Bushmen (or San) are generally assumed to have been the earliest inhabitants of the region. Later inhabitants include the Nama and the Damara or Berg Dama. The Bantu-speaking Ovambo and Herero migrated from the north in about the 14th century A.D.

The inhospitable Namib Desert constituted a formidable barrier to European exploration until the late 18th century, when successions of travelers, traders, hunters, and missionaries explored the area. The 1878, the United Kingdom annexed Walvis Bay on behalf of Cape Colony, and the area was incorporated into the Cape of Good Hope in 1884. In 1883, a German trader, Adolf Luderitz, claimed the rest of the coastal region after negotiations with a local chief. Negotiations between the United Kingdom and Germany resulted in Germany's annexation of the coastal region, excluding Walvis Bay. The following year, the United Kingdom recognized the hinterland up to 20 degrees east longitude as a German sphere of influence. A region, Caprivi Strip, became a part of South West Africa after an agreement on July 1, 1890, between the United Kingdom and Germany. The British recognized that the strip would fall under German administration to provide access to the Zambezi River and German colonies in East Africa. In exchange, the British received the islands of Zanzibar and Heligoland.

German colonial power was consolidated, and prime grazing land passed to white control as a result of the Herero and Nama wars of 1904-08. German administration ended during World War I following South African occupation in 1915.

On December 17, 1920, South Africa undertook administration of South West Africa under the terms of Article 22 of the Covenant of the League of Nations and a mandate agreement by the League Council. The mandate agreement gave South Africa full power of administration and legislation over the territory. It required that South Africa promote the material and moral well-being and social progress of the people.

When the League of Nations was dissolved in 1946, the newly formed United Nations inherited its supervisory authority for the territory. South Africa refused UN requests to place the territory under a trusteeship agreement. During the 1960s, as the European powers granted independence to their colonies and trust territories in Africa, pressure mounted on South Africa to do so in Namibia, which was then South West Africa. In 1966, the UN General Assembly revoked South Africa's mandate.

Also in 1966, the South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) began guerrilla attacks on Namibia, infiltrating the territory from bases in Zambia. After Angola became independent in 1975, SWAPO established bases in the southern part of the country. Hostilities intensified over the years, especially in Ovamboland.

In a 1971 advisory opinion, the International Court of Justice upheld UN authority over Namibia, determining that the South African presence in Namibia was illegal and that South Africa therefore was obligated to withdraw its administration from Namibia immediately. The Court also advised UN member states to refrain from implying legal recognition or assistance to the South African presence.

In 1977, Western members of the UN Security Council, including Canada, France, the Federal Republic of Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States (known as the Western Contact Group), launched a joint diplomatic effort to bring an internationally acceptable transition to independence for Namibia. Their efforts led to the presentation in April 1978 of Security Council Resolution 435 for settling the Namibian problem. The proposal, known as the UN Plan, was worked out after lengthy consultations with South Africa, the front-line states (Angola, Botswana, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe), SWAPO, UN officials, and the Western Contact Group. It called for the holding of elections in Namibia under UN supervision and control, the cessation of all hostile acts by all parties, and restrictions on the activities of South African and Namibian military, paramilitary, and police.

South Africa agreed to cooperate in achieving the implementation of Resolution 435. Nonetheless, in December 1978, in defiance of the UN proposal, it unilaterally held elections in Namibia which were boycotted by SWAPO and a few other political parties. South Africa continued to administer Namibia through its installed multiracial coalitions. Negotiations after 1978 focused on issues such as supervision of elections connected with the implementation of the UN Plan.

Intense discussions between the concerned parties continued during the 1978-88 period, with the UN Secretary General's Special Representative, Martti Ahtisaari, playing a key role. The 1982 Constitutional Principles, agreed upon by the front-line states, SWAPO, and the Western Contact Group created the framework for Namibia's democratic constitution. The U.S. Government's role as mediator was critical throughout the period, one example being the intense efforts in 1984 to obtain withdrawal of South African defense forces from southern Angola.

In May 1988, a U.S. mediation team, headed by Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Chester A. Crocker, brought negotiators from Angola, Cuba, and South Africa, and observers from the Soviet Union together in London. Intense diplomatic maneuvering characterized the next 7 months, as the parties worked out agreements to bring peace to the region and make implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 435 possible. On December 13, Cuba, South Africa, and the People's Republic of Angola agreed to a total Cuban troop withdrawal from Angola. The protocol also established a Joint Commission, consisting of the parties with the United States and the Soviet Union as observers, to oversee implementation of the accords. A bilateral agreement between Cuba and the People's Republic of Angola was signed in New York on December 22, 1988. On the same day a tripartite agreement, in which the parties recommended initiation of the UN Plan on April 1 and the Republic of South Africa agreed to withdraw its troops, was signed. Implementation of Resolution 435 officially began on April 1, 1989, when South African-appointed Administrator Gen. Louis Pienaar officially began administrating the territory's transition to independence. Special Representative Martti Ahtisaari arrived in Windhoek to begin performing his duties as head of the UN Transition Assistance Group (UNTAG).

The transition got off to a shaky start on April 1 because, in contravention to SWAPO President Sam Nujoma's written assurances to the UN Secretary General to abide by a cease-fire and repatriate only unarmed insurgents, approximately 2,000 armed members of the People's Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN), SWAPO's military wing, crossed the border from Angola in an apparent attempt to establish a military presence in northern Namibia. The special representative authorized a limited contingent of South African troops to aid the South West African police in restoring order. A period of intense fighting followed, during which 375 PLAN fighters were killed. At Mt. Etjo, a game park outside Windhoek, in a special meeting of the Joint Commission on April 9, a plan was put in place to confine the South African forces to base and return PLAN elements to Angola. While the problem was solved, minor disturbances in the north continued throughout the transition period. In October, under order of the UN Security Council, Pretoria demobilized members of the disbanded counterinsurgency unit, Koevoet (Afrikaans for crowbar), who had been incorporated into the South West African police.

The 11-month transition period went relatively smoothly. Political prisoners were granted amnesty, discriminatory legislation was repealed, South Africa withdrew all its forces from Namibia, and some 42,000 refugees returned safely and voluntarily under the auspices of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Almost 98% of registered voters turned out to elect members of the constituent assembly. The elections were held in November 1989 and were certified as free and fair by the special representative, with SWAPO taking 57% of the vote, just short of the two-thirds necessary to have a free hand in drafting the constitution. The Democratic Turnhalle Alliance, the opposition party, received 29% of the vote. The Constituent Assembly held its first meeting on November 21 and its first act unanimously resolved to use the 1982 Constitutional Principles as the framework for Namibia's new constitution.

