Inside the House Namibia Built: Open Windows and a breath of fresh air

Greg Mills interviews President Dr Hage Geingob  Africa 12 Sep 2016 02:59 (South Africa)

849x493q70Mills Geingob Interview MAIN PHOTOJust a quarter-century ago, Namibia was only, and frequently, in the news for conflict and a failure to compromise. But the Namibia of today holds lessons for South Africa. By GREG MILLS.

The names of Windhoek’s streets are evidence of Namibia’s difficult past – but also its pragmatism.

Where Fidel Castro Street intersects with Independence (formerly Kaiser Street) Avenue, there are signs to Christus Kirche, Reiterdenkmal and Alte Feste. Kenneth David Kaunda, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, and Nelson Mandela are among those honoured with street names from Africa’s liberation history, and today they crisscross a pantheon of local heroes and German colonists.

The German colonial period was short, just 30 years, and brutal, including the slaughter of between 25,000 and 65,000 Hereros and 1,000 Namas, respectively 50-70% and 50% of their populations. This was followed by 75 years of South African occupation, reinforcing the colonial patterns of identity and racial privilege. Please click here to read the full interview...