Kosie Pretorius On The Namibian at 25

WHY me? What weight can my opinion carry in the role of The Namibian over the past 25 years? Why was I the one, also ten years after its inception, who was asked to write something?

It remains my point of view that I have tried very hard never to doubt the good intentions and integrity of somebody (also a newspaper), but I will also not keep quiet when I think something is wrong. I also remain of the opinion that one can differ on policy directions, but not on experience. Should I therefore tell somebody that a certain policy direction is right, and he or she differs from me based on personal experience, then my argument has no leg to stand on. Mutual understanding with the necessary right to differ, therefore remains the only way to defuse a dispute.
This is where The Namibian came in. As far as the political future of then South West Africa was concerned, I have always believed that it had to be achieved within the framework of the mandate stipulations and prescriptions of the League of Nations and the Permanent Mandate Commission. This did not exclude the possibility of joining the Republic of South Africa.
International developments and a change of strategy by South Africa however discarded this possibility. Therefore the National Party of SWA, like Swapo, followed a policy of self-determination and independence from 1974.
However, I could not identify with the method agreed on by the RSA, the United Nations and Swapo, especially after I took over the leadership in 1981. I felt that the instructions of the Permanent Mandate Commission was one of the options that the relevant parties should have discussed. When they refused, the underlying talks, also with Swapo, were blocked.
There was a serious lack of mutual insight into the fears and needs of one another. Then The Namibian appeared on the scene. Personally I found it a handy source of information to also find out how the ‘other side’ thought. At least we knew were we stood with each other.
I therefore didn’t doubt The Namibian’s pure intentions to help people to form a better understanding of each other’s points of view, even though we didn’t always agree with the contents.
Unfortunately it is also true that people who tell things they way they are, can’t satisfy everybody’s preferences. The Namibian also had to pay the price for this in the new dispensation.
In al my years in executive positions in government institutions, nothing upset me more than a civil servant giving me advice which he or she believed I didn’t really want to hear.
That The Namibian has been succeeding in not creating this image, says a lot. May this newspaper never lose this characteristic.
From our side: Well done and everything of the best for the future. Keep it up.

* JWF (Koos) Pretorius is Chairman of Monitor Aksiegroup and was asked to write a piece on The Namibian’s 25th anniversary.

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