The Conflict at Uis: A Tale of Community Betrayal Last week, several newspapers carried sensationalised stories about the conflict at Uis between the community and the Dâure Daman Traditional Authority. The headlines suggested that the community and petrol bombers targeted the chief’s house. These reports were published on the day the accused community members were ordered to appear in the Omaruru Magistrate’s Court. None of the articles carried the affected residents’ side of events, in keeping with standard journalistic practices. The articles only cited the police and chief Seibeb, and none provided any context for the events. A number of issues require further attention. Firstly, despite Uis having a local police force, the Special Field Force was called in and – according to community reports – was used against community members, including the elderly. It is also unclear how a Special Field Force unit from Walvis Bay arrived at the scene so rapidly. Chief Zacharias Seibeb was a police officer before becoming chief, and his wife is a police officer. Secondly, charges were seemly laid against community members at a time when it was almost impossible for them to get legal representation. This happened just before Christmas last year; this time on 30 April – ahead of a long weekend with public holidays. CORE ISSUES The conflict dates back several years and its origin is not in power struggles within the community (as chief Seibeb suggests) but in the illegal and persistent mining activities in the area. It is a case of a marginalised community trying to hold big mining corporations and government agencies accountable. The recent events were preceded by a number of injustices against the community and the environment. At the core of the conflict? Alleged illegal mining activities by transnational corporations which destroy local livelihoods, the environment and cultural sites, including ancestral graves. This occurred without the community’s guaranteed rights to free, prior and informed consent. MINING OPERATIONS The brownfield open-cast tin mine at Uis was closed in 1990 because of low commodity prices. In recent years, companies have resumed tin mining operations, and have also started reclaiming lithium minerals from stockpiled tailings. A Chinese mining company, Tangshan Xinfeng Mining, has been mining lithium since 2022. Uis community members repeatedly noted that the company was operating illegally which was officially confirmed at the end of 2024 – more than two years after the community raised its concerns. Xinfeng has 10 mining claims for semi-precious stones. This places them in direct competition with community-based small-scale artisanal miners, who have claims in the area and have been mining there for decades. In some cases, claims were issued for areas in which community members already hold valid artisanal mining licences. It is also alleged the company was granted permission to mine on claims that belong to other companies. This is illegal. The local Tsiseb Conservancy has some management authority over the local land but was not consulted nor informed about Xinfeng’s lithium mining licence, despite the fact that the granting of an Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) requires the conservancy’s consent. Likewise, the Communal Land Board was not involved in granting the licence. It was approved with the consent of the traditional authority. SEEKING JUSTICE In their quest for accountability and justice, the impoverished community had to use their meagre resources to contact various institutions including the Office of the Ombudsman, the Ministry of Environment and Tourism, the then Ministry of Mines and Energy and the Anti-Corruption Commission. Despite repeated requests, none of these agencies provided the community with a report on their investigations . The community had asked for the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) and other reports which, despite Namibia’s access to information law, have been denied to them. In December 2024, the then Ministry of Mines and Energy finally launched an investigation and criminal case against Xinfeng over illegal mining activities. However, instead of arresting mining company representatives, the police arrested community members, allegedly for violating public order laws during a protest at the traditional authority’s offices. The events and arrests at Uis could have been avoided if the government bodies responsible for investigating the alleged violations and those charged with upholding the community’s rights to informed and prior consent had acted with greater respect and urgency to uphold Namibian laws and community rights. This speaks volumes about the failures of Namibia’s systems of accountability that were set up to safeguard public interests and to ensure accountability. Perhaps the new administration will demonstrate that social justice forms part of its mandate and that it will no longer be business as usual. The community at Uis deserves justice. * – Herbert Jauch is chairperson of the Economic and Social Justice Trust. The post The Conflict at Uis: A Tale of Community Betrayal appeared first on The Namibian.

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