Damaseb urged to reject Tanzania inquiry role
Namibian political parties are urging Judge Petrus Damaseb to decline a nomination to a Tanzanian commission of inquiry into post-election violence. Critics argue the appointment lacks transparency and risks legitimizing a process that ignores human rights concerns.
Why it matters
The controversy highlights the tension between international judicial cooperation and the ethical implications of participating in inquiries with questionable independence.
Political parties have called on deputy chief justice and judge president Petrus Damaseb to reject his nomination to serve on Tanzania’s post-election violence commission of inquiry.
Office of the Judiciary chief justice Peter Shivute nominated Damaseb to serve on the Tanzanian presidential commission of inquiry to investigate the root causes of violence that followed the general elections held in October 2025.
Affirmative Repositioning leader Job Amupanda accuses the Namibian government and the Judicial Service Commission of facilitating what he describes as a politically driven process following a request by the Tanzanian government for a Namibian judge to join the commission.
Meanwhile, Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) says Damaseb’s appointment does not address concerns over Namibia’s silence on alleged human rights abuses in the East African country.
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