A SENIOR church leader has called on Swapo to rein in its supporters, who have repeatedly disrupted the political gatherings of opposition parties.The Secretary General of the Council of Churches in Namibia, Reverend Phillip Strydom, when contacted for comment on the weekend’s political stand-off between Swapo and the Rally for Democracy and Progress at Outapi, said it appears that Swapo has lost control of its members.
‘We are extremely disappointed over what happened. Obviously, one would think that the Swapo leadership would undertake to speak to their members and explain to them the fundamental rights of democracy for all people. But either they didn’t speak to them, or they have no control. That is disappointing,’ Reverend Strydom said.
At the weekend, a letter by Swapo stalwart Andimba Toivo ya Toivo published in the local media also expressed concern about growing political violence in the country and appealed for tolerance and political maturity in the run-up to the 2009 presidential and general elections.
He said it is the ‘responsibility of leaders to ensure that those who exercise their rights to form political parties may do so in an atmosphere of tolerance and respect’.
Ya Toivo urged Swapo leaders to refrain from demonising political opponents as enemies.
‘You should refrain from vitriolic and personal attacks on opponents that could poison the minds of our young people to hate fellow Namibians or to commit acts of violence because of political differences. Those who left Swapo have become our political opponents, but they remain our brothers and sisters, nephews and nieces and social friends,’ Ya Toivo wrote.
Approached for comment on behalf of Government, Prime Minister Nahas Angula referred to Section 17 of the Constitution, which grants the ‘right to peaceful political activity’ and the ‘right to form and join political parties’ of their choice.
‘The Constitution is our starting point as it protects the rights of all citizens and as Government we stand by the Constitution,’ Angula said.
However, the Prime Minister took a swipe at the RDP party, saying ‘RDP is organising rallies whenever they seek publicity and they do it deliberately [holding rallies in certain areas]. They ferry people [to rallies] in cars from far away and they deliberately provoke. Maybe it is time people should ignore them.’
The RDP, whose planned rally at Outapi on Saturday was disrupted, said President Hifikepunye Pohamba and his Government will be judged harshly by history if anyone is killed in these violent acts.
‘President Pohamba and his Government must take action now,’ the RDP demanded in a statement issued late on Sunday.
‘Namibia is witnessing a dangerous trend evolving whereby Swapo repeatedly and violently disrupts RDP public gatherings,’ it said.
A large Swapo mob prevented the RDP rally from taking place, beating and stoning RDP members and even the Police, who were hopelessly outnumbered.
Eight RDP members were injured in the attack, six of them seriously. Some of the Swapo Party supporters were armed with firearms, pangas, axe handles, sticks and stones, the RDP claimed.
‘Contrary to the fact that the Namibian Constitution allows people to belong to any political party of their choice, Swapo arrogated to itself the right to decide that the RDP has no right to exist and to operate,’ the party said.
Some of the RDP victims have laid criminal charges against the Swapo Party at the Ongwediva Police station. Swapo supporters chanted inflammatory slogans such as ‘Omusati is a no-go area for RDP’.
‘The Outapi incident is very discouraging and was done Zanu-PF [of Zimbabwe] style by Swapo members,’ said Phil ya Nangoloh, Executive Director of the National Society for Human Rights (NSHR).
Efforts to obtain comment from Swapo yielded no results yesterday. Several phone calls were made to the office of Justice Minister Pendukeni Iivula-Ithana, who is also the Swapo Secretary General, and to the Swapo headquarters. Hennie Seibeb, personal assistant to Iivula-Ithana at the Swapo headquarters, was also contacted.
‘She [Iivula-Ithana] is in meetings,’ was the response every time.
Local and Regional Government Minister Jerry Ekandjo, who is also Swapo Information Secretary, requested all questions about Saturday’s violence in writing.
This was done and a secretary in Ekandjo’s office confirmed receipt of the fax, but no answers to the questions reached The Namibian by the time of going to press.
Police spokesperson Chief Inspector Hofni Hamufungu said a meeting was held yesterday at the Windhoek Police headquarters to discuss the report of the Omusati Regional Police Command.
‘An official statement will be issued Tuesday [today],’ Hamufungu told The Namibian.
The main opposition party, Congress of Democrats (CoD), condemned what it called ‘well-orchestrated political violence and thuggery’ of Swapo.
‘The weekend events in Omusati demonstrate beyond any doubt that Swapo and its leaders are prepared to go to any length including undermining the laws and the very Constitution which provide the basis of our state,’ CoD Secretary General Tsudao Gurirab said yesterday.
‘What its disturbing in the extreme is that the Swapo President, who is also the Head of State, is found wanting in action. His silence is deafening. We warn that if impunity of this nature is not nipped in the bud, it can snowball into an ugly social and civil conflict which could become uncontrollable.’
