Namibia

History

• Pre-history

  History of Namibia – First Settlements 25 000 B.C. the first humans lived in the Huns Mountains As early as 25 000 B.C., the first humans lived in the Huns Mountains in the South of Namibia. The painted stone plates that exist from that time not only prove that these settlements existed, they also belong among the oldest works of art in the world. A fragment of a hominoid jaw, estimated to be thirteen Million years old, was found in the Otavi Mountains. Findings of Stone Age weapons and tools are further proof that a long time ago early humans already hunted the wild animals of the region.

  Rock paintings in the Brandberg Mountains In the Brandberg Mountains, there are numerous rock paintings, most of them originating from around 2000 B.C. There is no reliable indication as to which ethnic groups created them. It is dubitable whether the San (Bushmen), who alongside the Damara are the oldest ethnic group in Namibia, were the creators of these paintings. The Nama only settled in southern Africa and southern Namibia during the first century B.C. In contrast to the San and Damara, they lived on the livestock they bred themselves.

  The dry lands of Namibia were inhabited since early times by San, Damara, and Nama. From about the 14th century, immigrating Bantu people arrived during the Bantu expansion from central Africa. The first agriculturalists and iron workers of definite Bantu-speaking origin in southern Africa belonged to the Gokomere culture. They settled the temperate savannah and cooler uplands of Zimbabwe and were the first occupants of the Great Zimbabwe site, in the southeastern part of modern-day Zimbabwe, where a well-sheltered valley presented an obvious place to settle. Cattle ranching became the mainstay of the community and earlier hunting-and-gathering San groups either retreated to the west or were enslaved and/or absorbed.

  At the same time, the San communities were also coming under pressure from Khoi-Khoi (the ancestors of the Nama), who probably entered the region from the south. The Khoi-Khoi were organized loosely into tribes and raised livestock. They gradually displaced the San, becoming the dominant group in the region until around 1500. During the 16th century, the Herero arrived in Namibia from the Zambezi Valley and occupied the north and west of the country. As ambitious pastoralists, they inevitably came into conflict with the Khoi-Khoi over the best grazing lands and water sources. Eventually, given their superior strength and numbers, nearly all the indigenous Namibian groups submitted to the Herero.

• European Contact

  During the 17th century the Herero, a pastoral, nomadic people keeping cattle, moved into Namibia. They came from the East African lakes and entered Namibia from the northwest. First, they resided in Kaokoland, but in the middle of the 19th century, some tribes moved farther south and into Damaraland. A number of tribes remained in Kaokoland: these were the Himba people, who are still there today. During the German occupation of South West Africa, about one-third of the population was wiped out in a genocide that continues to provoke widespread indignation. An apology was sought in more recent times.

  The first Europeans to disembark and explore the region were the Portuguese navigators Diogo Cão in 1485 and Bartolomeu Dias in 1486, but the Portuguese crown did not try to claim the area. Like most of interior Sub-Saharan Africa, Namibia was not extensively explored by Europeans until the 19th century. At that time traders and settlers came principally from Germany and Sweden. In the late 19th century, Dorsland Trekkers crossed the area on their way from the South African Republic to Angola. Some of them settled in Namibia instead of continuing their journey.

  Because Namibia has one of the world’s most barren and inhospitable coastlines, it was largely ignored by the European nations until relatively recently. The first European visitors were Portuguese mariners seeking a route to the Indies in the late 15th century, but they confined their activities to erecting stone crosses at certain points as navigational aids.
  It wasn’t until the last-minute scramble for colonies towards the end of the 19th century that Namibia was annexed by Germany (except for the enclave of Walvis Bay, which was taken in 1878 by the British for the Cape Colony).

  From the late 18th century onwards, Oorlam people from Cape Colony crossed the Orange River and moved into the area that today is southern Namibia. Their encounters with the nomadic Nama tribes were largely peaceful. The missionaries accompanying the Oorlam were well received by them, the right to use waterholes and grazing was granted against an annual payment. On their way further northwards, however, the Oorlam encountered clans of the Herero at Windhoek, Gobabis, and Okahandja, who resisted their encroachment. The Nama-Herero War broke out in 1880, with hostilities ebbing only after the German Empire deployed troops to the contested places and cemented the status quo among the Nama, Oorlam, and Herero.

