"Whoever falls into your hands shall be destroyed. Like the Huns did 1000 years ago" Kaiser Wilhelm II to his troops, July 27, 1900
AFTER reading your somewhat angry letter in the Namibian on March 12, I feel it appropriate to add a few remarks of my own.
First of all, as a historian, let me just note that I am pleased to
see that you and others have started a timely debate about the
1904-08 war.
There should be more debate to mark the centenary of an issue
that has obviously not been reconciled in spite of the fact that
German colonialism in Namibia ended some 89 years ago.
Let us embrace the centenary to reflect on the war, its
background and its consequences.
Secondly, your comments about Herero atrocities against San and
Damara are perhaps not as informed as they could have been.
In fact they seem rooted in an antiquated discourse based
largely on the un-referenced collection of hearsay published by
Dr.
Heinrich Vedder in 1934 which described pre-colonial Namibia as
"filled with bloody feuds and evil, murder and horror" (Vedder, p.
287).
Colonial apologists have often used this ahistorical narrative
to celebrate the advent of colonialism and the coming of the
Germans.
Thirdly, it is true that the San were indeed given a 'raw deal'
throughout the last many centuries.
However, we need to establish once and for all that the San,
Nama, Damara, Herero, Owambo and all other peoples of Namibia had
never experienced anything even remotely resembling the
manipulation, destruction and killing that German colonialism
brought to the territory.
The German national government, headed by Kaiser Wilhelm II,
presided over, if not designed, a calculated mass killing of
thousands upon thousands of Africans, a third of whom succumbed to
forced labour and subhuman conditions in concentration camps.
The mass dying of Herero, Nama and San in these camps went on
for several years, unabated and unhindered.
This resulted in a virtual depopulation of central and southern
Namibia, which allowed thousands upon thousands of German settlers
easy and inexpensive access to land and cattle that had been
expropriated by the Kaiser.
The mass dying effectively depleted the existing labour force in
the colony and with the arrival of new settlers the demand for
labour grew proportionally.
The result: Owambo, Kavango and Caprivian migrant labour.
The migrant labour system was physically, socially and
politically disruptive and has had a lasting impact on these and
other Namibian communities.
Consequently, I agree with you, when you say that the issue of
reparation is a national issue.
Primarily because practically all communities were in some way
affected by the events of 1904-08, including the German, English
and Afrikaans-speaking communities, although not as adversely.
In my humble opinion, therefore, Namibians have a moral
obligation to support the posing of certain legal question about
the events of 1904-08, because it puts on trial the concept of
colonialism in general and the morbid consequences of German
colonialism in particular.
As a Namibian, Mr. Ahrens ought not to fear the Herero case, but
to embrace it as an means of cleaning an old wound that refuses to
heal.
That being said, however, there is another pitfall, namely the
motives of the proponents of the case, who also happen to be
leading opposition politicians.
Do they see it as a national issue? If they won, where would the
money go? Perhaps this is where Mr.Ahrens ought to be focussing his
concerns, not the domestic problems of Germany and not the event of
pre-colonial Namibia.
Casper W. Erichsen
Historian
There should be more debate to mark the centenary of an issue that
has obviously not been reconciled in spite of the fact that German
colonialism in Namibia ended some 89 years ago.Let us embrace the
centenary to reflect on the war, its background and its
consequences.Secondly, your comments about Herero atrocities
against San and Damara are perhaps not as informed as they could
have been.In fact they seem rooted in an antiquated discourse based
largely on the un-referenced collection of hearsay published by
Dr.Heinrich Vedder in 1934 which described pre-colonial Namibia as
"filled with bloody feuds and evil, murder and horror" (Vedder, p.
287).Colonial apologists have often used this ahistorical narrative
to celebrate the advent of colonialism and the coming of the
Germans.Thirdly, it is true that the San were indeed given a 'raw
deal' throughout the last many centuries.However, we need to
establish once and for all that the San, Nama, Damara, Herero,
Owambo and all other peoples of Namibia had never experienced
anything even remotely resembling the manipulation, destruction and
killing that German colonialism brought to the territory.The German
national government, headed by Kaiser Wilhelm II, presided over, if
not designed, a calculated mass killing of thousands upon thousands
of Africans, a third of whom succumbed to forced labour and
subhuman conditions in concentration camps.The mass dying of
Herero, Nama and San in these camps went on for several years,
unabated and unhindered.This resulted in a virtual depopulation of
central and southern Namibia, which allowed thousands upon
thousands of German settlers easy and inexpensive access to land
and cattle that had been expropriated by the Kaiser.The mass dying
effectively depleted the existing labour force in the colony and
with the arrival of new settlers the demand for labour grew
proportionally.The result: Owambo, Kavango and Caprivian migrant
labour.The migrant labour system was physically, socially and
politically disruptive and has had a lasting impact on these and
other Namibian communities.Consequently, I agree with you, when you
say that the issue of reparation is a national issue.Primarily
because practically all communities were in some way affected by
the events of 1904-08, including the German, English and
Afrikaans-speaking communities, although not as adversely.In my
humble opinion, therefore, Namibians have a moral obligation to
support the posing of certain legal question about the events of
1904-08, because it puts on trial the concept of colonialism in
general and the morbid consequences of German colonialism in
particular.As a Namibian, Mr. Ahrens ought not to fear the Herero
case, but to embrace it as an means of cleaning an old wound that
refuses to heal.That being said, however, there is another pitfall,
namely the motives of the proponents of the case, who also happen
to be leading opposition politicians.Do they see it as a national
issue? If they won, where would the money go? Perhaps this is where
Mr.Ahrens ought to be focussing his concerns, not the domestic
problems of Germany and not the event of pre-colonial
Namibia.Casper W. Erichsen
Historian