NSHR (Namibia's National Human Rights Organisation)
A. NAMRIGHTS PROFILE
Preamble: Founding Statement
RECOGNIZING that the international community through the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenants on Human Rights, the 1949 Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols and numerous other international human rights and humanitarian instruments, has affirmed a strong commitment to the protection of human rights and the furtherance of humanitarian principles
WELCOMING that, in that regard, the Constitution of the Republic of Namibia includes a chapter on fundamental human rights and freedoms
NOTING WITH CONCERN that millions of Africans do not enjoy basic human rights and freedoms
CONVINCED that it is imperative to promote and protect the principles of multiparty democracy, respect for human rights and freedoms, the rule of law and justice for all
NOW THEREFORE, we the concerned Namibians have resolved to found a human rights monitoring and advocacy organization to be known as NAMRIGHTS.
 
B. DEFINITION
NAMRIGHTS is a national private, independent, non-profit making and non-partisan human rights monitoring and advocacy organization. Founded on December 1 1989 by concerned citizens, the Organization envisages a world free of human rights violations and its mission is to stop human rights violations in Namibia and the rest of the world.
 
1. Legal Status
NAMRIGHTS bases its legal existence on the provisions of Article 21(1) (e) of the Namibian Constitution as well as Article 71 of the UN Charter, read with Economic and Social Council Resolutions 1296 (XLIV) and E/1996/31. The Organization is lawfully registered in terms of Section 21(a) of the Companies Act 1973 (Act no 61 of 1973) as an association incorporated not for gain. NAMRIGHTS is recognized as a bona fide and credible human rights organization by the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights of the African Union (in 1993) and the UN Economic and Social Council (in 1997).
 
2. Core Values
The following are NAMRIGHTS’ core values:

• Tolerance
• Liberty
• Happiness
• Commitment
• Accountability
• Impartiality
• Solidarity

C. MISSION AND VISION
NAMRIGHTS envisages a world free of human rights violations and aims to stop human rights abuses in Namibia and the rest of the world
 
1. Objectives
NAMRIGHTS’ Aims and Objectives are:

• to secure due recognition and observance of all human rights and fundamental freedoms, especially those enshrined in the Namibian Constitution and as enumerated in the international human rights and humanitarian treaties and declarations adopted by the UN, its specialized agencies and similar international bodies
• to promote democracy, respect for the rule of law, justice for all and the independence of the judiciary
• to promote cultural, social and political tolerance for all
• to promote accessibility, responsiveness, accountability and transparency in public administration
• to promote representative political power based on active and informed public participation

 
2. Core Activities
In order to give effect to its objectives NAMRIGHTS conducts on a daily basis certain activities. A whole range of these activities is considered as core activities, including:

• Proactive human rights monitoring
• Reporting
• Advocacy and lobbying
• Civic education programs
• Training
• Research and documentation
• Rendering of paralegal services (i.e. defense of victims of human rights abuses)
• Rendering of humanitarian assistance for indigent people

What follows below gives a brief overview of some of the Organization’s core activities:
 
2.1. Human Rights Monitoring
The process of desk and field human rights monitoring is characterized by the collection, storage and analysis of information on the actions of primarily State and semi-State actors. Desk monitoring means a process of regular information gathering characterized by systematic observation of media (such as newspaper, radio, television and Internet) reports and by gathering information through persons visiting NAMRIGHTS’ monitoring and advocacy offices. Whereas acquiring such information outside office is known as field monitoring.
 
2.2. Reporting
Reporting features the presentation of the information obtained through desk and field monitoring with the view to inter alia create awareness and informing both local and international stakeholders on extraordinary human rights situations and non-compliance. NAMRIGHTS employs among other things a "naming and shaming" strategy aimed, not only at reducing or, altogether, stopping human rights abuses, but also educating and creating public awareness about the essence of a deep-rooted human rights culture in the country. NAMRIGHTS' reporting entails the following intervention strategies:
2.2.1. Press Releases
Issued press releases are first distributed to all Regional Monitoring and Advocacy Offices (RMOs) and then to the Government of Namibia (GoN), the United Nations and the diplomatic community as well as national, regional and international human rights organizations, media groups and other stakeholders. Modern and effective means of mass communication, such as facsimile, e-mail and the Internet are harnessed to ensure that such information receives timely and wide spread dissemination.
 