By February 9, 1990, the Constituent Assembly had drafted and adopted a constitution. March 21, independence day, was attended by Secretary of State James A. Baker III to represent President Bush. On that same day, he inaugurated the U.S. Embassy in Windhoek in recognition of the establishment of diplomatic relations.

On March 1, 1994, the coastal enclave of Walvis Bay and 12 offshore islands were transferred to Namibia by South Africa. This followed 3 years of bilateral negotiations between the two governments and the establishment of a transitional Joint Administrative Authority (JAA) in November 1992 to administer the 300 square mile territory. The peaceful resolution of this territorial dispute, which dated back to 1878, was praised by the U.S. and the international community, as it fulfilled the provisions of UN Security Council 432 (1978) which declared Walvis Bay to be an integral part of Namibia.

Today, Namibia is a multiparty, multiracial democracy. President Sam Nujoma, leader of the South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO), was reelected in 1999 general elections, which international and domestic observers agreed were free, but included some instances of government harassment of the opposition and unequal access to media coverage and campaign financing. In the 1999 elections, SWAPO won three-quarters of the seats in the National Assembly. During the year 2001, President Nujoma announced that he planned to step down at the end of his term. The judiciary is independent.

The country's modern market sector produces most of its wealth, while a traditional subsistence agricultural sector (mainly in the north) supports most of its labor force. The population is approximately 1.8 million. The principal exports are diamonds and other minerals, cattle, and fish. Ranching still is controlled largely by white citizens and foreign interests. In other industries, including the important mining, fishing, and tourism sectors, the participation of indigenous entrepreneurs has been increased to provide opportunities for black citizens. Per capita gross domestic product is approximately $1,400 (N$15,500). Although there is an extreme disparity between the income levels of black citizens and white citizens, the living standards of black citizens continued to improve, and the major economic resources in the country no longer are controlled exclusively by white citizens. Unemployment was nearly 40 percent and affected primarily the black majority.

The crime rate in Namibia is high for murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, and burglary, but very low for larceny and auto theft compared to industrialized countries, resulting in a low rate of crime overall. An analysis was done using INTERPOL data for Namibia. For purpose of comparison, data were drawn for the seven offenses used to compute the United States FBI's index of crime. Index offenses include murder, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, and motor vehicle theft. The combined total of these offenses constitutes the Index used for trend calculation purposes. Namibia will be compared with Japan (country with a low crime rate) and USA (country with a high crime rate). According to the INTERPOL data, for murder, the rate in 1999 was 26.32 per 100,000 population for Namibia, 1.00 for Japan, and 4.55 for USA. For rape, the rate in 1999 was 36.89 for Namibia, compared with 1.47 for Japan and 32.05 for USA. For robbery, the rate in 1999 was 90.83 for Namibia, 3.34 for Japan, and 147.36 for USA. For aggravated assault, the rate in 1999 was 533.60 for Namibia, 15.97 for Japan, and 329.63 for USA. For burglary, the rate in 1999 was 602 for Namibia, 206.01 for Japan, and 755.29 for USA. The rate of larceny for 1999 was 179.55 for Namibia, 1267.95 for Japan, and 2502.66 for USA. The rate for motor vehicle theft in 1999 was 65.81 for Namibia, compared with 34.01 for Japan and 412.70 for USA. The rate for all index offenses combined was 1535 for Namibia, compared with 1529.75 for Japan and 4184.24 for USA. (Note: data were not reported to INTERPOL by the USA for 1999, but were derived from data reported to the United Nations for 1999) It may be observed that, using the FBI Index, Namibia appears to have a low rate of crime despite the extremely high rate of violent crime, owed to the relative weight of larceny and motor vehicle theft in the index.

Between 1996 and 1999, according to INTERPOL data, the rate of murder decreased from 52.1 to 26.32 per 100,000 population, a decrease of 49.5%. The rate for rape decreased from 50.46 to 36.89, a decrease of 26.9%. The rate of robbery increased from 67.05 to 90.83, an increase of 35.5%. The rate for aggravated assault increased from 498.97 to 533.60, an increase of 6.9%. The rate for burglary increased from 502.43 to 602.00, an increase of 19.8%. The rate of larceny decreased from 1242.92 to 179.55, a decrease of 85.6%. The rate of motor vehicle theft decreased from 68.21 to 65.81, a decrease of 3.5%. The rate of total index offenses decreased from 2482.14 to 1535.00, a decrease of 38.2%.

Namibia is a Roman Dutch common law jurisdiction. Its politico-legal history is well documented. The sources of law are its Constitution, the common law, legislation of successive legislative bodies since 1884 and judicial precedents. In addition, Namibia has acceded to and ratified various international legal instruments since independence.

The police, including the paramilitary Special Field Force (SFF), supervised by the Ministry of Home Affairs, and the Namibian Defense Force (NDF), supervised by the Ministry of Defense, share responsibility for internal security. The Namibian Central Intelligence Service (NCIS) has responsibility for national security related intelligence inside and outside the country. There were continued abuses by security forces deployed in the Kavango and Caprivi regions as a result of cross-border fighting from Angola. By September the majority of the NDF soldiers who were sent to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in 1998 were withdrawn. Members of the police force and the NDF committed serious human rights abuses during the year 2001. These forces are under the full control of, and are responsive to, the civilian Government.

In year 2001, members of the security forces committed several extrajudicial killings while conducting extensive security operations in the Kavango and Caprivi regions along the country's northern border with Angola. After fighting between the Angolan Armed Forces (FAA) and forces from the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) crossed into the country, security forces involved in anti-UNITA security operations killed civilians. There were deaths in custody. The Government did not account for the whereabouts of some persons detained by the security forces. During arrests and detentions, security force members reportedly tortured and beat citizens and Angolan refugees who were suspected of complicity with UNITA. There were other reports of police mistreatment of suspects in detention, and refugees were denied legal protections during detention. Some security force members who committed abuses were arrested and tried in military courts or the civilian criminal justice system; however, the Government did not take legal or administrative action in other cases.

Members of the FAA and UNITA involved in the crossborder fighting in the northern part of the country committed extrajudicial killings, beat civilians, laid landmines, and according to local and international human rights groups, committed a number of rapes.

Members of the security forces committed several extrajudicial killings in the Kavango and Caprivi regions along the northern border, where fighting between FAA and UNITA forces spilled over into the country. At times security forces used excessive violence against citizens and Angolan civilians along the northern border of the country, and security forces involved in anti-UNITA operations killed a number of civilians during the year 2001.

