Ongwediva
Members of the Namibia Namibia War Veteran Trust (Namvet) earlier this week met Ovaheroro Paramount Chief Vekuii Rukoro during a closed-door meeting.
Rukoro, who admitted to have met Otjiherero-speaking former SWATF and Koevoet members on Tuesday, said he was invited in his capacity as a traditional leader.
“They told me that they do not see consistency in the policy of national reconciliation. Among others, they want to be treated as their former colleagues that were taken into the Namibian Defence Force (NDF) and police at independence. They also want to be recognized as war veterans,” said Rukoro.
According to Rukoro some of the former members of the South African uniformed forces told him they did not join the colonial forces willingly, but they were forced by traditional leaders to join SWATF and Koevoet.
Oddly, such leaders are at the forefront of today’s government as parliamentarians and special advisers, while the people that they forced to join the enemy’s troops are suffering, he said.
When asked if Namvet’s claims are legitimate Rukoro said: “What do you think? Ask the president, ask the government. A veteran is just a veteran, which side you were is irrelevant. We are united under the policy of national reconciliation.”
“Let us forgive and forget, let us reconcile and live in peace. That is what national reconciliation is all about. Even we (Ovaherero), who lost our ancestral land to the Germans – we recently held a conference where we discussed that we should forget. If we want land we should pay for land. It is the price we have to pay because of the national reconciliation policy.
“I hope that we’ll have wisdom as people, as a government to listen to each other and find solutions,” said Rukoro.
Namvet chairperson Frans Jabulani Ndeunyema says the group invited Rukoro, not as a member of Namvet but as the chief of the Ovaherero. He said Namvet members are aware that Rukoro supported the war of liberation and that he is in fact a recognized war veteran.
“We have only approached him as a leader. We know that he was not in Koevoet nor was he in SWATF but he is the chief of the Ovaherero. At least 70 percent of former South African forces that are Otjiherero speaking were not given employment in the Namibian Defence Force, most of them are unemployed,” said Ndeunyema.
He said the group is camping at Herero Mall which is believed to be under Ovaherero Traditional Authority jurisdiction.
Former members of Koevoet and SWATF are gathered in Katutura, camping at Herero Mall in former Herero location, where they said they will gather until government responds to their plight.
Some of those that are camping came from as far as Opuwo, Kaoko and Aminuis, according to Ndeunyema.
“Chief Rukoro is the leader of Ovaherero and we are illegally camping at his place; that is why we called him to explain ourselves. We also wanted to make it clear to the chief that we are not using Herero Mall as an army base. We don’t want war, we want peace. All we want is government to respond to our plight,” said Ndeunyema.