Namibia National Action Plan 2005

INTRODUCTION

<< back to contents

NAMIBIA’S COMMITMENT TO THE PROCESSES OF CONTROL AND MANAGEMENT ON SMALL ARMS AND LIGHT WEAPONS

In a bid to comply with the provisions of the regional and international agreements on the control of firearms, ammunition and other related materials, Namibia created a number of structures and programmes to ensure effective and co-ordinated activities in the combating of the proliferation of small arms and light weapons. The structures in place will allow for a total eradication of illicit arms and provide for a verifiable database for licit arms.

The most important agreements to which Namibia is a signatory include:

The SADC Protocol on the Control of Firearms, Ammunition and other related materials;
The Bamako Declaration on an African Common Position on the Illicit Proliferation, Circulation and Trafficking of Small Arms and Light Weapons;
United Nations Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms an Light Weapons in All Its Aspects (referred to as the UNPoA); and the
Protocol against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Their Parts, Components and Ammunition, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime.

ENTRY INTO FORCE OF THE SADC PROTOCOL ON FIREARMS, AMMUNITION AND RELATED MATERIALS

The articles of the SADC Protocol on the Control of Firearms, Ammunition and other Related Materials is legally binding on all member states of SADC, which includes Namibia, as the Protocol was ratified by two thirds of the signatories of the protocol and came into force on 30 July 2004. This Protocol contains many important commitments and stipulates many of the key issues that must be included in a National Action Plan, including inter alia; the creation of a national firearms policy, the review and harmonisation of firearm legislation, enhancing operational capacity, public education and awareness raising, exchange of information and voluntary collection of arms and exchange programmes.

The Southern Africa Regional Police Chiefs Cooperation Organization (SARPCCO) issued a historic declaration during its Annual General Meeting held in 1998. It called on SADC member states to institute a mechanism for regional control of firearms and ammunition. The decision to start with this process was subsequently taken at the SADC Summit in Windhoek in March 2001. The SADC Protocol of which SARPCCO is the implementing agency was signed in August 2001 in Blantyre . The regional leaders also created the Experts Group on Small Arms and Light Weapons. Namibia has been an active participant to all of these initiatives.

NAMIBIA FIRST NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON SMALL ARMS AND LIGHT WEAPONS IN SUPPORT OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE SADC PROTOCOL ON FIREARMS AND AMMUNITION OF 2002

By hosting Namibia’s First National Conference on Small Arms and Light Weapons in Support of the Implementation of the SADC Protocol on Firearms Ammunition and Related Materials of 2002, the Namibian Government demonstrated its unwavering commitment to honour her obligation in combating the trade and use of firearms and light weapons in the society towards destructive ends.

Namibia already ratified the SADC Protocol on the Control of Firearms, Ammunition and Other Related Materials and is party to the UNPoA. Implementation of these instruments will further strengthen Namibia’s law enforcement capacity. This will in turn improve its ongoing efforts to better control the movement, seizure and destruction of illicit small arms and light weapons. [1]

The First National Conference on Small Arms and Light Weapons was called upon by the Namibian Police Department, in association with civil society, represented by Namibia Non-Government Organisations Forum (NANGOF). Providing technical and financial support to the Secretariat of the meeting were two international nongovernmental organisations, SaferAfrica and Saferworld.

The main objectives of the conference were to:

Raise public awareness among civil society;
Raise the international profile of Namibia as a country implementing the UNPoA and the Bamako Declaration through the dissemination of its recommendations; and
Inform about the nature of national, regional and international commitments of the Namibian Government in the area of the illicit trade in small arms.

The general recommendations of the conference were as follow:

The need to establish a national focal point on small arms.
The need to implement the SADC Protocol in all its articles.
The need to review and develop ways in which to improve the operational action of the police through a number of priority areas:
- training
- national database
- stockpile management and destruction
- interagency cooperation and information sharing
- public awareness and education programmes
- legislation review
Improved border controls and targeted development.
Involvement of civil society as partner of government on all actions to combat small arms proliferation.