Security forces shot and killed several persons during the year 2001. For example, on June 10, an NDF soldier shot and killed a woman inside a Catholic church in Shamangorwa village near the Kavango-Caprivi border; there was no further information available on the case by year's end 2001. In mid-June Simpson Mandume, an SFF soldier, shot and killed 21-year-old Heblonia Maliro Tjiti, with whom he reportedly had a romantic relationship. Mandume was arrested and charged with murder; there was no further information on the case at year's end 2001. On September 22, SFF soldiers shot and killed Marian Muyeghu and Poroto Kakuru near Shinyungwe village, east of Rundu, reportedly because they were involved with UNITA; however, human rights groups reported that they were shot while looking for lost cattle. There was no further information available on the case at year's end 2001. In October a NDF soldier shot and killed Libwere Shampapi in the village of Muhopi, east of Rundu. The soldier reportedly was angered by the playing of drums in the village. The NDF arrested the soldier, and he was charged with murder; there was no further information available on the case at year's end 2001.

Several persons died in custody. For example, in January Ismael Mohamed reportedly was beaten to death while in police custody. The police commissioner ordered an autopsy; however, there was no further information available on the case at year's end 2001. On July 10, Hans Dikua, a Kxoe San man, died in NDF custody. The Government first stated that Dikua was shot while trying to escape after he was arrested on suspicion of hiding weapons along the Okavango River; however, the Government subsequently reported that Dikua jumped out of a NDF canoe and drowned. The Government announced that an autopsy showed no bullet holes in the body. Human rights groups maintained that he was shot, based on the accounts of local villagers who witnessed the incident; human rights groups reportedly were invited to examine the body but had not done so by year's end 2001.

At times the Government took action against security forces responsible for deaths; however, in many other cases, the Government failed to take action against security force members responsible for killings.

During the year 2001, several NDF officers who were involved in the June 2000 killing of Felizberto Toto were charged with murder; there was no further information available on the case at year's end 2001. There were no developments in the March 2000 case of a SFF member who was arrested and charged with killing Mapeu Moroshi of Thipanana Rughongo village. In 2000 a SFF member was charged with murder for the January 2000 killing of a 6-year-old girl, Heremine Nyumbu, after he fired into a crowd of refugees; there was no further information available on the case at year's end 2001. During the year 2001, the SFF members who were involved in the incident were charged with murder for killing Mpengu Haininga in January 2000; there was no further information available on the case at year's end 2001.

In 2000 senior civilian and military government officials made public statements acknowledging that security forces abused and killed civilians in the Kavango and Caprivi regions during security operations in response to crossborder UNITA attacks in the country, and they publicly called for greater discipline and respect for human rights by the NDF and police forces. During the year 2001, the NDF and police forces conducted human rights training with the assistance of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Legal Assistance Center, a domestic nongovernmental organization (NGO).

In 1999 there were reports that security force officers killed eight Caprivi Liberation Army (CLA) rebels and several civilians, and beat, arrested, and detained suspected CLA rebels and sympathizers during operations against the CLA after a 1999 CLA attack at Katima Mulilo. During the year 2001, the responsible security forces were charged with assault and torture, and many victims initiated civil suits against the Government; some of the suits were decided in favor of the victims, and others were ongoing at year's end 2001. One SFF member was tried for murder and acquitted on August 30.

In November 1999, a police officer in Okahandja beat to death a student who was arrested and in custody for disorderly conduct. The police officer immediately was suspended, charged, and released on bail; his trial still was pending at year's end 2001.

There was no further information available on the case against a SFF officer who shot and killed James Chilunda, a civilian, in the Caprivi village of Singalamwe in July 1999.

After the Government decided in 1999 to allow the FAA to launch anti-UNITA attacks from the country's territory, there was extensive crossborder fighting, which resulted in civilian deaths and injuries. The Government took a number of actions in response to crossborder fighting, including expanding the police presence in those areas and retaliating militarily.

FAA soldiers killed a number of civilians during the year 2001. For example, in April Nghihangwa Kandume in Opalasha township in Eenhana, died under mysterious circumstances after he was seen in the company of seven FAA soldiers. In January 2000, an FAA member killed Thadeus Mubili in Mushangara in western Caprivi. In May 2000, the FAA killed Thaddeus Vili at Bagani near the Kavango and Caprivi regions. In both cases, the responsible FAA members were arrested immediately after the killings and returned to the FAA for punishment; however, it is not known if the FAA took further action by year's end 2001.

During raids in the Kavango and Caprivi regions, UNITA forces killed civilians.

UNITA used landmines, which resulted in dozens of deaths and numerous injuries of civilians and security force officers. There continued to be reports that FAA members used landmines in villages. Since 1999 landmines have killed more than 20 persons in the country; between June and year's end, 11 landmine explosions were reported, which resulted in at least 1 death.

There were no developments in the 2000 case of a family of foreign tourists who were killed by unidentified armed men.

There were several reports of disappearances perpetrated by the security forces during the year 2001. The Government did not account for the whereabouts of some persons detained by the security forces. On January 15, NDF soldiers arrested Cesar Domingos, an Angolan citizen, in Mohopi village; he reportedly has been missing since the arrest.

During several crossborder attacks into the northern area of the country, UNITA kidnaped Namibian citizens and took them to Angola. There were reports that some of the kidnaped persons were raped or forced to serve as combatants or porters. There also were reports that FAA soldiers abducted Namibian citizens. On February 12, FAA soldiers reportedly abducted two Namibians after looting the village of Mutwarantja, east of Rundu; the soldiers took them across the Okavango River into southern Angola and shot and injured them.

In March two children were kidnaped from their home in Mayenzere village by a group of armed men who were believed to be UNITA members and taken to southern Angola; they were returned by NDF officers.

There were no further developments on the disappearance of persons detained by SWAPO prior to independence.

The Constitution provides that no persons shall be subject to such practices; however, in practice, prisoners sometimes were beaten or otherwise mistreated by police, especially by members of the SFF. There were serious abuses in the Kavango and Caprivi regions along the northern border, where fighting between FAA and UNITA forces spilled into the country. During arrests and detentions, security force members beat citizens and Angolan refugees who were suspected of complicity with UNITA.

