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| Title: | The Politics of Population Control in Namibia |
| Author: | Lindsay, Jenny |
| Book title: | Women and Health in Africa |
| Year: | 1991 |
| Pages: | 143-167 |
| Language: | English |
| Geographic term: | Namibia |
| Subjects: | population policy family planning women Health, Nutrition, and Medicine Politics and Government Demographics |
| Abstract: | This paper addresses a method of population control pursued by the government of South Africa in Namibia before independence, viz. the institution of a family planning programme which uses Depo-Provera (an injectable hormonal contraceptive) and forced sterilization to bring down birth rates. The author bases her findings on research carried out between 1983 and 1986 among Namibian women and physicians in Katatura, a black township near Windhoek. In Katatura Hospital, women interviewed confirmed that Depo-Provera injections are given on the labour wards after delivery and that patients are afforded little opportunity for informed consent or refusal. Most Namibian women with experience of Depo-Provera complain of side effects. Teenagers are a specific group targeted by Depo-Provera campaigns because of the high rate of pregnancy among girls. Health personnel have abused other forms of medical intervention such as the insertion of intrauterine devices and operations for sterilization without permission. The problem of infertility worries many black Namibian women, but the medical services give it scant attention. The paper concludes with some suggestions for population control policies in independent Namibia. Notes (p. 222). |
