A/HRC/17/14
31.
Whenever children were found to be engaged in child labour they were placed in the
care of social workers while a criminal case was opened by the Namibian police.
32.
The Electoral Commission of Namibia had always been mindful to compile and
publish an accurate Voters’ Register. The Ministry of Home Affairs and Immigration has
embarked upon a project to automate all birth, marriage and death records in order to
eliminate possible errors in the data required by the Electoral Commission.
33.
With respect to media freedom, Namibia referred to Article 21 of the Constitution.
Parliament had enacted the Broadcasting Act No. 9 of 1991 and the Communications Act
No. 8 of 2009 to provide the legal framework and create a liberal environment for the
media. In 2007, Namibia was ranked 25th out of 169 countries in the world on the World
Press Freedom Index rankings of Reporters Without Borders, and, in 2010, Namibia topped
Africa on press freedom on the same rankings.
34.
Regarding the establishment of a national human rights institution, Namibia stressed
that the Office of the Ombudsman was in full compliance with the Paris Principles and had
received “A” status in April 2006.
35.
With reference to cooperation with special procedures, it was noted that thus far
there had been only one request for a visit, namely from the independent expert on the right
to access to safe drinking water and sanitation, who would visit in July 2011. While the
Government did not see the need to have a standing invitation, it was open to requests for
more visits.
B.
Interactive dialogue and responses by the State under review
36.
During the interactive dialogue, 48 delegations made statements. Recommendations
made during the dialogue are to be found in section II of the present report. A number of
delegations commended Namibia for its human rights accomplishments in such a short
period of time, since its independence in 1990. They commended Namibia for the
comprehensive report and for the co-operative attitude of the Namibian Government in this
process, identifying the main challenges, commitments, progresses and difficulties in the
protection of human rights. Delegations appreciated Namibia for its open and constructive
consultations in preparation of the National report.
37.
Botswana commended Namibia for maintaining a stable democratic and political
culture since independence, and for its commitment to promoting a policy of national
reconciliation, after years of human rights violations under minority white administration. It
also commended Namibia for several impressive legislative and administrative measures to
ensure effective enjoyment of human rights, including the adoption of more than 20 Acts of
Parliament. It also noted Namibia’s desire to review legislation with respect to human
trafficking. Botswana made a recommendation.
38.
South Africa welcomed Namibia’s efforts to enhance the protection of women’s
rights and to eliminate all forms of discrimination against women, and encouraged it to
continue this trend and to take further action in this regard. It welcomed the priority given
to the health sector and applauded the encouraging decrease in the HIV/AIDS infection
rate, sought additional information on the progress made in fighting this pandemic. It noted
that violence against women remained a challenge. South Africa made recommendations.
39.
Nigeria recognized that Namibia is facing enormous challenges in the fulfilment of
its commitments to the promotion and protection of human rights, including inadequate
financial and other resources, capacity-building and technical assistance needs, lack of
technology and technical know-how. Nigeria urged Namibia to intensify efforts in
6
Select target paragraph3
Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents