Join the celebrations this year for the 35th anniversary of Namibia’s liberation and independence, a unique African nation that tells a fascinating story in the history of Africa, as it gained its independence in 1990 at the end of the Cold War and the advent of a new era.
A unique African liberation story
From the 1950s onwards most African countries gained their independence as the decolonisation movement swept across the continent, with the backdrop of the Cold War power struggles influencing many liberation movements of the time.
Journalist and writer John Grobler says ‘Namibia became independent right at the end of the previous cold war. That schism you saw in the other African countries … were they going to become a Marxist-socialist government or a totally capitalist country? Namibia’s managed to navigate a kind of middle road’.
Colonial past
In 1884 Namibia became a German colony and was named South-West Africa, during which it endured decades of brutal colonial repression, including the 1908 genocide that killed up to 100,000 Herero and Nama people. After the German defeat in World War I the country was taken over by South Africa as a colony and ruled with the same apartheid laws that excluded political rights for black Namibians, while also limiting their social and economic influence.
From the 1970s onwards guerilla groups started to escalate independence revolts and armed struggle, in an era when neighbouring countries Zambia and Angola gained independence. One of the main groups activating this struggle was the South West Africa People’s Organisation (SWAPO) and its military units.
Dawn of independence
In 1988 South Africa gave up control of the country and on March 21 1990 Namibia gained its freedom as Sam Numoja was elected as its first president, one of the founders of the SWAPO independence movement in the 1960s, ultimately ruling the country until 2005.
The SWAPO party was voted in with a huge majority, and have ruled continuously to this day in free and democratic elections, scoring relatively highly on political and civil liberties rankings by Freedom House.
Moving on from Apartheid
Namibia under South African rule shared many of the Apartheid policies of the time, in which structural racism was written into law. Since independence, politics has become less focused on race and more on social and economic issues facing the country.
John Grobler says “I think we’ve made a critical move forward out of racism … the template of race as a way of reading politics, that’s sort of fading away … there’s a real sense of Namibian identity now”.
Environmental struggles and victories
The country’s name comes from the Namib desert and Nama people, meaning ‘vast place‘ in its Nama origin. The desert stretches almost 2000 km along the Atlantic Ocean, home to the biggest sand dunes in the world and almost as dry as the Atacama desert in Chile. Today Namibia has the second lowest population density in the world, behind only Mongolia.
John Grobler states “there’s a lot of effort that’s been put into getting more environmental awareness … but that always gets bulldozed over any time there’s a money making opportunity”. Recent struggles have included the controversy of Rosewood tree deforestation and recent rises in Rhino poaching.
Diversity of people sharing the land
Namibia is home to many ethnic groups and peoples that are now better represented in politics and in the economic life of the country. However in terms of how land is used and rights are given to traditional communities, the question is slightly more complicated.
“The people living on the land, they’re protective of it. But they simply get overruled from on high. We have areas placed under traditional communities control for conservation … but you have the same ministry approving mining for copper on that same land” John Grobler shares.
Moving forward
Despite being a difficult country to grow crops in after years of drought, Namibia is home to a diverse range of wildlife and a rich biodiversity of tree species. Groups such as Conservation Namibia have launched initiatives and apps to record and conserve wildlife, whilst Namibia Nature Foundation work to protect biodiversity and fight climate change via projects such as sustainable forestry.
John Grobler contextualises that “environmental movements are now a real political force … this is being pro nature and it’s less politically charged for those of a different skin colour, or come from less fortunate circumstances”.
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Let’s make a difference and celebrate the beauty and resilience of African nations and our planet. Happy Namibia Independence Day!
