Controversy swirls around 1988 Oshakati bombing

Namibian church leaders have been vocal in their condemnation of real or imaginary crimes committed by the former apartheid regime of South Africa, but they have been reluctant to point out atrocities committed by the former liberation movement. This was said by community activist and former freedom fighter Samson Ndeikwila in an open letter addressed to Christian churches, ecclesiastical bodies and civil society organisations in Namibia. Ndeikwila, who is the head of the Forum For the Future (FFF), said he wrote the letter in his private capacity as a Christian to criticise what he describes as the perpetuation of misinformation surrounding the Oshakati bomb blast of 1988 in which close to 30 people were killed and 50 injured. He said the churches and Namibians in general have believed that the bomb was planted by agents of the South African regime and that is the message sent out when the deadly blast is commemorated on February 19 every year. Ndeikwila says concrete evidence is now available proving that the bomb was not planted by South African agents and churches have the responsibility to ensure that the dissemination of incorrect information is discontinued forthwith. He provides extensive quotes from a book written by retired judge Bryan O’Linn, who was the defence lawyer of Leonard Sheehama, a member of Swapo’s military wing who was arrested in connection with the Oshakati blast. Sheehama pleaded guilty in court at Ondangwa on August 16, 1988, but the case was discontinued when UN Security Council Resolution 435 was implemented in April 1, 1989. Sheehama was charged and convicted in connection with a bomb blast that killed five people in the Atlantic Meat Market in Walvis Bay on August 2, 1986. He was also accused of having been responsible for a bomb blast in the Post Office in Walvis Bay on November 12, 1987; another blast the same day in the municipal building in Kuisebmond; a bomb blast that damaged a school building at Okambebe on November 27, 1987 and a bomb blast at Eengwena village in March 1988. Sheehama was released from prison in Pretoria immediately after Namibian independence and was welcomed by Swapo leaders as a hero. He died a few years later. Speakers at the annual commemoration of the Oshakati bomb blast – including prominent church leaders and senior politicians - have persistently accused the former colonial regime of having been responsible for the deadly blast. Ndeikwila is urging them to rewrite their speeches this year. Using a Bible text (Matthew 7:13-14) as background, Ndeikwila urged Namibian church leaders to abandon “the broad road that leads to destruction” and to rather start following “the constricted road that leads to life”. An association representing former SWATF and Koevoet soldiers has also announced plans to commemorate the Oshakati bomb blast for the first time this year “to put the record straight”. OSHAKATI PLACIDO HILUKILWA