Saal
Green hydrogen from Namibia - a new chapter in German colonial history?
In Namibia, the German military committed the first genocide of the 20th century. To this day, the German government has evaded responsibility for this genocide and a "reconciliation agreement" has so far failed because the descendants of those affected were not allowed to sit at the negotiating table.
The green hydrogen strategy of the German government and the EU is focussing on Namibia in a different way. Renewable energy generated there is to be used for the production of hydrogen, which is then to be exported to Europe. Since then, the German government and companies have been carrying out neo-colonial activities there. For example, the "Namibian" company Hyphen, in which the German company Enertrag holds a majority stake together with a British partner, has been awarded the contract for a mammoth project that is being resisted on historical, democratic, ecological and social grounds. It is to be built on land that belonged to the Nama before the genocide and is now home to a unique nature reserve. The harbour of the nearby small town of Lüderitz is to be massively expanded for this purpose, which threatens Shark Island, the memorial to the first concentration camp under German colonial rule. Negotiations on the project were conducted in camera and without the participation of those affected. Concerns about far-reaching environmental impacts have been ignored and there is still no risk analysis.
The two Namibian activists Paul Thomas (Nama Traditional Leaders Association) and Tjipura Unaune Tjipura (Social and Economic Justice Trust) will present their criticism of the project and discuss it with us.
Paul Thomas is the spokesperson of the Nama Traditional Leaders Association (NTLA). The NTLA is the umbrella organisation of the traditional leaders of the Nama people in Namibia. It represents their interests worldwide and is primarily committed to restorative justice in connection with the genocide of the Nama by the German Empire.
Tjipura Unaune Tjipura von der namibischen Organisation Economic Social Justice Trust (ESJT) musste leider kurzfristig absagen.