2.2.2. Thematic, Special Reports and Databases
These activities feature compilation and presentation of thematic and special reports, including audio-visual reports, on controversial human rights situations as well as on non-adherence.
 
2.2.3. Namibia Human Right Report (NH2R)
NH2R is NAMRIGHTS' main monitoring publication released annually on the general and specific human rights situation in the country. In certain situations, the launch of the NH2R is accompanied by a short video presentation, highlighting the major events of the year. The report is also used as background information to evaluate GoN's State periodic human rights reports during the sessions of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights.
 
2.2.4. Preparation & Submission of Shadow Reports
Reporting also entails the compilation and submission of shadow reports to the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights and human rights treaty bodies under the ECOSOC system to be compared with official State reports on the human rights situation in the country.
 
2.3. Civic Education Programs
Civic education programs constitute the principal strategy through which NAMRIGHTS' mission statement and objectives are carried out. This promotion and consolidation of democracy activity also consists of physical distribution of civic education materials through formal and informal awareness creation forums such as workshops and through electronic dissemination programs such as the NAMRIGHTS' radio phone-in program and letters to the editor.
Sensitization of citizens about both their human rights and responsibilities is carried out through a multi-serial project titled Civil Rights Educations Program (CREP). CREP strategy also constitutes the principal program through which NAMRIGHTS promotes its mission statement and overall objectives: i.e. human rights, respect for the rule of law, independence of the judiciary, tolerance and active public participation in, and transparency and accountability of, governance, with the view to equipping citizens with requisite attitudes, knowledge and critical thinking skills.
NAMRIGHTS compiles and produces various civic education series as part of its Civil Rights Education Program (CREP). Such publications include:
 
2.3.1. My Rights & Those of Others
This illustrated civic education series focuses on making the general public aware of their basic human rights and freedoms as well as associated responsibilities. The project features production, distribution and dissemination of a human rights publication titled My Rights and the Rights of Others. The series was first developed in 1991 with 1 000 copies being distributed countrywide.
The first part of the series explains what human rights and freedoms are, why and how they are conditio sine qua non for sustainable human development and where one can find them. The first part also lists numerous examples of important human rights. Also, the reader learns more on why and how State actions are restricted in favor of promoting and protecting basic human rights and fundamental freedoms.
Thus, the main objective of this illustrated series is to help the ordinary people, not only to know their own rights and those of others, but also to know that their rights can and may be limited under certain circumstances in order to protect the rights and entitlements of other people, public safety, public health, public morality and the independence of the judiciary.
 
2.3.2. Socio-Economics for Ordinary People (SOP)
This civic education series attempts to enlighten members of the general public on the interdependence, interrelatedness and indivisibility of political processes, on the one hand, and economic trends, on the other.
First produced in 1994, this civic education series explains socio-economic terminologies such as taxation, government spending, foreign and or other debts, inflation, investment, unemployment and population growth, etc. The main objective of the series is to enable Namibians to understand why, how and when certain socio-economic situations and political processes occur around them.
 
2.3.3. Choose Your Own Representatives
During 1999, NAMRIGHTS identified the lack of inner-party democracy within the country’s several political parties as being one of the main obstacles to democratic consolidation. In a country where political parties are mainly ethnically based and where public officials are appointed in a top-down, rather than in a bottom-up, fashion, lack of inner-party democracy, in the final analysis, constitutes an obstacle to human centered development in the country.
This illustrated civic education series aims at promoting sustainable human development by first promoting democracy within the country’s political parties by ensuring that party members choose their own representatives in a bottom-up fashion. Hence, with the help of cartoons, the publication demonstrates how and why lack of inner-party democracy is a hindrance to a representative, transparent and accountable governance as well as improved service delivery and living standards for ordinary people.
The ultimate purpose is therefore to sensitize and educate the ordinary citizens on the role of the State and the role of civil society vis-à-vis the State. In addition, the publication focuses on enhancing political education and general public knowledge as well as confidence in the Namibian Constitution.
 
