The Namibian truth and reconciliation façade

From the outset, one could ask the relevant and critical question, “who in the Namibian Republic reconciled with who?”

This question is appropriately loaded, as the word "reconciliation" documentarily appears only in the preamble of the supreme law of the country, the Namibian Constitution.

The grapevine has it that ‘it is a documented Swapo policy’.

However, the author is neither familiar with the party’s reconciliation document, nor is the party overall representative of the Namibian nation.

That is, regardless of the 1978 United Nations recognition of the same entity as “the sole authentic representative of the Namibian people”.

After all, that UN recognition was coined and instituted without the overall consultation and agreement of the entire Namibian population, let alone the views of other independent countries that may be aware of the destructive dangers of such recognition.

The author grappled with this crucial issue as a motion while he served as a Swanu parliamentarian from 2017 to 2024.

However, important issues raised by opposition parties in the Namibian Parliament are systematically addressed to ultimately favour the ruling majority party. Since Independence, National Speakers of the Assembly have been members of the ruling party.

Crucial issues considered not in favour of the ‘powers that be’ are twisted and made obsolete. This renders important issues like the National Truth and Reconciliation a façade.

Another pertinent issue the author elucidated during the same period was a letter of complaint about “The ruthless, uncontrollable monster the UN created for Namibians without their consent”.

The November 21st, 2019 letter was addressed to the UN Secretary General, HE Antonio Gutteres.

To put the record straight and consequently, expose the hypocrisy of the world we live in, that letter was cc’d to all media houses in Namibia; Amnesty International, The African Union Commission, Human Rights Watch, The International Crisis Group, The Global Afrikan Congress - North American Region, The Commonwealth Secretariat, Socialist Party of Canada (SPC), The Socialist International, Social Democratic Party of Germany, Social Democratic Party (Japan), Left-Green Movement or Vinstrihreyfingin – groen framboo (Iceland), Left Alliance or Vasemmisto Liito (Finland), Socialist Left Party or Socialistisk Venstreparti (Norway)

To the author’s surprise and disappointment, none of the Namibian media published the letter. No acknowledgement or response from the UN Secretary-General’s office or any of the organisations cc’d.

Pertinent issues

Constant political preaching about national reconciliation, while in practice there are no measures for implementation, makes it even more of a façade.

If as a nation we don’t take care of these pertinent issues like tribalism, racism, nepotism and drifting apart, the much desired and yearned for “one Namibia one nation” concept will remain a pipedream, never to be achieved.

While in Parliament, we were faced with statements like “we are not South Africans; why do you think we should do it the same way? Do you undermine the ‘Father of the Nation’s reconciliation directive’?”

The crux of the matter is that we may want to do it the Namibian way, but we need documentary evidence of how we approach it.

The government should make concerted efforts to reconcile, unify, and amalgamate the nation. We cannot be fooled into believing that just by appearing once in the country’s Constitution preamble, the nation is reconciled.

That can only be good and acceptable to hand clappers and ‘blind loyalists’.  

The author repeatedly noted that other countries have volumes of extensive documents detailing how they tackled the explosive issue of truth and reconciliation.

At least, even interested scholars, researchers, and futurists would have references for the required scholarly continuation.

The norm of anyone referring to or trying to scrutinise sensitive yet pertinent issues of national prime importance is seen as ‘troublemakers or enemy agents.’ This should not be entertained in a country where we claim to enjoy freedom of expression, speech and association.  

A country like Namibia, well documented in terms of land expropriation during the colonial era, deserves well-thought-through restitution mechanisms.

Various ethnic groups in colonial Namibia used to be inundated with false propaganda to hate and rival other ethnic groups.

Tyranical misdeeds

Superficial tensions used to be the order of the day, which even led to the infamous Odendaal Commission being instituted, which unfortunately remains in place to this day.

Do these tyrannical misdeeds not require proper reconciliation, restitution, and closure so that the nation can eventually work towards lasting harmony?

Those who did not witness the agony of apartheid or those who know the destruction of tribalism yet pretend that our Independence is on the right footing, better rethink their stance.

If we do not interrogate, scrutinise, and rectify the mushrooming tribal, ethnic and regional tensions, we may as well prepare for the inevitable and ugly consequences of ethnic tensions that are indistinctly looming on our horizon.

As much as reconciliation is a process, there should be convincing, tangible steps indicating unity and harmony. Namibians in general had a raw deal both from apartheid and during the liberation struggle.

Incomplete, superficial, and piecemeal truths of national reconciliation may do more harm and cause more injustice than the desired redress and closure for the agony they endured.

The renowned “mandate of the League of Nations”, Namibia slipped into its 36th year of uhuru – sovereignty in 2026.

The unacceptable culture of intolerance, discrimination, corruption, arrogance, and false impunity prevailing in the country has yet to be thoroughly monitored, scrutinised, and evaluated.

If concerned responsible citizens or the UN, whose mandate it was, won’t do it, who will possibly come to the required rescue of fragile Namibians?  

All attempts to pull down the walls of silence and intimidation and to initiate a genuine, truthful and national dialogue that can lead to truth, national reconciliation, peace and closure have been thwarted and rebuffed since Independence.

The UN and the international community are either complicit or bear a solemn responsibility towards those Namibians who perished and those who survived the horrendous episode in the history of our country. Otherwise, it remains unacceptable to blindfold citizens with false national truth and reconciliation, which in earnest proves to be a façade.  

*Dr Tangeni Cornelius Kakweno Iijambo – PhD, Michigan State University, USA. Former PLAN fighter; President of SWANU and Namibian Parliamentarian 2017 – 2024.