FURTHER STEPS TOWARDS ACTION

A consultative meeting was held on 16 October 2003 between the Government of Namibia and SaferAfrica in Pretoria. Present at the meeting were personnel of SaferAfrica, the Permanent Secretary of Home Affairs of Namibia and the NFP Co-ordinator. The following comments and requests were made, amongst others, by the NFP Coordinator:

The problem of small arms and light weapons as it manifests itself in Namibia should be mapped out.
Due to the increase in violent crimes in which pistols and rifles are used, the sources of these SALW should be determined.
Government structures should be in place for the implementation of action.
All thirteen regions in Namibia should have regional structures in place for the implementation purposes.
There should be a management committee, consisting of the Permanent Secretaries of the line ministries, chaired by the Permanent Secretary of Home Affairs, to keep political leadership informed of the process.
There is a definite need to assess the Law Enforcement Agencies capacity in terms of resources need.
Special attention needs to be directed to certain border areas, for instance the border with Angola.
An amnesty period for handing in of surplus or obsolete weapons should be considered.

1[1] Adaptation from the Opening Speech for the Namibia First National Conference on Small Arms and Light Weapons in Support of the Implementation of the SADC Protocol on Firearms and Ammunition of 2002 by the Rt. Hon. Prime Minister of the Republic of Namibia, Theo-Ben Gurirab MP, Windhoek, 7 October 2002.

THE STRENGTHENING OF THE NAMIBIA NATIONAL FOCAL POINT (NNFP) AND THE DECISION TO ENGAGE IN A NATIONAL ACTION PLAN (NAP)

To meet the regional and international commitments to which Namibia is a party, as well as the recommendations of the National Conference, the Namibia National Focal Point (NNFP) held several meetings that were facilitated by SaferAfrica and Saferworld. These meetings refined the nature, role and composition of the NNFP and considered the decision to engage in the creation of a National Action Plan for Arms Management and Disarmament in Namibia.

These meetings were attended by the following NNFP members:

Mr. Hifindaka Director CID - National Focal Point Co-ordinator
Namibia Police Force - 5 members
Namibia Defence Force - 2 members
Customs and Excise - 2 members
Immigration - 2 members
Ministry of Foreign Affairs - 2 members
Office of the President - 2 members
Ministry of Environment and Tourism - 2 members
AG Chambers - 2 members
NANGOF - 2 members

In order to develop the NAP, the NNFP recommended that it was first necessary to determine the true nature and extent of the firearm problem in the country and to identify the resources that are available and those that were needed to implement the NAP and effectively tackle the identified issues. The approach that Namibia has taken followed a tested model developed by SaferAfrica and Saferworld, which include four main stages:

Preparatory phase - The main aims of this phase include identifying the goals and objectives, establishing the terms of reference and undertaking logistical planning for the information collection, or mapping, phase.

Information collection or mapping phase - Information is collected during this phase to determine the true nature and extent of the small arms problem. Three primary sets of information are collected: physical information; attitude information; and resources information. These sets of data are collected using three primary research methods, namely:
1. Law Enforcement Agency Workshops, conducted in each Region of the country by government representatives of the National Focal Point and the Mapping Team.
2. Civil Society Workshops, conducted with representatives from each region of the country by the Mapping Team and civil society representatives in National Focal Point.
3. Population (attitude) Survey, in which a cross-section of the population in terms of age, gender and geographical distribution are surveyed. Local people trained in research methods by the Mapping Team conducted the survey.

Analysis and plan development - All the primary and secondary information is analysed to determine the possible options for the NAP. Key government officials, local civil society and the Mapping Team undertook the task of analysis jointly in a coordinated manner.

Implementation and monitoring - Shortly after the NAP was approved, an implementation and monitoring plan was developed with the government and civil society to ensure continuity in the implementation and timely verification and adjustment of the plan. The implementation and monitoring plan allocates clear responsibilities and roles to different government and civil society agencies to monitor and verify activities. This ongoing process of monitoring ensures that adjustment to projects and, where necessary, corrective action can be taken to ensure that the agreed objectives of the NAP are successfully achieved.

NATIONAL ASSESSMENT: MAPPING PROCESS

In Namibia, the mapping process has followed the phased approach outlined above. Preparatory workshops were held from 11 to 12 February 2004 and from 12 to 13 March 2004. These workshops set the terms of reference for the information collection phase and carried out the logistical planning.

