NAMIBIA has a history of land dispossession and contestation, which have resulted in various types of inequalities and a skewed distribution of land. Historically, land has been the subject of conflicts, conquests, expropriation and exploitation – some of them violent and bloody.
Today’s planned mass land applications campaign, steered countrywide by Affirmative Repositioning, is by and large influenced by events of the dark history of our country.
That dark history of land acquisition and expropriation has greatly influenced the socio-economic and political positions of different groups of people in our country.
Affirmative Repositioning’s Job Amupanda and Swapo secretary general Nangolo Mbumba have been bickering all week over the planned applications, and it was taxing to watch.
The threats and counter-threats are, in the eyes of many, uncivilised and pose a threat to the very foundation on which our country stands as a democracy and an orderly society.
Enough has been said about the stance of both warring parties. Amupanda says his actions are influenced by the skewed status quo of land ownership in the country. Mbumba too agrees on the skewedness of land ownership, but differs with Amupanda on the approach employed to rectify the situation.
But perhaps what Namibians did not notice in this whole squabbling is its generational-conflict element. By and large, this has been a fight pitting the younger generation against the older one.
Generational conflict arises whenever the interests or ideals of one generation collide openly with those of another. A generation is defined here as a “cohort group” that is born over a span of years — typically about 20 — and that shares characteristics, including some shared childhood and coming-of-age experiences, a set of common behavioural and attitudinal traits, and a sense of common identity.
What we have seen in the past couple of weeks in the “us vs them” type of situation, where the largely landless younger generation claim there is inadequate political will to liberate them from their situation.
They also feel that the majority of elders own land – on which they erected houses or have thriving farms.
The older generations, while conceding that indeed the land issue needs urgent attention, feel that young people have become a tad pushy and disrespectful in their quest. There is also a feeling among elders that the persistence by young people could plunge the country into chaos and render society ungovernable.
Generational conflicts – just like any other conflict – can be dangerous. Wars and economic dislocations always have been regarded as generation-defining events.
Despite deep-seated generational differences, Namibians must avoid having more than one centre of power. This is attained by having both generations accommodating the circumstances of the other, and being sensitive towards such circumstances.
No generation should impose its entire set of ideals onto the other. No generation is more Namibian than the other, hence the need for both to meet each other halfway, accommodate each other’s needs and reach a compromise where necessary.
Many elders might be in the evenings of their lives, but they still have a future in this country and have a right to express themselves on issues.
Equally, the youth have the right to demand the very best from their motherland. No views – whether expressed by an elder or a young person – should be dismissed simply because they belong to a certain generation. Everyone has a right to be listened to.
Going forward, we want to see positive and peaceful engagements on the issue of land. After all, none of the warring generations is disputing that there is indeed a land crisis in the country.
Our hope and prayer is that today’s planned applications of land across the country will go peacefully and that our nation emerges from this process stronger and united.