2.3.4. My Right To Participate
This civic education series was first written in 2002 and deals with another main obstacle to democratic consolidation and human centered development in the country: the lack of active and effective public participation in the affairs of government.
The publication aims at informing and encouraging Namibians to exercise their participatory rights and to be tolerant of each other’s opinions, beliefs and practices. The reader will be informed about participatory rights, such as freedom of expression and opinion, freedom of association and assembly and how and when citizens should use such rights to change the composition and or policies of their government. While the short-term objective of this series is to increase political and other tolerance, the long-term objective of this civic education series is to enhance human centered development in Namibia.
 
2.3.5. My Rights & Responsibilities
This civic education series aims at instilling a culture of care, solidarity and accountability on the part of the members of the general public.
 
2.4. Training & Capacity Building
Closely-related to civic education programs, this activity seeks to train human rights defenders and activists from other civil society organizations or political parties to enable them to: (1) develop requisite participatory dispositions, (2) acquire knowledge and understanding of their roles, rights and responsibilities in society and (3) to acquire critical thinking skills to measure up to the replicating contemporary challenges.
2.5. Advocacy, Lobbying & Networking
At the center of these core activities is advocacy for equitable citizen access to socio-economic resources and other human development needs. These activities include vigorous campaigning against corruption and mismanagement in government and in non-state actors, with the view to strengthening citizens’ oversight of local politicians and their influence on local governance frameworks including service delivery. Advocacy initiatives are also aimed at increasing citizens’ informed participation in local, regional and national budget planning as well as in the monitoring of public expenditure with the view to ensuring requisite prioritization of resources.
In the final analysis, the purpose of the advocacy and lobbying activities is, not only to try to reduce or, altogether, stop human rights abuses, but also to educate the general public about why and how it is necessary to bring about a deep-rooted human rights culture. Such culture is conditio sine qua non for human centered development in the country.
 
2.6. Research, Storage & Publication
These activities center on the development and publication of NAMRIGHTS' civic education series and other awareness creation materials used in civic education, advocacy and training programs. Such materials are also informed by the information acquired through desk and field monitoring as well as other methods of information gathering. NAMRIGHTS also uses these activities to compile its various databases in order to statistically monitor and evaluate its own performance as well as the human rights situation in the country in general. The Organization’s annual Combined Narrative & Financial Report is also compiled under this activity.
 
2.7. Paralegal Services & Litigation
This activity features according NAMRIGHTS beneficiaries essential paralegal services relating to labor disputes, general grievance cases, social and domestic conflicts and child maintenance, as well as refugee cases. Complicated legal cases are often referred to competent law firms for litigation. Special emphasis is put on test cases of constitutional and public interest nature.
Moreover, in terms of Articles 18 and 25(2) of the Namibian Constitution, administrative bodies and administrative officials shall act fairly and reasonably and comply with the requirements imposed upon such bodies and officials by common law and any relevant legislation and persons aggrieved by the exercise of such acts and decisions shall have the right to seek redress before a competent Court or Tribunal.
 
2.8. Humanitarian Assistance
This program features the provision of humanitarian assistance for indigent and needy people, such as refugees and other persons in distress and also who require emergency assistance.
 