• Colonial German

  The first territorial claim on a part of Namibia came when Britain occupied Walvis Bay, confirming the settlement of 1797, and permitted the Cape Colony to annex it in 1878. The annexation was an attempt to forestall German ambitions in the area, and it also guaranteed control of the good deepwater harbor on the way to the Cape Colony and other British colonies on Africa’s east coast. In 1883, a German trader, Adolf Lüderitz, bought Angra Pequena from the Nama chief Josef Frederiks II. Believing that Britain was soon about to declare the whole area a protectorate, Lüderitz advised the German chancellor Otto von Bismarck to claim it. In 1884 Bismarck did so, thereby establishing German South West Africa as a colony.

  A region, the Caprivi Strip, became a part of German South West Africa after the Heligoland-Zanzibar Treaty on 1 July 1890, between the United Kingdom and Germany. The Caprivi Strip in Namibia gave Germany access to the Zambezi River and thereby to German colonies in East Africa. In exchange for the island of Heligoland in the North Sea, Britain took control of the island of Zanzibar in East Africa. Soon after declaring Lüderitz and a vast area along the Atlantic coast a German protectorate, German troops were deployed as conflicts with the native tribes flared up, most significantly with the Namaqua. Under the leadership of the tribal chief Hendrik Witbooi, the Namaqua put up a fierce resistance to the German occupation. The Namaqua’s resistance proved to be unsuccessful, however, and in 1894 Witbooi was forced to sign a “protection treaty” with the Germans.

  Being the only German colony considered suitable for white settlement at the time, Namibia attracted a large influx of German settlers. In 1903 there were 3,700 Germans living in the area, and by 1910 their number had increased to 13,000. Another reason for German settlement was the discovery of diamonds in 1908. Diamond production continues to be a very important part of Namibia’s economy. The settlers were encouraged by the government to expropriate land from the natives, and forced labor hard to distinguish from slavery – was used. As a result, relations between the German settlers and the natives deteriorated.

  From 1904 to 1907, the Herero and the Namaqua took up arms against brutal German colonialism. In a calculated punitive action by the German occupiers, what has been called the ‘first genocide of the Twentieth Century’ was committed, as government officials ordered extinction of the natives. In the Herero and Namaqua genocide, the Germans systematically killed 10,000 Nama (half the population) and approximately 65,000 Herero (about 80% of the population). The survivors, when finally released from detention, were subjected to a policy of dispossession, deportation, forced labor, racial segregation, and discrimination in a system that in many ways anticipated the apartheid established by South Africa in 1948.

• Herero Wars

  During the Scramble for Africa, South West Africa was claimed by Germany in August 1884. At that time, it was the only overseas German territory deemed suitable for white settlement. German colonists arriving in the following years occupied large areas of land, ignoring any claims by the Herero, Namaqua, and other natives. There was continual resistance by the natives. At the beginning of the war the Herero, under the leadership of chief Samuel Maharero had the upper hand. With good knowledge of the terrain, they had little problem in defending themselves against the Schutztruppe (initially numbering only 766). Soon the Namaqua people joined the war, again under the leadership of Hendrik Witbooi.

  To cope with the situation, Germany sent 14,000 additional troops who soon crushed the rebellion in the Battle of Waterberg in 1904. Earlier von Trotha issued an ultimatum to the Herero, denying them citizenship rights and ordering them to leave the country or be killed. In order to escape, the Herero retreated into the waterless Omaheke region, a western arm of the Kalahari Desert, where many of them died of thirst. The German forces guarded every water source and were given orders to shoot any adult male Herero on sight. Only a few of them managed to escape into neighboring British territories. These tragic events, known as the Herero and Namaqua Genocide, resulted in the death of between 24,000 and 65,000 Herero (estimated at 50% to 70% of the total Herero population) and 10,000 Nama (50% of the total Nama population). The genocide was characterized by widespread death by starvation and from consumption of well water which had been poisoned by the Germans in the Namib Desert.

