Where History Stands

Museums play an integral part in the mission to safeguard a nation’s cultural, scientific and political history. As the Land of the Brave turns 30, we are urged to reflect on the country’s rich history in order to gauge the direction of our future.

The state of national museums in the country has been met with a series of complaints made by the general public. Deteriorating buildings, outside littering and poor maintenance of artefacts have left people in a state of bewilderment and worry about the legacy being created for future generations.

Concerned parents have lashed out on social media about the implications of ill-maintained museums for their children. The issue of conservation, in all aspects, is a pertinent one for the next generation of leaders to tackle seriously. The impressions children garner from their experiences exploring heritage sites will have a long-lasting impact on how they value history and culture moving forward.

“This weekend, a close friend and I took our kids to the Independence Memorial Museum. Whilst we had been there on several occasions before this time around it was mainly to realise it’s getting progressively worse.

“There are ‘random’ pictures, murals and artefacts to which the museum provides little to no context,” said a concerned parent in a posting on social media recently.

“Information plaques have seemingly been removed, all the TVs are off and the most prominent mural stretching over two levels of the museum no longer has lights and is partially being used as a storage facility. Namibia is trying to teach her young sons and daughters about Cassinga. About Omugulugwombashe. About apartheid. About resistance. About freedom. But how can this be done when the lights have literally been switched off?”

Opened on Independence Day 2014, the Independence Memorial Museum is just six years old. It was built to tell the story of Namibia’s fight against colonialism and to highlight the heroes of the liberation struggle. The 40-metre-high building stands prominently between the Christuskirche and the Alte Feste.

A bronze statue of founding president Sam Nujoma holding the Constitution proudly stands sentinel, having replaced the colonial Reiterdenkmal, which was moved to the Alte Feste Museum.

Meghan Kirkwood, in the report ‘Postindependence Architechture Through North Korean Modes’, describes the museum’s design and location as “a metaphorical affront to colonial structures which serves as a declarative and modern voice for the power and might of the new regime in the 21st century”.

In an interview with the Museums Association of Namibia (MAN), whose mission it is to support and encourage the establishment and development of museums throughout Namibia, the concerns of the public were brought forward in an effort to understand the nature of the museum field and the challenges they face in their operations.

“The sector is generally underfunded as is the case across the world. The state of the museum is usually dependent on the funds available for qualified staff, training of the staff, the development of new exhibitions, renovations, etc,” says MAN’s office manager, Ndapewoshali Ashipala.

This is corroborated internationally. In a report by proclaimed historian and author Sir David Cannadine from the United Kingdom, it is stated that “public spending on museums and their collections has decreased by 13% in real terms over the last decade”.

Cannadine goes further to explain that a significant number of public museums are more reactive as opposed to being proactive. By reactive, he implies cutting spending and activities and in reference to proactive he implies how the museums network and find funding alternatives.

Strolling through the public museums, the Independence Memorial Museum in particular reinforced Cannadine’s ideas in my mind. Lights and monitors were not fully functional. Collections have not been updated and others removed due to copyright claims, revealed an anonymous source.

The National Museum of Namibia looked as though it was shunned in the national budget. Immediately on entering the premises, a plastic Coke bottle decorates an antique wooden fishing boat that lies adjacent to the entrance doors. Specimens on display were decomposed and practically nonexistent.

The MAN, recognised by the Namibian government as the official voice of Namibian museums, acknowledged that they have received complaints regarding the state of the national museums but were unable to comment directly on their behalf.

“We will be looking into addressing the issue in the next annual general meeting with our members,” said Ashipala.

Due to the closure of public spaces in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, efforts to get comment from the Independence Memorial Museum’s chief curator were unsuccessful.

The MAN will also be celebrating 30 years since commencing their operations as an NGO. Some of their achievements in the last few years include the opening of the Windhoek City Museum, The Zambezi Museum as well as a mobile exhibition on Namibian music, and one on Namibian fashion which will be coming up in 2021.

Ashipala praised private sector galleries which are making efforts to conserve contemporary art and expanding collections, such as StArt Art Gallery, which is a member of the MAN.

“We encourage artists to join our membership network and connect with museum professionals. Members are eligible to apply for participation in training courses organised by the MAN,” said Ashipala.

Curator, researcher and PhD artist Nashilongweshipwe Mushaandja says museums in Africa are in crisis.

“They are not just rigid and inaccessible to diverse publics, they also lack a social infrastructure. The Independence Memorial Museum in particular has been criticised for not being inclusive in its exhibitions of the liberation struggle. It presents a selective history that deliberately excludes other histories that have contributed to the struggle for freedom.”

He believes more funding is needed to look at developing a social infrastructure for local museums.

“Museums need to collaborate with social workers, artists, forensic psychologists, economists, therapists, activists and educators as a way of making them dynamic and socially engaged spaces. These multiple voices can generate alternative streams of funding and move the museum from being product-based to process-based. In order for the Independence Memorial Museum to see itself as a museum of process, it will have to move from being a rigid space and confront its patriarchal narrative of liberation histories.”

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