2.9. Institutional Infrastructure Development
This activity aims at the development of certain NAMRIGHTS fixed property with the view to renting it to interested parties as accommodation or office space. This will enable NAMRIGHTS to generate its own income to independently finance some of its core activities. This would especially be the case in difficult financial situations where donor partners are either unavailable or unwilling to fund certain NAMRIGHTS activities. The situation would also go a long way in enhancing the Organization’s institutional independence and sustainability.
3. Orotjitombo Community School Project
Before Namibian Independence in 1990, the right to education for especially black Namibian children was seriously neglected under the racially motivated policies of white minority government controlled by apartheid South Africa. Hence, the pre-Independence educational system for non-white children was characterized by unequal access and inefficiency as well as low pass and high dropout rates.
The apartheid authorities spent 10 times more on a white child than on a non-white child. Schools for white Namibian children were far superior to those of their black counterparts in terms of equipment and other facilities. After independence, the black majority Government correctly argued that the apartheid authorities neglected and marginalized education for non-white children in terms of extremely inequitable financial resource allocation.
However, while prima facie progress appears to have been made after independence in terms of racial integration and equalization of access to education for all Namibian children, a closer look at the educational scene in the country yields a very gloomy and disturbing picture especially for children of poor families and marginalized communities.
Nonetheless, in a series of periodic reports the UN Development Program (UNDP) have showed that Namibia, with a per capita income of some N$12 000, is not among the poorest countries in the world. The UN categorized Namibia as “one of the most unequal societies in the world”! According to the UN, the poorest 90 percent consume less than the remaining 10 percent of the population. The country’s ratio in terms of per capita income disparity is rated at 50 to 1.
Thus, the few elite schools that were reserved for white children before Namibian independence became accessible only to the children of the rich, regardless of skin color: i.e. white children were now joined by children of government ministers, top civil servants and black business people. The marginalization of the schools previously reserved for non-white children under apartheid rule remained virtually intact if not worse than before Independence. These schools and especially those in the rural areas of the country are heavily afflicted by lack of qualified teachers, severe shortage of textbooks and classrooms, teaching material and laboratories as well as the absence of chairs and tables and desks.
 
3.1. Education for Marginalized Indigenous Minority Communities
Worse still, access to education is virtually non-existent for children of the ever marginalized indigenous minority groups, such as the semi-nomadic Himba and Zemba people of Kaokoland as well as the nomadic San communities in the Kalahari Desert, former Bushmanland and Etosha Game Reserve areas. Hence, for these minorities there is virtually no material difference between the status quo ante and the present situation of education in the country.
Through its regular contacts with the extremely marginalized Himba and Zemba people in Kaokoland, NAMRIGHTS was requested by traditional and community leaders in Kaokoland and has accepted to build a modern and permanent (i.e. sedentary) community school complex as well as to provide potable water for their children at the village of Orotjitombo. The village is located 30 km west of Opuwo, capital of Kaokoland in the northwestern corner of the country.
The Himba and Zemba people depend on their livestock for a living. Hence, access to water and pastures for their cattle and small livestock (goats and sheep) are a decisive factor in their lives. Their permanent homesteads are in their core residential areas. However, when the pastures in the core residential areas are grazed down, they are left with nothing to replenish, while the livestock is moved into the extended grazing areas.
The minimum factor everywhere is therefore water supply. As their livestock normally drink water twice a day, the Himba and Zemba people generally do travel more than a 10 km distance from their nearest water point. Thus, in order to arrest their semi-nomadic status, it is extremely important to make water readily available near their core residential areas. Therefore, NAMRIGHTS made provision for the drilling of a solar powered borehole within less than 1 km distance from the school complex.
D. OPERATIONAL STRUCTURES
NAMRIGHTS maintains a Head Office (HO) in Windhoek, the capital city, and five Regional Monitoring & Advocacy Offices (RMOs) countrywide. Such RMOs are strategically located in the densely populated northeastern, northern and northwestern parts of the country where the levels of intolerance and other human rights abuses are highest.  NAMRIGHTS operates as follows:
 
