Hans Joachim Berker (1924–1992) was a Namibian judge. He served as the first Chief Justice in the

Supreme Court of Namibia The Supreme Court of Namibia is the highest court in the judicial system of Namibia. It is the court of last resort and the highest appellate court in the country. It is located in the city centre of Namibia's capital city, Windhoek. A Supreme Co ...

from 1990 to 1992.

Biography

Berker was born on 28 March 1924 in Hamburg, Germany. His family moved to South West Africa in 1928, and Berker attended school in Windhoek. He obtained a B.A. from Rhodes University in Grahamstown, South Africa, and later an

LL.B Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

from Oxford University, United Kingdom. During his career Berker was known to be a liberal who opposed apartheid. He defended

SWAPO The South West Africa People's Organisation (, SWAPO; af, Suidwes-Afrikaanse Volks Organisasie, SWAVO; german: Südwestafrikanische Volksorganisation, SWAVO), officially known as the SWAPO Party of Namibia, is a political party and former ind ...

activists Aaron Mushimba and Hendrik Shikongo, accused of the 1975 assassination of a senior church figure of former

Ovamboland Ovamboland, also referred to as Owamboland, was a Bantustan in South West Africa (present-day Namibia), intended by the apartheid government to be a self-governing homeland for the Ovambo people. The term originally referred to the parts of ...

. Berker became president of the High Court in Windhoek on 1 March 1983, succeeding Frans Badenhorst. He later served as Judge President of the Supreme Court of South West Africa. On 21 March 1990, the day of Namibian independence, he was appointed Chief Justice at the newly founded

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

of Namibia. After his death he was succeeded by Ismael Mahomed.

Private life

Berker was married to Marianne Berker, née Leis. He was an avid sportsman in his private life, winning Class II of the 1973 Cape to Rio yacht race. Berker died in Windhoek on 5 July 1992.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Berker, Hans Joachim 1924 births 1992 deaths White Namibian people German emigrants to Namibia Rhodes University alumni Alumni of the University of Oxford Chief justices of Namibia Namibian lawyers People from Windhoek 20th-century Namibian lawyers