New Era

"We are not happy. We cannot find gamakhoe (devil's claw) along the route cattle moved. We do not hear the kudus at night any more because they took flight because of the presence of so many cattle in the area. The Gam cattle have taken over."

This was the expressed concern of Poppie Khamaswa, a native of the Tsumkwe Constituency, in particular Aple Post where the cattle driven illegally from Gam into the area, much to the inconvenience and unease of Ms Khamaswa and others, understandably, were kept.

As much as one understands the outcry of Ms Khamaswa and company against the invasion of their area by farmers from Gam and their animals, one wonders whether Ms Khamaswa's and fellows' concern is all that is there to the matter.

Mulling over the nature of Ms Khamaswa and company's concerns, however, does not make one loose sight of the fact of the illegality of the entry and its inconsiderate nature as far as the welfare of inhabitants of the area are concerned. The Gam farmers together with the inhabitants of the area, to some degree, have something in common. They remain the most marginalised groups as far as access to land goes. The Gam farmers, direct descendants of the survivors of the German Imperial forces' onslaught, who eventually sought refuge in neighbouring Botswana, then British Bechuanaland, have as yet to be resettled following their return to their motherland after independence in 1990.

Nevertheless, their condition of landlessness should not have blinded them to the fact that the Tsumkwe area is an area inhabited by not only fellow landless people, but by equally a powerless and marginalised community much as them. In fact, one gathers that before the ill-fated and unfortunate entry into Tsumkwe by the Gam farmers, they friendly approached the traditional authorities in the area for grazing for their animals. And all signs were there that sooner than later, somehow the traditional authorities might heed the plea of their fellow wretched. But as fate would have it, the process took some time with the fear of the poison plant overrunning the patience of the Gam farmers.

As legitimate and genuine as the voices of Ms Khamaswa and company may be, definitely theirs are not the only voices. In fact, the sterner voices behind the scenes have been those of organisations purporting to champion the causes and uphold the rights of the indigenous San. Their actions and efforts in this respect are commendable indeed. But without taking anything from their legitimate and worthy mandates, one cannot at the same time help taking exception to the haste to criminalise a desperate and marginalised farming community by hastily masterminding a civil action against them, purported on behalf of the Tsumkwe community. Likewise the sensationalisation and tribalisation of an essentially economic issue of survival is regrettable.

Unwittingly, or perhaps wittingly, in view of the fact that bigger and powerful foreign interests may have been pumping money into these organisations, they have in essence been proxies of some invisible foreign interests. Thus, there is much to the unfortunate entry of Gam cattle into the Tsumkwe Constituency, and the Nyae Nyae Conservancy in particular, than meets the eye. Of course it is not only the inhabitants who have interest in the harvesting of the Devil's Claw. In fact, the interest of the inhabitants in this plant, as much an important a source of their subsistence as it maybe, is secondary because second fiddle is what they are and have been in essence as harvesters in the game involving permit holders. One wonders if there are any locals who hold such permits?

Litigation, rather brokering a solution between two marginalised socio-economic groups, speaks volumes about the credentials of these organisations as champions of the oppressed and marginalised. Perhaps also a testimony that their avowed human rights credentials may be after all just a cover for hidden foreign interests.

It is a well known fact that the Nyae Nyae conservancy is among the richest source of Devil's Claw in Namibia.

It is also an open secret that the indigenes who are supposed to be the owners of this resource are in most cases not. But where is the raw plant actually exported? Of course, to countries like Germany, Poland, France, Spain and the United States of America! It is thus inconceivable that these countries, or their companies, if not their Namibian agents/proxies would be idling passively while their all-important source of the much-sought-after Devil's Claw is perceivable under threat through the invasion of the area by the Gam farmers!
Yes, these champions of human rights may have their own agendas, and legitimate and genuine ones for that as many of us have been commending them for and continue to. However, when the line between their mandates and the exploitative ventures of foreign companies in the export/import of Devil's Claw becomes thin, such an unholy alliance cannot but be suspect.

Likewise, the seeming consternation blown up by the entry of the Gam animals in Tsumkwe must also be seen in its broader perspective. That the welfare and interests of the inhabitants is not the only concern that comes into play but that somehow behind lurks the foreign interests of the permit holders to export Devil's Claw!

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