Security forces and police beat and reportedly tortured several persons they held in custody. For example, on January 14, NDF soldiers arrested Cesar Domingo's brother-in-law, Paulus Shifure, and reportedly beat him. On January 16, NDF soldiers arrested Peter Mukonda and another person on weapons charges in Korokoko village, east of Rundu, and reportedly beat them at the Rundu military base. On January 17, NDF soldiers arrested Masati Muyenga and reportedly hung him upside down and whipped him during detention at the Rundu military base; he was released from custody on February 21 after security forces determined that he was not a UNITA member. On April 9, NDF soldiers arrested Johannes Sondaha Kampumburu in Rundu on suspicion of collaborating with UNITA; during his detention, he reportedly was hung upside down by his legs and beat with a rawhide whip called a sjambok. On June 3, NDF soldiers reportedly used electric shocks on Petrus Kalimbwe while he was in detention at a NDF base in Silikunda village, west of Rundu. A hospital report showed that he was injured on the back, elbow, and hand but did not indicate the cause of injury. On August 15, Joseph Simbinde Muvundu reportedly was arrested in Nkurunkuru village, accused of being a UNITA commander, and tied to a tree overnight. The next day, he reportedly was transferred to Rundu military base and was beaten and subjected to electric shocks.

Security forces shot and injured other persons. For example, on September 15, there was a report that a drunken NDF soldier shot and injured Ralph Nairenge, a 17-year-old student at the Bunya Junior Secondary School, west of Rundu, reportedly while he walked down the street in Bunya. Nairenge was treated for his injuries at the Rundu state hospital; no further information was available on the case at year's end 2001.

There were several incidents of harassment of homosexuals by security forces, which human rights groups believed were instigated by the President's remarks about homosexuals. For example, on April 30, a SFF member ripped earrings from the ears of two men in Katutura, a suburb of Windhoek. SFF members reportedly grabbed a notebook and tore up the written notes of a reporter at the scene, briefly confiscated his camera, and arrested him; he was released the same day. A senior SFF commander who witnessed the incident threatened disciplinary action against the SFF member; however, no reported action was taken against the SFF member by year's end 2001. In June SFF members beat two homosexual men on the street.

SFF members reportedly beat persons whom they stopped for identification checks.

In 2000 there were reports that security forces targeted members of the Kxoe minority group for harassment during anti-UNITA operations in the Caprivi region.

At times security force members who committed abuses were arrested and tried in military courts or the civilian criminal justice system; however, in many other cases, the Government did not take any action against those responsible for abuses.

No action reportedly was taken against the members of the security forces responsible for beating, shooting, or otherwise abusing persons in the following cases from 2000: The February beating of Kamungwe Ngondo; the February shooting of Muyeva Thadeus Munango; the February beating of Hompa Anton; the January beating of Erkki Fiderato; the January shooting of Kandepwe Kapama; the January shooting of Kathumbi Diyeve; the January beating of Lucas Kavura and his father, Daniel Nyambe; and the January beatings of Kapindi Mpepo, Haupindi Hamuyera, and Petrus Paulus.

In 1999 many detainees exhibited evidence of extensive injuries inflicted by police during their detentions, including detainees Oscar Lupalezwi, Stephan Ntelamo, and Allen Sameja. All three identified their abusers as police sergeant Patrick Liswani and two constables named Haipa and Oupa. In 2000 the Prosecutor General requested additional investigations in the criminal case against the sergeant and the constables; there was no further action on the case by year's end 2001.

In 1999 security forces responded with violence to secessionist attacks. The Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) represented former parliamentarian Geoffrey Mwilima in a civil suit against the Government for damages for their mistreatment by police after the 1999 CLA attack at Katima Mulilo. Security forces beat Mwilima and other suspected CLA members and sympathizers with sjamboks and rifle butts during arrest and detention. The SFF members involved in the incidents were charged with assault, and the victims brought individual civil suits against the Government; both the criminal and civil suits were pending at year's end 2001. The LAC reported that 128 civil suits had been filed relating to the 1999 state of emergency in Caprivi. The criminal cases were scheduled to begin in February 2002 but were postponed because none of the defendants had legal representation. Some of the defendants applied for legal aid, but the Government refused to provide it. They subsequently filed an appeal to the High Court challenging the refusal. On December 14, the High Court ruled in favor of the defendants; however, the Government appealed the decision to the Supreme Court in December, and the case remained pending at year's end 2001.

The police continued to use a human rights training course and a police human rights manual designed by the LAC. A directive that prohibited the use of sjamboks by police continued to be in force during the year 2001. The directive generally was observed by police and resulted in some decrease in reports of police brutality; however, police still are permitted to use batons. No police officers who used sjamboks were charged with violating the directive during the year 2001; however, the Government reportedly was preparing criminal cases against them at year's end 2001.

Numerous crossborder attacks into the country by UNITA and FAA forces, including the use of landmines, and the abuse of civilians, resulted in dozens of deaths and many injuries to civilians. By 1999 more than 100 persons had been injured by landmines; between May and year's end, 11 cases were reported, including 1 death. There were reports that UNITA forces kidnaped female citizens and raped them. There were reports of intimidation and abuse of civilians by the FAA, including sexual harassment, threatening behavior by drunken soldiers, and indiscriminate use of firearms. In 2000 the all-SWAPO region council for Kavango recommended the removal of Angolan government troops from the country because of their harassment of Namibian civilians; however, this did not occur by year's end 2001.

In June a farmer shot and injured a refugee reportedly for poaching a goat and stealing crops. The farmer was arrested and charged with attempted murder, and he was released on bail. The trial was scheduled to begin in March 2002. There were reports that several other farmers threatened similar actions in response to theft.

The Constitution forbids arbitrary arrest or detention except in situations of national emergency; however, security forces used arbitrary arrest and detention in practice. Persons who are arrested must be informed of the reason for their arrest and must be brought before a magistrate within 48 hours of their detention. Those accused are entitled to defense by legal counsel of their choice, and those who cannot afford a lawyer are entitled to state-provided counsel. However, in practice many accused persons in remote and rural areas are not represented by counsel, primarily due to resource constraints. A trial must take place within "a reasonable time," or the accused must be released. Human rights organizations have criticized the length of time that pretrial detainees were held, which have extended beyond 1 year in some cases. Under a state of emergency, the Constitution permits detention without trial, although the names of detainees must be published in the government gazette within 14 days, and their cases must be reviewed within 1 month by an advisory board appointed by the President. Detainees have access to their lawyers prior to trial. There is a functioning bail system in place. The LAC reports that it generally is observed except in rural areas, where persons often are unaware of their legal rights.