  In October 1904, General Lothar von Trotha issued orders to kill every male Herero and drive women and children into the desert. As soon as the news of this order reached Germany, it was repealed,[citation needed] but Trotha initially ignored Berlin. When the extermination order was finally suspended at the end of 1904, surviving tribesmen were herded into concentration camps, while others were transferred as slave labor to German businesses; many Herero died of overwork and malnutrition. It took the Germans until 1908 to re-establish authority over the territory. By that time tens of thousands of Africans estimates range from 34,000 to 110,000 had been either killed or died of thirst while fleeing. 65,000 of 80,000 Hereros and at least 10,000 of 20,000 Nama.

• South African rule

  In 1915, during World War I, British and South African forces occupied it in the so-called South West Africa Campaign. South African troops under General Louis Botha occupied the territory and deposed the German colonial administration. The end of the war and the Treaty of Versailles left South Africa in possession of South West Africa as a League of Nations mandate. The mandate system was formed as a compromise between those who advocated an Allied annexation of former German and Turkish territories, and another proposition put forward by those who wished to grant them to an international trusteeship until they could govern themselves. It permitted the South African government to administer South-West Africa for an undefined period until that territory’s inhabitants were prepared for political self-determination. However, South Africa interpreted the mandate as a veiled annexation and made no attempt to prepare South West Africa for future autonomy.

  In February 1917, Mandume Ya Ndemufayo, the last king of the Kwanyama of Ovamboland, was killed in a joint[clarification needed] attack by South African forces for resisting South African sovereignty over his people. On 17 December 1920, South Africa undertook the administration of South West Africa under the terms of Article 22 of the Covenant of the League of Nations and a Class C Mandate agreement by the League Council. The Class C mandate, supposed to be used for the least developed territories, gave South Africa full power of administration and legislation over the territory but required that South Africa promote the material and moral well-being and social progress of the people.

  Following the League’s supersession by the United Nations in 1946, South Africa refused to surrender its earlier mandate to be replaced by a United Nations Trusteeship agreement, requiring closer international monitoring of the territory’s administration. Although the South African government wanted to incorporate South West Africa into its territory, it never officially did so, although it was administered as the de facto ‘fifth province’, with the white minority having representation in the whites-only Parliament of South Africa. In 1959, the colonial forces in Windhoek sought to remove black residents further away from the white area of town. The residents protested and the subsequent killing of eleven protesters spawned a major Namibian nationalist following and the formation of united black opposition to the South African rule.

  During the late 1950s and early 1960s, pressure for global decolonization and national self-determination began mounting on the African continent; these factors had a radical impact on South West African nationalism. Early nationalist organizations such as the South West African National Union (SWANU) and South West African People’s Organisation (SWAPO) made determined attempts to establish indigenous political structures for an independent South West Africa. In 1966, following the ICJ’s controversial ruling that it had no legal standing to consider the question of the South African rule, SWAPO launched an armed insurgency which escalated into part of a wider regional conflict known as the South African Border War.

• Struggle for Independence

  Forced labor had been a lot of most Namibians since the German annexation. This was one of the main factors that led to mass demonstrations and the development of nationalism in the late 1950s. Around this time, a number of political parties were formed and strikes organized. By 1960 most of these parties had merged to form the South West Africa People’s Organization (Swapo), which took the issue of South African occupation to the International Court of Justice. The outcome was inconclusive, but in 1966 the UN General Assembly voted to terminate South Africa’s mandate and set up a Council for South West Africa (in 1973 renamed the Commission for Namibia) to administer the territory. At the same time, Swapo launched its campaign of guerrilla warfare. The South African government reacted by firing on demonstrators and arresting thousands of activists.