1. Operational Philosophy
The operational philosophy and operational procedures of the Organization are rooted in the ethos of the anti-apartheid protests of the early 70s as well as in the practical experiences of the liberation struggle for Namibian independence of the mid-70s and the early 80s. That is to say, many of NAMRIGHTS' human rights defenders have directly or indirectly participated in the armed liberation struggle against the apartheid South African (SA) regime prior to Namibian independence.
Furthermore, virtually all NAMRIGHTS human rights advocates have themselves either been the victims of systematic human rights abuses and or are relatives of direct victims of such abuses. Hence, one can understand why NAMRIGHTS is not only one of the most suitable, but also an organization most inclined to genuinely, credibly, and fearlessly articulate the aspirations of victims of human rights abuses. This advantage also places the Organization in a most favorable position to approach the country's human rights discourse in an independent, candid and, most importantly, fearless manner.
 
2.  Modus Operandi
As a watchdog Organization, NAMRIGHTS' main objective is to systematically monitor and advocate compliance by all concerned with both national and international human rights, humanitarian and customary law instruments, as well as to create public awareness about how and why human rights and fundamental freedoms are indispensable in the daily lives of humans.
Primarily, the Organization monitors passive and active commissions and omissions of State actors and sounds alarm before and or after there have been human rights violations. When the Government of Namibia (GoN), or, for that matter, any other government, acts firmly against human rights violators, the Organization is more often than not the first to publicly congratulate them.
Furthermore, the reason for being for NAMRIGHTS is to speak out boldly and fearlessly when human rights are violated, bringing such violations to the attention of both national and international communities. Occasionally, NAMRIGHTS employs “shame-and-shame" reporting tactics to expose human rights abuses and thereby to exert internal and external pressure on those wielding political power in case they fail to act decisively against human rights violators.
Through its civic education programs, NAMRIGHTS helps to promote and consolidate a culture of democracy, as well as cultivate a critical public awareness on human rights issues.  This is based on the principle that only an informed and motivated civil society can effectively facilitate the emergence of a State free of abuses, oppression and other injustices.
 
2.1. Basic Factors
There are seven (7) basic factors that are taken into consideration when monitoring and conducting investigations of allegations, documentation of incidents and issuance of reports on violations:
 
2.1.1. Handling of Communications
Regional Monitoring and Advocacy Offices (RMOs) conduct preliminary and or thorough investigations into alleged abuses of human rights and forward their findings to the Head Office for further investigation, analysis and action. The Head Office also decides whether or not a specific allegation or communication is admissible and, if so, what course of action to be taken against the alleged violator(s).
 
E.  INSTITUTIONAL AND OPERATIONAL INDEPENDENCE
NAMRIGHTS highly values and guards its institutional and operational independence. This independence is particularly indispensable in a society, such as ours, characterized by high levels of socio-political and cultural intolerance. The Organization’s institutional and operational independence is seen by inter alia the fact that, in carrying out its activities, NAMRIGHTS does not accept orders from anyone, only from the Namibian Constitution and the law.
This independence can also be seen from the fact that, the Organization does not avoid, as a matter of necessity, so-called controversial or politically sensitive human rights and or related issues. Through practical experience, NAMRIGHTS has found that human rights violations are, more often than not, politically motivated. Hence, currying favor with politicians and or even certain donors has never really been NAMRIGHTS' concern, as its institutional and operational independence takes precedence.
Because of its institutional and operational independence, the Organization and its staff members have often been subjected to severe verbal attacks and other forms of intimidation by certain political leaders in the country. During 2007 a motion was served in Parliament to ban the Organization and to prosecute its staff members.  NAMRIGHTS' donors, and the Swedish Embassy in particular, have lately also been publicly criticized for funding NAMRIGHTS.
 
F.   NAMRIGHTS' WEAKNESSES
Some of the major weaknesses of the Organization include:
The level of academic qualifications of many of its staff members is not always suited for the role they have to play. Program implementation is often held up by occasionally late, and or lack of, funding. Conditions of service (incl. job grading) are not remuneratively attractive.
 
