to let his farm or sell it without the official permission
ot the Kaptein and the Council.
4. Improvements on the farm: land, house erven, garden erven and
buildings. Also all assets of the farm, such as wood, grass, water
and grazing rights; the owner shall not have the right to let or
alienate these without the permission of the full Council.
5. This law is ratified under the Law of 1895 and is published as
Section 62.A 1) and comes into effect on 1 January 1917, and is
included in the Statutes of 1872 and 1874 as law.
BY-LAW
It is hereby determined by the Council Offlce and decreed as follows:
No citizen or woman shall any longer have the right to keep more than
one dog in the area.
A special warning is issued that it is strictly forbidden to keep
bitches here in town.
Any person keeping more than one dog here in town, shall be legally
prosecuted; if any person keeps more than one dog here in town, such
dogs will be taxed with a certain amount, or destroyed.
Furthermore, the Council Offlce will determine the number of dogs kept
here in town by every person; this by-law will be displayed on a notice
board and circularized as promulgated.
Furthermore, the provisions apply forthwith to such dogs, and within 8
days all such dogs shall cease to be kept in the town.
The by-law comes into effect from this date and is promulgated as law
in terms of Section 62.
Rehoboth, 1 August 1917
Signed: G. Beukes, Magistrate
Albert Mouton, Acting Kaptein.
DOCUMENT 3
TREATY OF PROTECTION AND FRIENDSHIP
BETWEEN THE GERMAN EMPIRE AND THE BASTERS OF REHOBOTH
(Summary and translahon from Dutch)
Between the German Emperor, King of Prussia, Wilhelm I and the
independent chief of the Basters in Rehoboth: Art. 1
Art. 1 The Captain, Hermanus Van Wyk, asks H.M. the German Emperor to
protect his land and his people.
Art. 2 H.M. The German Emperor recognizes the rights and freedom of
the Basters of Rehoboth and he accepts the obligation to
respect all treaties, previously signed by the Rehoboth Basters
with other nations.
Art. 3 The Captain, Hermanus Van Wyk, accepts the obligation not to
hand over the Rehoboth Gebiet or parts of it to another nation
and he will also sign no new treaties with other nations
without the approval of H.M. the German Emperor.
Art. 4 The Captain, Hermanus van Wyk, promises to protect the life and
possessions of all citizens of the German Empire in Rehoboth
Gebiet. They can travel, live, work, sell and buy property in
the area but the Rehoboth Basters can determine the conditions
for the settlement of foreigners on their territory. The German
citizens must also respect the laws and rules of the region and
they must pay the customary taxes to the Captain.
Art. 5 In civil and criminal court cases, the citizens of Rehoboth
will choose their judges and they will be judged according to
their own laws...
Art. 6 If there should be any other matters to be settled between the
German Emperor and the Captain of the Basters at Rehoboth,
these will later be solved by agreements between the two
governments.
Rehoboth, 15th September 1885
DOCUMENT 4
REHOBOTH PEOPLE'S MOTION IN THE WAKE OF NAMIBIAN INDEPENDENCE
20/3/1990 (summary and translation from Afrikaans)
Taking into consideration that:
-- the Rehoboth Basters settled in their beloved territory "Rehoboth
Gebiet" in the former century, in order to achieve political
autonomy and the international recognition of its territorial
integrity.
-- the Rehoboth Basters confirmed their independence and sovereignty
with the elaboration of the Paternal Laws in 1872. the Rehoboth
Gebiet has never been annexed to a larger territory.
-- neither the Germans nor the Government of South Africa suspended
the institutions and the legislation of the Rehoboth Basters. On
the contrary, they confirmed them in agreements and treaties.
-- the Rehoboth Basters never agreed or accepted to give up their
self-determination and self-government. Moreover, the international
community never contested these principles in relation to the
Rehoboth Community.
-- the Rehoboth Basters agreed, for the peace and the cooperation in
former SWA, to participate in the Resolution 435 independence
process; without, however, giving up their autonomy and self-
determination .
-- the Government of the territory of South West Africa, known as the
Republic of Namibia since 21/03/1990, suspended all rights of the
Rehoboth community for self-determination and expropriated their
property.
-- the citizens of Rehoboth realise now that they have been cheated
and sold out with false promises.
-- the people of Rehoboth is not willing to give up its identity,
their self-determination and autonomy and refuses to accept the
loss of parts of its territory after the Independence.
-- the people of Rehoboth believe that the Government of the RSA did
not respect agreements in relation to the negotiations concerning
the Rehoboth territory and its future. Consequently, the Rehoboth
Community decided to withdraw its participation to the Resolution
435 elections and the Constitutional Council.
For these reasons, the People of Rehoboth order their leaders, (the
Captain, his council and the Legislative Council), to act as follows:
-- with the knowledge that they are the only elected leaders of the
Rehoboth People
-- that the Captain, his Council and the Legislative Council take up
again all their former functions
-- that the Captain, his Council and the Legislative Council take
immediate steps for the Independence of the Rehoboth Gebiet
-- that the Captain, his Council and the Legislative Council elaborate
a new constitution for the Rehoboth Gebiet, in accordance to the
Paternal Laws of 1872
-- that the People of Rehoboth should be governed by the Captain, his
Council and the Legislative Council; and in no way subordinate to
the Government of the RSA or the Parliament of Namibia
-- that the leaders take up their authority over the administration
-- that the leaders of Rehoboth can only be bound by the will of the
people and to the regulations of the Paternal Laws of 1872.
The Kaptein, Kaptein's Council
and the Assembly
DOCUMENT 5
THE REHOBOTH BASTER'S DECLARATION AS AN AUTOCHTONOUS
AND INDEGINOUS PEOPLES
On this day, the 10th day of October 1992 and during the Assembly held
at Rehoboth, and in coherence with the resolution and election of the
members of the abovementioned on 22 june 1991, we, the Baster people,
declare ourselves as an indigenous people of the Republic of Namibia
and we herewith demand all rights to which autochtonous and indigenous
peoples are entitled to according to international practice and
conventions, and we shall, from Columbus-day, Monday the 12th of
October 1992, act accordingly.
Dated and signed by the Kaptein and the members of the Kaptein's
Council at Rehoboth on the 10th day of October 1992.
Signed: J.G.A. Diergaardt
Kaptein: J.G.A. Diergaardt
Kaptein's Council:
1. signed: D.J. Izaaks
2. signed: P.J. Diergaardt
Speaker of the Assembly
signed: A.J. Brendell
Assembly
1. signed: W. Van Wyk
2. signed: J.E. Stumpfe
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