Already in 1978 there was a possibility for Namibia to attain freedom when some stumbling blocks entered the works. One was that the South African military forces attacked Namibian refugees at Kassinga in Southern Angola leaving hundreds dead and capturing many. Another was that when the South African government realised that nations of the world, including her traditional allies, were resolute, they developed a new delay: Namibia could attain independence, but South Africa would retain Namibia’s sole deep sea harbour of Walvisbaai.
Three central European countries, namely Great Britain, Germany and France plus two North American countries, Canada and the United States of America, concocted a plan based on the United Nations Organization’s decolonization resolution 385. This group of five countries came to be known as the Western Contact Group. This plan was modified to facilitate Namibia’s freedom without the harbour of Walvisbaai. Pressure was brought to bear on the Organization of African Unity, latter the forerunner of the present African Union, the Frontline States and in the end the South West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO), to agree to the said negotiated settlement. And these drawn out negotiations came to modify the said resolution 385 of 1978, to culminate into the United Nations Security Council Resolution 435. According to this plan, Namibia would become independent through United Nations supervised elections.
Shortly after independence the two countries opened negotiations on the reintegration of Walvisbaai into Namibia, still problems dragged on. One such test was the organization of Namibia’s first population census. There was a stalemate on this one as South Africa refused to open up Walvisbaai for the exercise. In this process, the Namibian government dispatched three permanent secretaries to negotiate with the South African regime, they were Ndali Kamati, of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Andreas Guibeb, Foreign Affairs, Bob Kandetu Information and Broadcasting. Neil van Heerden, then South Africa’s Director General for Foreign Affairs did not pitch for the Walvisbaai meeting and had sent two juniors with a singular directive. The meeting started cordially, after the formalities, one of them produced a page upon which appeared a twenty word sentence. It read: “There is no law in South Africa that allows a foreign government to conduct a census on South African territory”. The two South Africans would not entertain questions.
The situation was subsequently characterized by intermittent tensions, to the point that the South African government decided to demand that Namibians living in Walvisbaai had to carry a Namibian passport or an identity document. The tensions reached their peak when one evening Home Affairs Deputy Minister Nangolo Ithete, took to the stage and berated the South African government for their bad neighbourliness. The South African government responded by virtually closing the border between Walvisbaai and Swakopmund and that weekend Namibians would cross into Walvisbaai only when carrying identity documents which most Namibians did not have. The situation was chaotic as many people were stranded in Swakopmund on a Monday morning when they should report for work in Walvisbaai.
On the same Monday morning Namibia’s Cabinet met at State House in Swakopmund. Stranded workers flocked to the site of State House in desperation and media pestered me as Permanent Secretary for Information and Broadcasting and thus spokesperson for Namibia’s government. I appraised President Nujoma on the situation and he tabled the crisis at the Cabinet meeting. Cabinet assigned Hifikepunye Pohamba as minister of Home Affairs to talk to the stranded workers who by then counted in thousands. Minister Pohamba’s mood was electric and I knew this was bound to be a difficult day. As I followed him to the site of the meeting I softly gave him tips on how best to handle the situation. Minister Pohamba was very emotional and virtually shivering with rage, but he was receptive and managed to remain collected. He assured the stranded workers that Walvisbaai was indeed Namibia and that developments on the ground marked the last strides before the South African government finally left Namibia. He made a very impressive off the cuff presentation to the relief of the stranded workers.
During this meeting I was alerted that a tense situation was unfolding at the border post and I informed Minister Pohamba. He showed interest and wanted to come with me to the border post. I managed to dissuade him and I rushed to the site of the roadblock. Upon my arrival, Sackie Namugongo of the Namibia Broadcasting Corporation was covering the story on television camera. The South African military officers were privy to the story as it unfolded and they threatened to confiscate the cameras and lock up Sackie and his crew. After altercations with the commander latter was persuaded to withhold his actions on the proviso that we removed Sackie and his crew from the site. I ordered Sackie to take his crew and leave the site and he left reluctantly.
As I turned away to inspect the long lines on both sides of the roadblock I saw a dark grey left hand- driven landcruizer raising through the desert from the side of Walvisbaai towards the roadblock. I developed shivers in my spine when I realized that the sole occupant next to the driver was Comrade Maxhulili and at that point I knew that I had been wrong to think that my work was over. Maxuilili jumped off the land cruiser, ignored my hand and walked straight to the manning point of the road block where the commander was busy giving orders to his personnel. They all turned around to look at this lone old man, one swiftly walked over to the landcruizer; inspected in fast. He returned to the scene of the drama and mumbled a few details to the commander. Maxhilili said in the Afrikaans language: “Bok Naaiers, het julle weer begin!” (Sorry but there is no English translation for this one as the Bishop of my church will read this write-up). Now I felt my heart in my shoes and before I could say anything, the commander grabbed Maxuilili with both hands around his neck, he lifted him; carried him to a spot behind the main tent of the command structure. No, thank goodness, he did not throw him to the ground. To my relief he put him down, warned him sternly and walked away. Maxhuilili furiously looked around through the barren desert as if to unleash his own troops, there were none.
I walked over to Maxhilili and lied: “Comrade Mahuilili, our Cabinet is in session in Swakopmund and the President had sent me to collect you for the meeting, only that I was held up at this stupid roadblock.” He looked me in the eyes and for the first time he saw me there. He said: “Kandetu! Where are they?” I rushed him to State House. I opened the door to the cabinet meeting without showing my face and as he entered the boardroom I closed the door behind him and hurriedly left the place.
I wished I could swallow a double-tot whiskey. Even though I never tasted any, I always heard my friend Nikko Bessinger say after a hard day that he wants to swallow a double-tot Scottish whiskey. This was a day complete with drama and characterized by tensions. Hundreds of Namibians remained stranded for days.