  In 1975 the Democratic Turnhalle Alliance (DTA) was officially established. Formed from a combination of white political interests and ethnic parties, it turned out to be a toothless debating chamber, which spent much of its time in litigation with the South African government over its scope of responsibility. The DTA was dissolved in 1983 after it had indicated it would accommodate members of Swapo. It was replaced by the Multiparty Conference, which had even less success and quickly disappeared. And so control of Namibia passed back to the South African–a­ppointed administrator-general.

  The failure of these attempts to set up an internal government did not deter South Africa from maintaining its grip on Namibia. It refused to negotiate on a UN-supervised programme for Namibian independence until the estimated 19, 000 Cuban troops were removed from neighboring Angola. In response, Swapo intensified its guerrilla campaign. In the end, however, it might not have been the activities of Swapo alone or international sanctions that forced the South Africans to the negotiating table. The white Namibian population itself was growing tired of the war and the economy was suffering badly.

  The stage was finally set for negotiations on the country’s future. Under the watch of the UN, the USA and the USSR, a deal was struck between Cuba, Angola, South Africa and Swapo, in which Cuban troops would be removed from Angola and South African troops from Namibia. This would be followed by UN-monitored elections held in November 1989 on the basis of universal suffrage. Swapo collected a clear majority of the votes but an insufficient number to give it the sole mandate to write the new constitution. Following negotiations between the various parties, a constitution was adopted in February 1990. Independence was granted the following month under the presidency of the Swapo leader, Sam Nujoma. Initially, his policies focused on programs of reconstruction and national reconciliation to heal the wounds left by 25 years of armed struggle.

• Independent Namibia

  On March 21, 1990, the South African flag was lowered and Namibia’s raised at the National Stadium; Namibia subsequently joined the Commonwealth, the UN, and the Organization of African Unity (now the African Union). Diplomatic relations were established with many countries. The Namibian Defense Force—which included members of PLAN as well as the former South West African Territory Force—was created with the assistance of British military advisers.

  Since independence, Namibia has successfully completed the transition from white minority apartheid rule to parliamentary democracy. Multiparty democracy was introduced and has been maintained, with local, regional and national elections held regularly. Several registered political parties are active and represented in the National Assembly, although the SWAPO has won every election since independence. The transition from the 15-year rule of President Sam Nujoma to his successor Hifikepunye Pohamba in 2005 went smoothly.

  In 2004 the world watched warily to see if Nujoma would cling to the office of power for a fourth term, and an almost audible sigh of relief could be heard in Namibia when he announced that he would finally be stepping down in favor of his chosen successor Hifikepunye Pohamba. Like Sam Nujoma, Pohamba is a Swapo veteran and swept to power with nearly 77% of the vote. He leaves behind the land ministry where he presided over one of Namibia’s most controversial schemes – the expropriation of land from white farmers to black citizens.

  Presidential and parliamentary elections were held on November 28, 2014. With Pohamba barred from standing for a third term as president, Prime Minister Hage Geingob was SWAPO’s presidential candidate. Geingob won easily, with 86.73 percent of the vote, and SWAPO won an overwhelming majority in the parliamentary vote. Geingob was inaugurated on March 21, 2015, which was Namibia’s 25th anniversary of independence.

   

• Source:

  https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/wa.html

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Namibia#Pre-colonial_period

  https://www.britannica.com/place/Namibia/History

  https://www.encyclopedia.com/places/africa/namibia-political-geography/namibia

  http://www.earth-cultures.co.uk/cultures/people-of-namibia

  http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/namibia/overview

  https://www.doingbusinessnamibia.com/agriculture

  https://www.mfw4a.org/namibia/financial-sector-profile.html

  https://www.mfw4a.org/namibia/financial-sector-profile.html

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Namibia

  http://ippr.org.na/blog/namibia-global-competitiveness-rankings/

  https://www.lonelyplanet.com/namibia/history

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tourism_in_Namibia

  http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Africa/Burkina-Faso-INDUSTRY.html#ixzz5KS12DaOS