INFORMATION COLLECTION PHASE

The information collection phase or mapping in Namibia was divided into two stages with the law enforcement workshops and civil society workshops taking place in April and May 2004, and the population survey conducted in May 2004. The full mapping team involved in this process was made up of the following personnel:

Mr. Hifindaka, Director CID Nampol – NFP Coordinator
Various members of the NNFP
Mr S.G. Buijs, SaferAfrica
Mr P. Cross, Saferworld
Me C. Flew, Saferworld
Mr E. Hennop, SaferAfrica
Me S. Hlongwa, SaferAfrica
Me C. Jefferson, SaferAfrica
Mr L. Mensah, SaferAfrica (Representative in Namibia)
Mr J. Mulupi, SaferAfrica
Me K. Robertson, SaferAfrica
Mr S. Tjaronda, NANGOF

Law enforcement workshops

The workshops were held in every region of Namibia and involved consultations with the key law enforcement officials deployed at the regional level in Namibia. Representatives of every law enforcement agency at the regional level were invited to participate in the workshops. A total of 384 law enforcement officials were consulted in the series of workshops.

Participants from government and the mapping team participated in the workshops. The Law Enforcement mapping team was made up of the following personnel:

Mr Hifindaka, Director CID Nampol NFP Coordinator
Various members of the NNFP
Mr Sarel Buijs, Namibia Mapping Co-ordinator SaferAfrica
Mr Peter Cross, Saferworld
Mr Louis Mensah, SaferAfrica(Representative in Namibia)

At a regional level, the following regional officials were invited to attend:

Regional Governor (RG) for opening the workshop
Police Regional Commander (RC)
Police Regional Crime Investigation Coordinator (RCIC)
Namibia Defence Force Representative
Regional manager Office of the President
Regional Immigration Officer
Regional Customs Officer
Police Station Commanders
Police Unit Commanders
Explosive Unit Commanders
Representative of Wildlife
Representative of the Attorney General’s office
Border Post Commanders
Senior Immigration and Customs Officer from every Border Post

The objectives of the Law Enforcement Agencies' workshops and survey were:

To inform Law Enforcement Agencies at the Regional level of the Mapping Activity and the NAP, the steps that are planned for the rest of the information collection phase and the support expected from them. The Mapping Team undertook this task through presentations and interactive discussions.

To collect information from Law Enforcement officials on their perceptions and experiences on the small arms problem in their Region, and their suggestions on how to deal with the problem. The mapping team undertook this task through the application of a practitioner’s survey and group discussion activities.

To provide Law Enforcement officials with the opportunity to interact with the NNFP, make input into the NAP and highlight specific issues per region that need to be addressed during the creation of the NAP. The mapping team undertook this task through group discussion activities.

Recommendations from law enforcement agencies workshops proved that, although Regions have their own unique challenges and specific problems, the main recommendations throughout the country were remarkably similar. In summary, the recommendations were:

Policy on small arms and light weapons: A clear and comprehensive national policy on small arms, light weapons, ammunition and explosives was identified as a priority requirement to govern the NAP and provide the guidelines to prevent, control and manage the proliferation, illicit possession and abuse of SALW. The policy should address the full spectrum of issues related to SALW and provide the basis for the review of national legislation, regulations and administrative procedure governing SALW.

Firearms Act: Act 7 of 1996 to incorporate the National Policy, a need for the review of the Act was expressed, to be in conformity with the sub-regional and international agreed measures to deal with the SALW problem in a comprehensive and co-ordinated manner.

Central Arms Database: The enhancement of the central electronic database for national recordkeeping, control of the national stockpile and to assist with investigation, national information needs and sub-regional cooperation is a priority. These records need to be available down to the regional level. Participants felt that they will only be able to deal with illicit SALW once they are able to establish what is licit. Currently national records are insufficient and cannot provide for the needs of law enforcement, control and investigation. This need to be reviewed and improved.

Stockpile Management: Participants agreed that serious attention should be given to stockpile management issues in the creation of the national policy. Clear and comprehensive policy guidelines should be given to issues such as the security of stock, proper storage, issue of firearms and ammunition from armouries, management of captured and seized stock, levels of stock kept at national armouries and depots, surplus and obsolete stock, disposal and destruction, national recordkeeping, licensing criteria and procedure, etc.

Capacity Building and Training: A wide range of added capacity and skills were recommended during the feedback sessions. In summary those relate to the following training and capacity needs:
- Arms management and disarmament skills for middle and senior management personnel.
- Specialised investigation skills on national level such as ballistic experts, forensic investigation, record keeping and stockpile management.
- Basic investigation skills such as firearm identification, management of a crime scene, fvirearm crime related investigation, etc.
- Specific skills such as computer literacy.