Security forces arrested several persons suspected of involvement in or collaboration with rebels. On April 27, police officers arrested Rassen Lutambo and another person in connection with the 1999 attacks by the CLA; the two men reportedly were forced at gunpoint to confess to involvement in the CLA and to serve as witnesses in the criminal trials of CLA members. There was no further information on the case available at year's end 2001. In April NDF soldiers arrested Corporal Musenge Chipoya, reportedly based on the suspicion that he was collaborating with UNITA. On April 25, Chipoya was observed with NDF soldiers, but he subsequently disapeared; his whereabouts remained unknown at year's end 2001. On June 13, in Ngone village, east of Rundu, SFF soldiers arrested Joao Vinevale reportedly based on suspicion of weapons possession. The NSHR reported that he was transported to the Angolan border town of Calai; his whereabouts remained unknown at year's end 2001.

In May security forces arrested Frans Hamberera Kanyeva in Ngondo village, east of Rundu, reportedly on suspicion of UNITA involvement; Kanyeva was deported to Angola but subsequently returned to the country. There was no further information available on the case at year's end 2001.

Security forces arrested several persons for alleged possession of weapons. For example, in January NDF soldiers arrested Liep Kamba and Riembi John in Bagani near the border between the Kavango and Caprivi regions for allegedly planting a landmine that killed three persons; they were released without charge after 3 days. The LAC brought a civil suit against the Government on their behalf; there was no further information on the case at year's end 2001. On June 13, in Ngone village, east of Rundu, SFF soldiers arrested Joao Vinevale reportedly based on suspicion of weapons possession; his whereabouts remained unknown at year's end 2001.

Police arrested one journalist during the year 2001.

In June police officers arrested approximately 80 members of the Hai/Om San ethnic group, including women and children, for not having national identification cards; there was no further information available on the case at year's end 2001.

Immigration officers continued to detain illegal immigrants. For example, in May immigration officers, with police and army cooperation, detained 120 illegal immirgants in Oshakati; most of the immigrants were Angolans.

Citizens who are arrested arbitrarily used civil suits as legal recourse in many cases. For example, on June 1, Khoe San leader Thadeus Chedau sued and was awarded damages of approximately $2,000 (N$23,000) for his arrest in 2000.

In 2000 a group of Angolan and Congolese refugee musicians were arrested for performing at a Congress of Democrats (COD) rally. After being released, the Government attempted to rearrest and deport them; however, by year's end 2001, no such action was taken and the musicians returned to the Osire refugee camp.

During a security force operation in 2000, the Government arrested 82 alleged Angolan illegal immigrants in the northern part of the country and detained them under Section 49 of the Immigration Control Act, a provision that gives the Government greater powers to arrest and detain immigrants who may pose a security threat. A majority of the arrested immigrants had lived in the country for many years, and they were detained based on suspicion of involvement in UNITA crossborder attacks. The detainees were held for 1 month in secrecy before the Government made the arrests and detentions public. Although the detainees were interviewed by the ICRC and UNCHR, they were denied legal counsel. The NSHR stated that at least one of the detainees was a citizen and provided his identification card number; however, the Government disputed the detainee's citizenship, and he continued to be held at Dorbabis detention facility at year's end 2001. The Government stated that it would not return forcibly the detained immigrants to Angola, and the detainees remained at Dorbabis at year's end 2001; however, they had not been charged, and they were not granted access to legal counsel, although ICRC arranged for the Namibian Red Cross to transmit messages to and from their families.

In 2000 there were reports that security forces arrested and detained 3 senior headmen and 10 children from the Kxoe minority group. The children reportedly later were released.

In 2000 approximately 15 Kxoe men were arrested during a security sweep in western Caprivi. The Government initially denied that they were arrested and later stated that the men were arrested but escaped from custody; however, there was evidence that the detainees wrote letters to their families from the Bagani military base after the date of their reported escape, and LAC interviews with NDF soldiers also confirmed that the detainees remained at Bagani for at least 1 month after the government statement. The LAC filed a habeas corpus case; in December a court ruled against LAC in the case.

During the 1999 state of emergency declared in response to CLA attacks in Katima Mulilo, the security forces detained several hundred of suspected CLA members and sympathizers. Most of the detained were held incommunicado for 2 weeks, which the Constitution allows during states of emergency, before the Government provided public notice of the detentions. All of the detainees were arraigned on charges but were denied bail and remained in detention at year's end 2001; their trials were postponed until April 2002. While the majority of detentions during the state of emergency occurred in the Caprivi region, in 2000 Albert Sibeya and Martin Sichimwa Mutumba were arrested in Ongwediva in the north-central part of the country. The NSHR protested the use of emergency measures to detain suspects outside of the Caprivi region, and the LAC initiated a constitutional case against the arrests. In September the case was settled out of court; the settlement provided for an undisclosed award of damages and for the charges against them to be dropped.

Some traditional leaders reportedly continued to detain and imprison persons accused of minor offenses without recourse to police or judicial review. In response the Government instructed traditional leaders on the legal limits of their authority.

The Government generally does not use forced exile.

The Constitution provides for an independent judiciary, and the Government generally respects this provision in practice.

The formal court system has three levels: 30 magistrates courts; the High Court; and the Supreme Court. The latter also serves as the court of appeals and as a constitutional review court.

During the year 2001, a magistrate challenged in court a Ministry of Home Affairs decision to reassign him to a different region, claiming that direct government authority over magistrates undermined the independence of lower courts. On November 23, the High Court dismissed the magistrate's challenge and ordered him to pay the Ministry's legal costs.

Most rural citizens first encounter the legal system through the traditional courts, which deal with minor criminal offenses such as petty theft and infractions of local customs among members of the same ethnic group. The law delineates which offenses may be dealt with under the traditional system.

The constitutional right to a fair trial with a presumption of innocence until proven guilty generally is afforded by the judiciary; however, this right is limited somewhat in practice by long delays in hearing cases in the regular courts and the uneven application of constitutional protections in the traditional system.

The lack of qualified magistrates, other court officials, and private attorneys has resulted in a serious backlog of criminal cases, which often translated into delays of up to 1 year or more between arrest and trial, contravening constitutional provisions for the right to a speedy trial. Many of those awaiting trial were treated as convicted criminals.

There were no reports of political prisoners.

Prison conditions and conditions in military detention facilities are Spartan, although the Government continued to focus attention on improving living conditions. Prisons in the country generally meet international standards. Visits by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and foreign diplomats found conditions in prisons to be clean and orderly. Human rights organizations continued to complain about prison overcrowding. The Ministry of Prisons and Correctional Services administers the country's prisons and jails. Pretrial detainees are not held separately from convicted prisoners. Prisoners generally have access to legal counsel and family during regular office hours. Prison guards allegedly sometimes abused female prisoners. Female prisoners are held separately from male prisoners. The Government also made efforts to separate youthful offenders from adult criminals, although in many rural areas, juveniles continued to be held with adults. Separate facilities for child offenders were established in Windhoek and Mariental. There are several pilot programs that provide alternatives to incarceration for juvenile offenders. The Government continued to grant NGO's regular access to prisons and prisoners. The ICRC requested and received prison access, including access to the high security Dorbabis detention facility.

