Parliament is a neutral place where legislators meet to talk, discuss and consult frankly with each other on political, social and economic issues and their legal implications on society. It consists of elected and/or nominated representatives responsible for making and changing the laws of the country.
Namibia has passed from an eras in which the law-making processes were communal, and colonial rule where laws and administrative decision making were totally in the hands of the colonising countries.
The country went through a struggle for liberation which culminated in its Independence in 1990, when a Parliament that is truly representative of the Namibian people was established, based on the results of general elections. However, the traditional law-making process that was suppressed during the colonial period survived and the result of this historical development is the two legal systems namely, customary and statutory laws, that exist side by side in Namibia today.
Pre-Colonial Period
The common names of traditional institutions of law making included, amongest others /abe-/haos in Khoekhoegowab (Damara/Nama) , Oshoongalele in Oshiwambo, Ombungarero in Otjiherero, Kgotla in Setswana, Khuta in Silozi. These earlier councils existed and functioned on the basis of the society.