Unity does not require surrender

Calls for unity often fail because people hear the word “unity” and assume that they are being asked to surrender their history, leadership or dignity. If Ovambanderu reconciliation is to succeed, we must address that fear from the beginning. Unity cannot mean that one group arrives at the table as the victor and everybody else arrives as the defeated.

The different Ovambanderu constituencies did not emerge for no reason. There are historical disagreements, questions of succession, interpretations of customary law, personal wounds and experiences of exclusion. Some of these matters have been litigated for years. We cannot simply declare those experiences irrelevant. At the same time, we cannot allow them to become a permanent inheritance.

The recent Supreme Court ruling makes a new approach particularly urgent. If the law does not permit competing traditional authorities to be established for the same traditional community, then our future cannot sensibly be built around an endless search for separate statutory recognition. We need to build space within one community.

That means the recognised Ovambanderu Traditional Authority must also consider what unity requires from it. Reconciliation cannot place obligations only on those currently outside the recognised structure.

A strong institution should be confident enough to open its doors, listen to criticism and accommodate different constituencies without feeling threatened.

Likewise, leaders and supporters associated with Aletta Nguvauva, Tjingaete Boas, Katutura Tjiramba, Hoveka and others should consider whether the long-term interests of their followers are better served through continued separation or through negotiated participation in a broader Ovambanderu settlement.

Nobody should be required to deny whom they supported.

Nobody should be forced to rewrite history. Nobody should be humiliated. Instead, we should negotiate a framework that recognises the dignity and contribution of the different houses and constituencies while preserving one lawful traditional authority for the community.

Such a framework could provide meaningful advisory and customary roles for respected leaders and elders. It could establish representation from different geographical areas, royal houses, women and youth.

It could create transparent procedures for succession, dispute resolution and constitutional interpretation so that future disagreements do not automatically become court cases.

We should also revisit the Ovambanderu Constitution collectively. If ambiguities have contributed to conflict, then the answer should not be competing constitutions and authorities. The community can undertake an inclusive process to strengthen its own constitutional arrangements, while respecting the law

and customary traditions.

Reconciliation will require humility from everyone. Those who believe they have been legally vindicated must resist triumphalism. Those whose legal efforts have failed must resist permanent withdrawal. Leaders must sometimes accept that preserving a people is more important than preserving a position.

Coexisting

Our ancestors did not survive so that their descendants could perfect the art of dividing themselves. One Ovambanderu community can contain many respected voices. Unity is not silence. Unity is the decision that disagreement will no longer make us strangers. Nobody needs to surrender their dignity.

What we need to surrender is the idea that Ovambanderu can only coexist by living permanently apart.

This opinion is written in the author's personal capacity as a contribution to dialogue, unity and reconciliation. The conversation about Ovambanderu unity must move beyond speeches and social-media discussions. If we believe reconciliation is necessary, we must create a practical process through which it can happen.

I propose the convening of an Ovambanderu Unity and Reconciliation Conference. Such a conference should not begin with electing or endorsing a chief. If leadership positions become the first agenda item, the process may collapse before trust has been established. The first purpose must be to bring Ovambanderu back to one table.

Before the conference, establish a small, independent preparatory committee. It should consist of respected elders, clergy, women, youth, professionals and customary-law experts who are acceptable across the main constituencies.

Their first responsibility should be listening. They should consult separately with the recognised Ovambanderu Traditional Authority and representatives associated with Aletta Nguvauva, Tjingaete Boas, Katutura Tjiramba, Hoveka, and other relevant Ovambanderu constituencies.

Each group should be asked three questions: What happened? What continues to hurt? What would make genuine reconciliation possible? Those submissions should then inform the unity conference agenda. The conference should recognise that reconciliation is not the same as determining who was historically

right about every dispute. Some questions may never receive unanimous answers. Instead, delegates should identify what we can agree on now.

Can we agree that we are one people? Can we agree that our children should not inherit our divisions? Can we agree that the dignity of all Ovambanderu houses and constituencies should be respected? Can we agree that future leadership disputes should be resolved through clear customary and constitutional mechanisms before litigation becomes necessary? Can we agree upon common development priorities?

From there, the conference could adopt an Ovambanderu Unity Covenant. That covenant could commit leaders and community members to peaceful dispute resolution, mutual respect, preservation of culture, youth development, transparent traditional governance and the rejection of factional humiliation.

It could also establish a permanent reconciliation council to address unresolved grievances.

Most importantly, the conference should launch a development agenda. Ovambanderu unity must produce tangible benefits. We should consider a scholarship fund, agricultural development programmes, youth entrepreneurship, cultural documentation, preservation of historical sites, support for vulnerable families and mechanisms for collective investment.

Imagine an annual Ovambanderu gathering attended by everybody. Imagine our different leaders standing on one platform. Imagine children who know the names of their ancestors but do not need to know which faction their parents belonged to. This is achievable, but someone must begin.

Government may facilitate if invited. Churches and respected national figures may assist. But the process must belong to Ovambanderu themselves.

We should not wait for another funeral, another dispute or another court case to remind us that we are related. The recent Supreme Court ruling may have clarified what the law does not allow.

Our responsibility now is to decide what we can do through courage. Let us call the conference.

Let us come without demanding surrender.

Let us bring our grievances, but also bring solutions.

And when we leave that gathering, let us leave with something our community has needed for many years:

a road back to one another. (to be continued)