Berlin: German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said Wednesday that his country was close to reaching a reconciliation deal with Namibia over what is described as the first genocide of the 20th century.
Maas told the ARD public broadcaster that Berlin hosted another round of talks with Namibian officials last week. The southern African nation wants Germany to pay repatriations for the slaughter of tens of thousands from 1904-1907.
“We want to have a result, and I am certain now that there is a possibility of us reaching an agreement by the end of next week, in which we will take responsibility for what we did there [in Namibia],” Maas said.
German imperial forces cracked down on an uprising of Herero and Nama people in what was then a German colony in 1904, driving thousands away into the desert and locking up many more in concentration camps where they were starved and worked to death.