In some cases, prisoners who were victims of brutality were able to pursue legal remedies. In June a judge awarded three inmates in Windhoek Central Prison damages of approximately $3,500 (N$40,000) as compensation for assaults by prison guards during 2000. Sageus Frederick, also a prisoner in Windhoek, was awarded damages of approximately $1,400 (N$15,000) in compensation for beating by prison officers in 2000. A total of 15 suits against the Minister of Prisons over the use of leg chains in prisons were settled out of court in August. The plaintiffs included Tuhafeni Hamwaama, who was kept in leg chains continuously for 11 months. Five of the prisoners challenged the constitutionality of the use of leg irons, which resulted in the Supreme Court declaring them unconstitutional in 1999.

Domestic violence against women, including beating and rape, is widespread. Traditional attitudes regarding the subordination of women exacerbated problems of sexual and domestic violence. However, there continued to be an improvement in the attention paid to the problems of rape and domestic violence. Government ministers joined in public protests against domestic violence, and the President, members of his Cabinet, and parliamentarians continued to speak out against it. During the year 2001, convicted rapists and abusers received longer prison sentences in many cases than in previous years. NGO's expressed concern that the court system does not have mechanisms to protect vulnerable witnesses from open testimony, and the Government worked on establishing judicial procedures to address the problem. Police stated that more women came forward to report cases of rape and domestic violence. In 2000 the National Assembly passed and the President signed the Combating of Rape Act, which defines rape in broad terms, and allows for the prosecution of rape within marriage.

In 2000 the police began a special training course on gender sensitivity. Centers for abused women and children in Oshakati, Windhoek, Keetmanshoop, Walvis Bay, and Rehoboth are staffed with specially trained female police officers to assist victims of sexual assaults. In 2000 safe houses opened in Mariental, Swakopmund, and Tsumeb.

Reports continued that women were kidnaped, raped, or otherwise abused by armed men along the border with Angola in the Kavango and Caprivi regions. The Government claimed that the abuses were carried out by UNITA rebels; however, human rights groups reported that some of the incidents were perpetrated by Angolan government soldiers.

Overcrowding at the Osire refugee camp has affected children who are residing there. There were approximately 6,000 school-age children at Osire, and there was a shortage of classrooms.

Child abuse is a serious and increasingly acknowledged problem. The authorities vigorously prosecuted cases involving crimes against children, particularly rape and incest. The law criminalizes and protects children under 18 years from sexual exploitation, child pornography, and child prostitution. The age of sexual consent is 16 years. During the year 2001, courts handed down longer sentences against child rapists than in previous years, and the Government provided training for police officials to improve the handling of child sex abuse cases. Centers for abused women and children were working actively to reduce the trauma suffered by abused children. The LAC launched a national campaign to revise legislation on child maintenance in 1999. The Child Maintenance Bill was sent to the Cabinet for discussion in 1999; however, by year's end 2001, no movement was made towards tabling it in Parliament. The bill would require divorced spouses to provide maintenance allowances for their children.

It is difficult for the Government to ensure enforcement of national laws against child labor on commercial farms.

In January there was a report that the Angolan armed forces were recruiting persons under 18 years of age in the northern part of the country to fight in southern Angola against UNITA.

The Government expanded programs to separate juvenile offenders from adults in the criminal justice system.

A gang known as the Red Eye Gang has existed in Namibia for some time. The identities of members of the gang are matter of speculation, whisper and rumor. However, some of the persons rumored to be members of the gang are known to lead flamboyant lifestyles without keeping regular employment. They are also known to associate with well-known illegal diamond dealers. The Red Eye Gang is generally linked to illegal diamond-dealing.

At local level, organized crime tends to be associated with illegal diamond-dealing, robbery (particularly armed robbery), burglary with intent to steal, the theft of and from motor vehicles, shoplifting, fraud and corruption involving public institutions and schemes, illegal drug-trafficking, illegal hunting of protected species, illegal dealing in weapons and foreign currency, and smuggling.

Murder is often committed during the course of armed robbery. Notorious criminals have records of being involved in the commission of murder, armed robbery and burglary. In a number of cases, the same names have featured in different combinations with others, suggesting that these persons are somehow connected in an organized fashion. They also tend to be the same ones involved in escaping from prison time and time again, only to be rearrested after committing similar crimes.

In a number of cases, Namibian residents or nationals have been involved with foreign nationals in the commission of cash-in-transit armed robberies, diamond-dealing and drug-trafficking. Such cases have often been very serious involving huge sums of money or large quantities of dangerous drugs such as cocaine, methaqualone (mandrax) and marijuana.

Some cases dealt with by the courts may be pertinent and are discussed below.

One case, known as the Karibib Heist involved an armed robbery. A security company was contracted to carry N$5 million from Windhoek for distribution to several banks and financial institutions in the Erongo region in the western part of the country. A small airplane was used for the purpose. Upon arrival at the Karibib airstrip, a small and infrequently used landing strip located in a remote area, the crew were accosted by several armed men who robbed them of all the money. It emerged during investigations that one of the security guards on board was involved. Other persons involved in the conspiracy to rob and the actual robbery included a retired and a serving policeman. They were all Namibians, but there were also several South Africans involved. On account of errors made at the scene by the criminals, including the abandonment of a marked belt by one of the South Africans, and their failure to rob one of the victims of his mobile phone, the police were contacted, resulting in the prompt apprehension of the criminals and the recovery of the money. One of the interesting pieces of circumstantial evidence that the state wanted to rely on to prove the involvement of the serving member of the police, were numerous telephone calls he made to his brother on his mobile phone during the period when the robbery was in progress. Unfortunately, the court was not satisfied that the circumstantial evidence was sufficiently cogent to prove his guilt and he was acquitted. The majority of the accused were convicted and sentenced to lengthy prison terms.

Another case called the Brakwater Heist also involved an armed robbery. At the time of writing, this case was still pending. It emanated from a cash-in-transit armed robbery of the largest amount in Namibian criminal history — over N$6 million. Again, it appears to have been an inside job involving Namibian and South African nationals. One of the alleged accused was shot by a security guard at the scene. During follow-up investigations, some of the other suspects were arrested in Cape Town a few days later. Some property and a significant amount of cash were recovered. These suspects are currently on remand in Cape Town awaiting extradition to Namibia. The other suspects are appearing in Windhoek. There have been other reported cash-in-transit robberies before these two. A common thread running through all is the collusion between employees of security companies and outsiders. In a number of instances, some of the outsiders have been criminals from South Africa.