G.    STRENDTHS OF NAMRIGHTS
The Organization’s strength lies in the following factors:

• A hard working, dedicated and tireless staff
• The Organization occupies a unique position in the country as a truly independent and fearless civil society actor
• The Organization produces valuable educational materials and reports
• The Organization is an effective and efficient protector of individuals and communities against human rights violations
• NAMRIGHTS has a track record as a formidable challenger of the national leadership on critical human rights issues

H.  MEASURING NAMRIGHTS' OWN IMPACT
Firstly, NAMRIGHTS has developed a comprehensive set of impact monitoring indicators, consisting of nine (9) databases, in order to evaluate the impact of its operations. These include: the Visitors Opinion Assessment Register (VOAR); Publications Distribution Database (PDD); Human Rights Violations Database (HRVD); Visitors Registration Database (VRD); Website Visitor Database (WVD); Organization of the Library Database (OLD); Media Visibility Database (MVD); Mail Feedback Database (MFD) and the Paralegal Case Database (PCD).
According to its VRD impact monitoring indicators, the Organization receives over 20 000 visitors on average on a yearly basis. Over 60 percent of the 17 927 people who visited NAMRIGHTS offices during 2007 said they first have learned about NAMRIGHTS from “a friend” while only 14 percent cited the media as the source. NAMRIGHTS' current WVD indicators show that over 1 400 000 have visited the Organization’s website (www.nshr.org.na) since February 2003. As at October 10 2008, an entry of “NAMRIGHTS, Namibia” on the Google Search yields more than 21 000 results,  while the Organization’s MVD figures show that it is cited over 130 times on average on a yearly basis as the original source of information.  
Secondly, during the last three years, two independent evaluations were conducted on the relevance, effectiveness and efficiency of NAMRIGHTS. According to the 2005 evaluation report: “Generally, Government […] view[s] the Organization with suspicion given that it questions and investigates [the Government’s] human rights record. On the other hand, the public and peer organizations are now seeing value in the business of the Organization, as more and more cases are publicized and more citizens are receiving help from NAMRIGHTS”.
Both the 2005 and 2007 independent evaluation reports concluded that NAMRIGHTS was doing “a commendable job in Namibia”. According to the 2005 evaluation report:
“There is no shadow of doubt in the minds and hearts of the consulting team that NAMRIGHTS is doing a commendable job in its promotion and defense of human rights in Namibia. NAMRIGHTS has grown into a formidable human rights watchdog in the country and the Government is mindful of its role. The stakeholders interviewed all expressed their gratitude at the good work being undertaken by NAMRIGHTS. They cannot imagine a Namibia without NAMRIGHTS, to put it a respondent’s words. NAMRIGHTS has covered and is covering good ground in pursuit of its mission”.
This is how the 2007 evaluation report concluded and I quote:
“It is evident that despite operating in an environment where it has to endure constant threats and verbal assaults NAMRIGHTS has shown resilience and has established itself as a credible human rights watchdog. The rate at which NAMRIGHTS appears in the speeches of various senior government officials, although mostly in a negative context is in itself a testimony that the organization has become a notable force in the […] human rights and consolidation of democracy in Namibia”.
 
 
I.  GOVERNMENT OF NAMIBIA
NAMRIGHTS' human rights monitoring and advocacy efforts are intended to complement and strengthen those of the Government of Namibia (GoN).  By the “Government of Namibia”, I mean all the three organs of the State. Nonetheless, as a matter of principle and in order to preserve its institutional and operational independence, the Organization does not seek and or accept any material or financial assistance from the said Government. Nor does NAMRIGHTS seek or accept assistance from any governments with a notorious human rights record.
NAMRIGHTS works fairly very well with individual GoN Ministries and departments, including the Ministry of Basic Education; Ministry of Prisons and Correctional Services; Office of the Ombudsman; Office of the Inspector-General of the Namibian Police; the Anti-Corruption Commission; the Judiciary; Ministry of Safety and Security as well as the Ministry of Gender Equality & Child Welfare and others.