Windhoek — Children in Otavi's informal settlement, some of whom are as young as six years old, regularly beg for water from residents who live in other suburbs and spend each day at a rubbish dump site looking for food. These were some of the findings by a Legal Assistance Centre (LAC) documentation project.

During consultations throughout this year, LAC staff also witnessed that community toilets were in a "deplorable" state.

"Water in the toilets, built to service the more than 4 000 residents, has been turned off. Instead, people have used the entrance and surrounding area of the toilets to relieve themselves, leaving a pool of human waste surrounding the area," the LAC said in a statement. According to a resident of Otavi's informal settlement, Martha Lukas, the situation is aggravated during the rainy season as exposure to the waste often results in diseases like diarrhoea, malaria and cholera.

Norman Tjombe, director of the LAC, said the situation is a violation of fundamental freedoms such as access to fair public services, the right to proper housing and the right to safe living conditions. "This is really about fundamental freedoms - the right to dignity, the right to safety and security and the right to non-discrimination, based on socio-economic status," he said.

The LAC now plans on taking legal action against the municipality for failing to provide adequate sanitation and water facilities to the community.