It can be concluded that the robberies have been committed with a remarkable degree of sophistication and enterprise by a well coordinated network of criminals operating between Namibia and South Africa.

In the past few years, a number persons found in possession of mandrax, cocaine and marijuana have been arrested. Invariably, the accused have tended to be a combination of Namibian nationals and foreigners, including South, West, East and Central Africans. In a case in 1998, a resident Nigerian married to a Namibian was arrested with a ‘Zambian’ national and a South African truck driver on their way to South Africa. The Nigerian and ‘Zambian’ had concealed themselves in the back of a heavy commercial truck driven by the South African. When the truck was stopped at a roadblock, the two stowaways — who were suffocating in the tent — drew the attention of the police to their presence on the truck. In the luggage of the ‘Zambian’ man, several pairs of ladies’ shoes were found. Upon examination, it appeared that the soles had been tampered with. Each of the shoes was opened and it was discovered that each sole contained several grams of cocaine. The cumulative total was about four kilograms of pure cocaine. The ‘Zambian’ admitted his involvement, but exonerated the South African truck driver and the Nigerian. Further investigations revealed that he was in fact not a Zambian but a Tanzanian national travelling on a false Zambian passport. It also transpired that the Nigerian and the Tanzanian had tried to enter South Africa through a border post which is not usually used a few days before. They had failed to reach the border post after the Nigerian’s vehicle, in which they were travelling, overturned. They then decided to hitchhike. The Prosecutor-General, apprehensive that the state would not be able to prove a case against the two who denied involvement or knowledge of the contents of the Tanzanian’s luggage, decided to prosecute the Tanzanian only. Other notable arrests have been made of persons at a local bus station. In one instance, a Namibian and a South African were arrested before boarding a bus bound for Gauteng. They were in possession of cocaine. In a more recent case, a South African woman, who was in possession of cocaine, was arrested upon alighting from an Inter-Cape coach. The cocaine had been concealed in a loaf of bread in a basket which she was about to pass on to someone else. In yet another case, a Namibian national and two South Africans were arrested under a bridge while in possession of bags containing several kilograms of marijuana. The Namibian exonerated the South Africans and pleaded guilty. In a case which occurred early in 2001, the son of a well-known member of parliament was arrested outside a popular nightclub in a police sting operation. He and the manager of the nightclub had attempted to sell cocaine to police officers in the early hours of the morning. The nightclub was closed on the orders of the police despite its owner’s protestations of innocence. The politician’s ‘S’ class Mercedes Benz motor vehicle, which his son had been using, was impounded. These cases show that Namibia is not only being used as a transit route for drugs to South Africa, but that some of the drugs are actually consumed locally.

Namibia has been a diamond producer for several decades, and is one of the highest gem quality diamond producers in the world. Because of the very high value attached to diamonds and the lucrative profits that can readily be made illegally if a person has access to diamonds, it is not surprising that this is an area in which organized criminal activity is rampant. The diamond industry is a heavily regulated environment, underscoring the importance attached to it by the state. The range of crimes provided for under successive legislation has increased in proportion to the perceived need to protect the industry. Draconian penalties are provided for would-be offenders. Strict controls are required from all operators in the industry and severe penalties are imposed for failure to maintain the prescribed standards. Notwithstanding this, however, diamonds are still stolen through various means and dealt with outside the normal channels. Cases that have come before the courts suggest the involvement of organized crime syndicates in the theft and marketing of diamonds. There is an undoubted international dimension to the illegal trade in diamonds. In the experience of Namibia, some of the illegal buyers are from Europe, the Middle East, South Africa and Angola. The involvement of foreign buyers is indicative of the fact that there are effective communication channels between locals and foreigners. It is therefore apparent that, in order to increase the rate of detection and interdiction, advanced methods of surveillance including wire-tapping are necessary. Problems of detection make it imperative for diamond-mining companies and the Protected Resources Unit of the police to offer incentives to their security officers and informants to obtain information on who is involved and when deals are about to be made. This entails the use of traps to detect and apprehend offenders. In a number of instances, some traps have had tragic consequences.

As is the case with many countries in transition, burglary is one of the most prevalent crimes in Namibia. The cases investigated by the police show that this is a serious problem for the community. The mushrooming of private security companies and the faith placed in and reliance on them by the public are clear indications of a proliferation of the problem, especially in urban areas. In most reported cases, there has always been evidence of the involvement of more than one person and the use of vehicles such as taxis. Burglars are invariably attracted to electronic equipment such as sound systems, televisions, video cassette recorders, computers and microwave ovens, which are easy to remove and to dispose of or sell. Most of the stolen goods are never recovered, suggesting a low risk of detection and apprehension which, in turn, encourages criminals to commit more burglaries. In many instances, the police do not have leads, such as fingerprint evidence and, as such, have to rely on information. However, Namibian society tends to shun those who inform on others. This is perhaps attributable to the country’s relatively recent pre-independence history. This makes the task of law enforcement extremely difficult. The stolen goods are usually sold far away from the place where the theft was committed. These goods are normally taken to the former Ovamboland in the extreme north of the country. Some goods are even exported to Angola. Police sources believe that Angolans and Namibians are involved in these activities at an organized level. Many a suspect absconds to Angola, a country with which Namibia does not have formal extradition arrangements, thus frustrating efforts at mounting successful prosecutions. The unfavorable political and military situation between the two countries compounds the problem.

Fraud and corruption has developed in state institutions. Low levels of qualified and experienced public servants afflict the Namibian public service. This is a historical problem that will take some time to address. The situation, however, leaves itself open to manipulation by criminally inclined persons from within and without the public service. In the nature of government operations, business is conducted through a series of processes and transactions involving different persons at different stages. In the process, different ministries have to work together. At the same time, contacts are established between officials in different ministries or departments. While this may assist in the expeditious processing of government business, it may also have the unintended consequence of fostering relationships conducive to fraud and corruption.

In the presence of inadequate controls and systems, connivance between officials and misplaced trust can facilitate the commission of crime. The Ministry of Finance, which effects all government payments is particularly vulnerable. In a number of cases, employees of other ministries have successfully created ghost employees and pensioners and submitted requests for payment. In other cases, fraudulent claims for payment for services not rendered have been made.

