A ruling by a full bench of the Windhoek High Court has shifted the trajectory of the legal fight over the 2021 Namibia-Germany joint declaration on the 1904-08 Ovaherero and Nama genocide. 

The court has decided not to add Germany as a respondent in the case, at least for the time being.

The OvaHerero community, which returned from Botswana in September last year, says it remains optimistic about the promises made by the authorities upon their arrival in Namibia.

Some members of the Ovaherero community, led by Professor Mutjinde Katjiua, held a commemoration today marking the anniversary of the 1904 extermination order against the Ovaherero and Nama people.

In a quest to maintain and preserve culture, the Ovaherero people gathered at the Ombu Cultural Festival in the Otjozondjupa Region.

The Ombu Cultural Festival is a platform created for the Ovaherero people to celebrate their culture and heritage.

The killing of an Otjinene resident has reignited long-forgotten tribal tensions in the community.

The Ovaherero Traditional Authority is embroiled in a leadership tussle playing out in the Windhoek High Court, with a lawyer for the claimant alleging a "coup d'état."

A traditional priest of the otji-Mungunda clan, Vetara Mungendje at Toasis in the Aminuis Constituency, has said that the late Dr. Sam Nujoma has done immeasurable work in this country and was very close to his late uncle Ombara Hosea Kutako.

The Nama Traditional Leaders Association (NTLA) has rejected the government's approval for the signing of the Nama and Ovaherero genocide reparations agreement with the German government. 

Cabinet approved the signing of the Joint Declaration in mid-December last year. 

The continued effects of the 1904 Genocide, which saw the displacement of many OvaHerero people, were highlighted at the Chief Hosea Kutako and Otjiserandu Tjongeama commemorations with descendants from Botswana, Canada, and the US.

Ovaherero and Ovambenderu communities gathered at Okahitua Village over the weekend to remember the legacy of the late Ombara Otjitambi, Kuaima Riruako.

One of the most significant legacies of Chief Riruako is his decisive leadership on the issue of genocide reparations, among others.