Resources: Various recommendations were made on resource needs to enable sufficient performance and effective enforcement and response. These needs should be shared between the NAP and the National Budget.

National Co-ordination Mechanisms: It became clear during the discussion sessions that the NNFP would need assistance to co-ordinate and implement the NAP down to the regional level. For this purpose participants recommended the formation of Regional Focal Points, structured in a similar manner as the NNFP. The Regional Focal Points will be responsible for the co-ordination and implementation of the NAP as directed by the NNFP and it will also function as the co-ordination mechanism between the NNFP and regions. A need was also identified to create of a National Management Committee on SALW to serve as a link between NNFP and political leadership.

Involvement of Civil Society : The crucial role that civil society organisations must play during the Mapping Phase and the implementation of the NAP was recognised by participants throughout the country.

Public Awareness and Education: Most participants stressed the need for a massive public awareness and education programme early in the NAP. The civil society workshops should also be utilised as a public awareness tool. Press coverage and radio broadcasting sessions should be used to inform the general public of the intentions and objectives of the NAP.

Civil society workshops

A total of 13 civil society workshops were held in the following locations:

Swakopmund on 16 April 2004
Keetmanshoop on 20 April 2004
Mariental on 21 April 2004
Gobabis on 23 April 2004
Otjiwarongo on 26 April 2004
Tsumeb on 27 April 2004
Rundu on 29 April 2004
Katima Mulilo on 3 May 2004
Oshakati on 6 May 2004
Oshikango on 7 May 2004
Outapi on 10 May 2004
Opuwo on 11 May 2004
Windhoek on 13 May 2004

Participants from civil society and the mapping team participated in the workshops. The Civil Society Mapping team was made up of the following personnel:

Ms Catherine Flew - Facilitator Saferworld
Ms Slu Hlongwa - Facilitator SaferAfrica
Mr Sandi Tjaronda - NANGOF

A total of 131 civil society organisations working on issues ranging from development and conflict, gender and youth, traditional leaders through to religious based organisations and NGO networks attended these meetings.

The objectives of the workshops were:

To inform civil society organisations working at regional level of the Mapping Activity, the Population Survey and the National Action Plan and the support expected from them for the process. The workshop team did this through presentations and discussions.
To collect information from civil society organisations representatives on their perceptions and experiences of the SALW problem in their region and learn about their current activities to deal with the problems associated with the availability of SALW in the communities.
To provide civil society organisations an opportunity to interact with the National Focal Point, make input into the National Action Plan and highlight specific issues per region that needs to be addressed during the creation of the National Action Plan. The workshop team undertook this through group discussion.

The workshop objectives were met through a combination of presentations to inform civil society of the small arms issue, the mapping activity and the NAP as well as structured working group sessions and open discussion to elicit experiences, views and knowledge from civil society. Participants also completed a survey on their experiences of, and attitudes to, firearms and security.

While a number of challenges were thrown down to the NNFP, its creation and willingness to engage with civil society and initiative in developing a NAP were widely welcomed. In the workshops, however, participants expressed a degree of scepticism as to the government’s intentions and a fear that government’s efforts to engage with civil society might be a vested attempt to absorb and neutralise civil society. Altering perceptions and allaying such fears will take considerable time and it is apparent that words can only go so far, it cannot be overstated how important it is that the NNFP demonstrate its commitment to engage with civil society, and more broadly to effectively tackle the small arms problem, through action and concerted, regular and sustained communication and dialogue with civil society.

Recommendations from the civil society organisations workshops included the following:

Information Sharing - participants emphasized the need to share information with all the stakeholders. The suggestion was to organize regular workshops and forums to discuss the negative impact of small arms and light weapons in Namibia.
Action on the ground - NFP and CSO should commit themselves in tackling the small arms issue.
Public Awareness and Education - public awareness regarding small arms and light weapons was overly emphasized by participants. The introduction of small arms programmes in schools was also suggested.
Engage more organisations - there is a need to engage a diverse community organizations beyond those that attended the workshops.
Capacity building and Training - capacity building and skills training were recommended during the workshops. In summary those relate to:
- Public awareness campaigns on small arms and light weapons.
- Training on the firearms legislation.
- Training on protocols and declaration regarding small arms.
- Capacity to handle information regarding illegal arms.
Incorporation of Small Arms Agenda- participants highly recommended the incorporation of small arms agenda in their existing organisations programmes.
Needs assessment - A detailed need assessment will be required to ensure that the existing capacity of civil society is effectively harnessed and where gaps exist a concerted programme of capacity building is implemented.