In several fraudulent medical aid claims, accounts prepared by individuals, sometimes with the collusion of pharmacists and doctors, have been paid. In a recently detected case, a pharmacist established a credit facility for her customers in terms of which they could buy any of the products in stock on credit. As the pharmacist was also in the business of stocking items such as electronic goods and toiletries, customers could even buy a television set on credit. As their levels of indebtedness increased, customers were instructed to authorize the pharmacy to recover the monies through submissions of false medical aid claims. They were encouraged to do this by signing blank claim forms. Further, medical prescriptions were forged so that they could be repeated several times or by making additions to the medicine genuinely prescribed. The pharmacist then prepared the claims and submitted them to the ministry with instructions for the collection of the checks when ready or their postage to specific addresses. She also cultivated a network of collaborators in the ministry who hastened the processing of claims, frequently circumventing established procedures and even collecting the checks themselves for delivery to the pharmacist. The checks would then be deposited into accounts owned or controlled by the pharmacist and immediate members of her family. The banks facilitated the deposits, notwithstanding the fact that the account holders and payees, as stated on the checks, differed. Some of the checks were fraudulently endorsed to another person to facilitate deposit and clearance. Other checks were simply used to purchase goods in supermarkets in order to obtain cash. The shops involved never asked questions or obtained identification of the persons cashing the checks. Checks were also deposited into accounts held in the names of untraced and untraceable people. Almost N$2 million was stolen in this way.

Upon investigation, it was found that bank officials who opened the accounts did not follow proper procedures. For example, unacceptable forms of identification were used, suggesting collusion with employees of the banking institutions. Automatic teller machine cards were issued, facilitating withdrawals which, in many instances, were done in a short period of time. Although the ‘patients’ knew what was going on, they did not have insight into the details and, even if they came to know later on, they were inhibited from raising the hue and cry because they risked being prosecuted. When the matter came to light, the pharmacist, who is believed to be a South African citizen, fled to Cape Town where she is suspected to be taking refuge.

It is not uncommon for many people residing in Namibia to hold South African citizenship and after committing crimes that are detected, flee to South Africa.

Over the years, extradition of such people has proven to be almost impossible, despite the existence of formal extradition arrangements between Namibia and South Africa.

One of the biggest scams involving public finances occurred in 1992 when the government set up a subsidy scheme to assist drought-stricken farmers. In terms of the scheme, needy farmers were to be identified by agricultural extension officers. They had to complete certain forms that, among other details, indicated how many head of cattle they owned. An important requirement under the scheme was that the farmers had to provide a contribution of 10% of their calculated needs, which they were to pay upfront when making a purchase of stockfeed from suppliers. The supplier would provide the stockfeed and claim the balance from the government through the Ministry of Agriculture. The majority of farmers, predominantly small-scale indigenous farmers, failed to raise their contribution. Instead, they claimed the proportion of their contribution in cash from the suppliers obtained little or no stockfeed and surrendered the claim forms to the suppliers who then claimed the full 100% from the government as if supplies had been provided. In this way, the unscrupulous suppliers and the farmers colluded in defrauding the government of more than N$6 million. During the prosecution of the suppliers, the key state witnesses were all accomplices. In many instances, it was impossible to prove the non-delivery of stockfeed as the indigenous farmers did not give reliable testimony and documentary evidence was missing. To make matters worse, the accused approached certain witnesses to influence their testimony in court, conduct which led to further charges against them. Towards the conclusion of the trial, the offices of the prosecutor and the presiding magistrate were broken into. The crime docket, the manual record of the proceedings and the sound recordings were all stolen. The culprit was never found and, following an arduous reconstruction of the record, the accused were all acquitted.

These examples indicate that organized criminal activity is prevalent in Namibia at both local and transnational levels. They also highlight some of the conditions that facilitate the perpetration of organized crime.

As pointed out earlier, most of this kind of criminal conduct is chargeable under one or more of the recognized common law crimes. Where this is not possible or insufficient, the common law is supplemented by legislation.

Although the law does not specifically prohibit trafficking in persons, it does prohibit slavery, kidnapping, forced labor, including forced prostitution, child labor, and alien smuggling; there were no reports that persons were trafficked to, from, or within the country.

However, there were reports that UNITA forces kidnapped citizens and forced them to serve as combatants and porters in Angola.

Police and immigration officials received training in combating trafficking in persons during the year 2001.

Namibia is not a significant producer or consumer of narcotics. Consumption of marijuana and methaqualone (mandrax) has risen, though the number of users remains low, even for this sparsely populated country. The transshipment of narcotics through Namibia to South Africa is a cause of concern to the government, whose drug interdiction efforts are hampered by a lack of resources. Namibia is not a party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention.

Namibia's lax border controls and huge open spaces make it vulnerable to drugs transiting the country. The recent completion of the trans-Kalahari and trans-Caprivi highways offer additional routes to transport narcotics from the port at Walvis Bay into central and southern Africa. Inadequate controls at the port also make it vulnerable to narcotics being shipped to Europe and the United States. There are no statistics available about the amount of narcotics arriving in the U.S. through Namibia.

Despite evidence that drugs are an increasing problem, the government of Namibia has been slow to implement anti-drug legislation. Bills under consideration, however, include the Proceeds of Crime Bill, International Cooperation in Criminal Matters Bill, Money Laundering Act, and the Drug Trafficking Bill. These bills, if passed, will give local law enforcement authorities greater leverage against drug traffickers.

In 1998, the Namibian Drug Enforcement Unit (DEU) seized 1,072 kilograms of marijuana, 6,318 mandrax tablets, and 2 kilograms of cocaine. As with the previous years' seizures, these successes involved close cooperation with other countries' drug enforcement authorities.

The DEU, like many other government entities, is continually hampered by a lack of resources. Consequently, interdiction efforts have been curtailed in 1998 because of a lack of basic items such as vehicles.

Although corruption in Namibia is not a major problem, Prime Minister Geingob has launched an ambitious effort to draft wide-reaching anti-corruption legislation and to target corrupt officials. The prospects for the legislation are uncertain, however, due to reported opposition within the government.

There are currently no bilateral agreements on narcotics between the USG and the government of Namibia. Namibia is not a party to any of the UN drug agreements.

Namibia is not a drug-producing nation.

There is evidence that unknown quantities of cocaine are smuggled through Namibia to markets in South Africa. Most shipments of cocaine transiting Namibia originate in Brazil and are shipped to Angola. Once in Angola, drugs are shipped across Namibia by bus or car for markets in South Africa. The number of seizures at bus terminals throughout Namibia corroborates this fact.