1. why in news
1.1. Germany for the first time has recognised that it committed genocide against the Herero and Nama people
1.1.1. in present-day Namibia
1.1.2. during its colonial rule over a century ago,
1.1.3. and promised financial support of over a billion euros to the Southern African nation.
1.1.4. Between 1904 and 1908,
1.1.4.1. German colonial settlers killed tens of thousands of men, women and children from the Herero and Nama tribes
1.1.4.1.1. after they rebelled against colonial rule in what was then called German South West Africa.
1.1.4.1.2. Germany has previously acknowledged the atrocities, they refused to pay direct reparations for many years.
1.1.5. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas announced
1.1.5.1. a fund of €1.1 billion ($1.2 billion) to help aid community projects in Namibia.
2. Herero and Nama Genocide
2.1. Between 1884 and 1890
2.1.1. Germany formally colonised parts of present-day Namibia
2.2. By 1903,
2.2.1. around 3,000 German settlers had occupied the central high ground of the region.
2.3. Tensions quickly rose as local tribes saw the German settlers as a threat to their land and resources
2.3.1. The conflict reached a boiling point in 1904, when the Herero nation — a primarily pastoral community — rebelled against the Germans,
2.3.1.1. were closely followed by the Nama tribe.
2.4. Violence first broke out between Herero fighters and German settlers
2.4.1. outnumbered by the well-armed Hereros fighters,
2.4.1.1. the military commander and governor of the colony at the time, Major Theodor Leutwein, decided to broker a settlement to end the conflict
2.4.1.1.1. But Berlin demanded a military solution
2.5. The Germans continued to rule the region till 1915,
2.5.1. following which it fell under South Africa’s control for 75 years.
2.6. Namibia finally gained independence in 1990.
2.7. Considered as the first genocide of the 21st Century
3. Affect of the acceptance by Germany
3.1. Declaration will be signed and ratified by both countries
3.1.1. President Frank-Walter Steinmeier is then expected to officially apologize for Germany’s crimes in front of the Namibian Parliament
3.2. Germany’s financial package worth 1.1 billion euros will be paid separately to existing aid programmes in the country over the next three decades
3.2.1. sum will go towards projects relating to land reform, rural infrastructure, water supply and professional training,