Hertta-Maria Amutenja
The Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) says it will only register those people who are classified as male or female on their identification documentation.
This comes amid concerns from activists and the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, intersex, and other (LGBTQI+) communities about the lack of inclusivity for non-binary and transgender individuals.
The activists argued that the binary gender options in the voter registration process are not inclusive.
In response to queries, ECN spokesperson De Wet Siluka made reference to the Civil Registration and Identification Bill.
“Please go through the Bill. If you see other genders apart from male or female then get back to me so that we answer your questions. I have never seen an ID with any other gender apart from male or female,” Siluka
He said that the Namibian constitution only refers to the two genders, male and female, and does not mention any other gender.
This has led to reluctance among some in the LGBTQ+ community to register to vote, citing disenfranchisement and exclusion.
A transgender woman, Mercedez von Cloete, said she was unaware of these issues.
“I did not know about this inconvenience. If we are encouraging everyone to vote, I think it is important that ECN makes sure that there are blocks for us to be able to tick from,” she said.
Queer Jay Aeron, who chose not to register to participate in the November elections, described the exclusion as frustrating and pointless.
“So it’s been frustrating and pointless to even sensitise any of us to be a part of democracy when there’s nothing in place to protect us, our gender identity, and our voices,” said Aeron.
Aeron further stated that he experiences discrimination from government offices whenever he seeks services.
“I face a lot of issues all the time and I’m sure all my trans and non-binary siblings do face all of these issues too, and it’s always government offices that allow and entertain this type of discrimination! Even the police offices are worse.”
Agapitus Hausiku, director of Outright Namibia, added that the issue extends beyond the ECN.
“We have met with ECN as part of their stakeholders, and we have addressed the issue. ECN’s excuse has always been the sodomy law, and that law will not allow inclusivity. But if the Namibia Statistics Agency also does not have that opinion, it makes it difficult. It’s an issue that is not just with ECN but in so many sectors; even the banks don’t allow transgender individuals to open accounts,” Hausiku said.