Key concerns that emerged out of the civil society stakeholders were:

Programmes to change attitudes - changing the perceptions of those possessing firearms was seen as crucial in addressing small arms proliferation in Namibia. In some areas it was felt that firearm possession has become normalised or accepted behaviour. Public awareness raising and civic education campaigns should be conducted on: the NAP; the dangers of firearms; conflict resolution and peace building; and the public’s responsibility to tackle security issues (including community policing awareness). These should include the whole question of inheritance as well as firearms that were given to traditional leaders during the liberation struggle.

Provision of effective security - how the state provides security was felt to be perhaps the single most important factor in addressing the illegal possession of firearms. Without the effective provision of security the proliferation of firearms cannot be successfully tackled.

Promotion of effective cooperation between government and civil society interaction - this should include:
- The development by the NNFP of a communications outreach strategy for engagement with civil society to ensure effective and open sharing of information from government and from civil society.
- A strategy for the NNFP to enhance and engage existing civil society networks.
- The promotion by the NNFP of working practices that actively seek to demonstrate and practice transparency and accountability.

Review of firearms legislation - in particular with regard to civilian possession, state possession, stockpile management and manufacture.

Roles identified by civil society in the NAP -
- Participants identified a number of roles that they felt they could actively and effectively play in the implementation of the NAP. These included: capacity building of local communities, information collection and dissemination, monitoring and evaluation, public awareness raising, advocacy and lobbying, networking and collaboration with other civil society and with government, rapid response to crisis situations, conflict resolution and peace building, community policing, civil society organisation and the establishment of a documentation / resource centre on the small arms issue and financial and material support.

Population survey

In total, 3,360 surveys were conducted throughout the 13 regions of Namibia between 18 May and 28 May 2004. Across-section of the population in terms of age, gender and geographical distribution were surveyed, with interviews conducted by 40 local Namibia surveyors who were trained in research methods by the Mapping Team from SaferAfrica.

This team was made up of the following personnel:

Ms C. Jefferson, SaferAfrica
Ms K. Robertson, SaferAfrica
Mr E. Hennop, SaferAfrica
Mr J. Mulupi, SaferArica

The survey itself examined various socio-economic indicators as well as indicators of security and firearms penetration.
The survey illuminated some of the true factors influencing the demand for small arms and the interconnections between these factors and other societal socio-economic issues, as well as highlighting the true impact that firearms are having on society. The results of the survey are particularly important in identifying those regions most affected, prioritising responses within the framework of the NAP and identifying specific strategies to reduce the demand for small arms. The results of the survey also help to throw light upon the capacity of communities themselves (community structures, ability and willingness to help others etc) to proactively address the small arms issues.

An initial descriptive narrative analysis of the population survey results has been done and the NNFP was able to use this as a basis for discussions and analysis during the workshop to draft the NAP. One of the first tasks that has been prioritised in the NAP is for more thorough analysis of the results of the population survey to be conducted, in particular, to identify those specific regions that are most affected by firearm-related insecurity and instability and to identify those regions where development may be a key factor in reducing the demand for firearms.

Development and Approval of Namibia’s National Action Plan

The Namibia NFP met from 25 June to 27 June 2004 at the Safari Court Conference Centre in Windhoek to analyse and discuss the results of the mapping exercise.

The analysis workshops were attended by the full Namibia National Focal Point. Additional participants included:

Ms V. Gamba, Director SaferAfrica
Ms S. Hlongwa , SaferAfrica
Mr P. Cross, Saferworld
Ms Catherine Flew, Saferworld
Mr L. Mensah, SaferAfrica

Drawing on the results of the law enforcement and civil society workshops, and population surveys the NNFP has developed a NAP for Arms Management and Disarmament in Namibia. Four documents have been developed as follows:

the NAP which details the topics, objectives and tasks;
the NAP Activity Schedule which details the first year of implementation of the NAP, detailing when the tasks will take place, where and who will be responsible;
the outline budget which details the estimated costs for the activities identified for implementation in the Activity Schedule; and the
Preliminary Activity Schedule and costing.

The NAP, was approved by the Cabinet of the Government of Namibia on the 2nd November 2004 and is now due for implementation.