Political Perspective

PERHAPS the Committee on the Welfare of Ex-Combatants, as they call themselves, should open dialogue with Chief Kuaima Riruako, so that they can act in concert on the reparations issue.

Both sides are taking up a lot of everyone’s time with their fairly incessant demands for compensation, which is something most should by now realise, is not going to happen. And Prime Minister Nahas Angula has as good as said so.SETTING precedents in giving to one side, but not another, would be dangerous, whether in fact the donors are either the German or Namibian government.And as I’ve said before, even if this compensation was possible in practical terms, how would decisions be made as to who got what and how much? How does one measure sacrifice in monetary terms? And to be blunt, the Herero under German genocide or the former fighters in the former People’s Liberation Army of Namibia (Plan) who fought the independence struggle, aren’t the only ones who did! There are many other groups, not to mention individuals, in Namibia, who have suffered in one way or another under injustice, either in German colonial times; under South African apartheid; or even in Swapo dungeons for that matter.One thing that we do know is that not every person referred to as an ‘ex-combatant’ was in fact even a fighter at all! Many are simply Namibians who went into exile, but did not necessarily experience the heat of battle.That’s not to say they didn’t sacrifice or experience hardship, but then who, except the majority of whites and black collaborators, didn’t suffer under the jackboot of apartheid in one way or another? Swapo failed to make this distinction early on after Independence, and this omission has, it seems, come back to haunt them.If they had established this up front, I do believe the whole ‘ex-combatant’ issue would be a lot easier to deal with right now.One gets the feeling right now that the ‘ex-combatants’ won’t be stilled with what they see as token projects.Most recently Government has announced a N$8-million housing plan for ex-combatants, former detainees and ‘internally brutalised’, but that’s not enough, it seems.For the Committee was still intent on Monday’s protest march late this week.Likewise Chief Riruako’s demand for reparations from Germany has been a tireless litany for years now.Again, who gets? Both the Namibian and the German governments are right when they say that if there’s money to be had, it should be spent on upliftment projects for the nation as a whole rather than specific groups.What’s the flipside? That we go back to the policy of ethnic differentiation practised under apartheid which we fought so hard to liberate ourselves from? The issue of demanding reparations on several fronts is really not taking this country forward in any way.It is very backward-looking to keep harping on the past.We know and commemorate the horrors and the heroes of those eras, whether German colonial or South African occupation.We put up statues, verbally honour their sacrifices in the national anthem, among others, and commemorate, especially the fallen, on national days.Do some believe material donations will wipe the slate clean? History is there to be remembered but not to be relived.Our founding President should have stopped short of insults and threats towards those demanding redress; but he was right, and made some effort to put the past in perspective and the efforts that had been made to assimilate former exiles, in the civil service and elsewhere.At present, the issue is going round in circles.We aren’t getting any further with solving what is such an intractable problem that it is really better dealt with on anything but an individual basis.Government is responsible for all the people of this country, not only those who fought the struggle.Likewise, it cannot support Riruako’s call for reparations which would benefit only the Herero-speaking group.They have to maintain a firm stance in this matter or incur the dissatisfaction of a majority of the population for making exceptions for certain groups.It appears the Prime Minister has done just that, and he really has no choice.A Swapo Government it may be, but they are still accountable to the broad majority of the population for their actions, and not just a select group of Party members.These groups simply have to come to terms with the impossibility of their demands being met for once and for all.And Prime Minister Nahas Angula has as good as said so.SETTING precedents in giving to one side, but not another, would be dangerous, whether in fact the donors are either the German or Namibian government.And as I’ve said before, even if this compensation was possible in practical terms, how would decisions be made as to who got what and how much? How does one measure sacrifice in monetary terms? And to be blunt, the Herero under German genocide or the former fighters in the former People’s Liberation Army of Namibia (Plan) who fought the independence struggle, aren’t the only ones who did! There are many other groups, not to mention individuals, in Namibia, who have suffered in one way or another under injustice, either in German colonial times; under South African apartheid; or even in Swapo dungeons for that matter.One thing that we do know is that not every person referred to as an ‘ex-combatant’ was in fact even a fighter at all! Many are simply Namibians who went into exile, but did not necessarily experience the heat of battle.That’s not to say they didn’t sacrifice or experience hardship, but then who, except the majority of whites and black collaborators, didn’t suffer under the jackboot of apartheid in one way or another? Swapo failed to make this distinction early on after Independence, and this omission has, it seems, come back to haunt them.If they had established this up front, I do believe the whole ‘ex-combatant’ issue would be a lot easier to deal with right now.One gets the feeling right now that the ‘ex-combatants’ won’t be stilled with what they see as token projects.Most recently Government has announced a N$8-million housing plan for ex-combatants, former detainees and ‘internally brutalised’, but that’s not enough, it seems.For the Committee was still intent on Monday’s protest march late this week.Likewise Chief Riruako’s demand for reparations from Germany has been a tireless litany for years now.Again, who gets? Both the Namibian and the German governments are right when they say that if there’s money to be had, it should be spent on upliftment projects for the nation as a whole rather than specific groups.What’s the flipside? That we go back to the policy of ethnic differentiation practised under apartheid which we fought so hard to liberate ourselves from? The issue of demanding reparations on several fronts is really not taking this country forward in any way.It is very backward-looking to keep harping on the past.We know and commemorate the horrors and the heroes of those eras, whether German colonial or South African occupation.We put up statues, verbally honour their sacrifices in the national anthem, among others, and commemorate, especially the fallen, on national days.Do some believe material donations will wipe the slate clean? History is there to be remembered but not to be relived.Our founding President should have stopped short of insults and threats towards those demanding redress; but he was right, and made some effort to put the past in perspective and the efforts that had been made to assimilate former exiles, in the civil service and elsewhere.At present, the issue is going round in circles.We aren’t getting any further with solving what is such an intractable problem that it is really better dealt with on anything but an individual basis.Government is responsible for all the people of this country, not only those who fought the struggle.Likewise, it cannot support Riruako’s call for reparations which would benefit only the Herero-speaking group.They have to maintain a firm stance in this matter or incur the dissatisfaction of a majority of the population for making exceptions for certain groups.It appears the Prime Minister has done just that, and he really has no choice.A Swapo Government it may be, but they are still accountable to the broad majority of the population for their actions, and not just a select group of Party members.These groups simply have to come to terms with the impossibility of their demands being met for once and for all.